Myrtle Point & Promontory Butte - Gila Co. High Point(s)

Arizona County HP: #9
Difficulty: ⭐️ (on a scale of 4)
Summit Elevation: 7,935 feet
Mountain Range: Mogollon Rim
Ancestral Lands: Western Apache (Tonto), Hohokam

PLANNING DETAILS

Location: Gila County has two places, roughly 9 miles apart on the top of the Mogollon Rim, that measure at the same elevation: Myrtle Point and Promontory Butte. The closest town with amenities is Payson, AZ.

When to Visit: Spring through Fall. The easiest way to access these two high points is via Rim Road (NF-300). The USFS closes access to this partially paved road atop the Mogollon Rim during the winter months. Visitors can check the status of Rim Road HERE.

Fees/Permits Required: No.

Getting There: Both of the Gila County high points are accessible via Rim Road (NF-300). This 73-mile forest road parallels the top of the Mogollon Rim between Baker Lake (AZ Hwy. 87) and the Mogollon Rim Visitor Center (AZ Hwy. 260). The easiest driving approach is via the east end of Rim Road, because the first 14 miles will be paved.

Directions from Phoenix: Follow AZ-202 east toward Tempe/Mesa. Take Exit 13 (AZ-87) toward Payson and follow AZ-87 north for 73 miles. At the northern end of Payson, turn right onto AZ-260 toward Show Low. Follow AZ-260 east for 30 miles to the Mogollon Visitor Center. Turn left onto Rim Road (NF-300) and follow the road west toward each high point.

Promontory Butte: Follow Rim Road (NF-300) west for 13.5 miles. Turn left on Promontory Butte Road (NF-76) and continue south on the dirt road for 6.5 miles. The Promontory Butte CoHP is located near the rim’s edge.
Myrtle Point: Follow Rim Road (NF-300) west for 22.7 miles. The road is paved for the first 14 miles, then transitions to a dirt road for the remaining 9 miles. Turn left on NF-300C and follow the road south for 0.6 miles. The Myrtle Point CoHP is located on a rise on the right side of the forest road, with a rock pile near the rim’s edge.

Directions from Flagstaff: Follow Lake Mary Road south for 55 miles until it intersects with AZ-87. Turn right onto AZ-87 toward Payson, and continue on AZ-87 south for 37.4 miles. At the north end of Payson, turn left onto AZ-260 toward Show Low. Follow AZ-260 east for 30 miles to the Mogollon Visitor Center. Turn left onto Rim Road (NF-300) and follow the road west toward each high point.

Promontory Butte: Follow Rim Road (NF-300) west for 13.5 miles. Turn left on Promontory Butte Road (NF-76) and continue south on the dirt road for 6.5 miles. The Promontory Butte CoHP is located near the rim’s edge.
Myrtle Point: Follow Rim Road (NF-300) west for 22.7 miles. The road is paved for the first 14 miles, then transitions to a dirt road for the remaining 9 miles. Turn left on NF-300C and follow the road south for 0.6 miles. The Myrtle Point CoHP is located on a rise on the right side of the forest road, with a rock pile near the rim’s edge.

Parking: There is no designated parking for either of these high points. Visitors typically park along the respective access roads (NF-76 or NF-300C) and walk the remaining distance cross-country to the rim’s edge. Limited amenities (potable water, vault toilets, and trash) may be available at the seasonal USFS campgrounds along Rim Road during the peak season of May-September.

Pets Allowed: Yes.

Kid Friendly: Younger children must be closely supervised to ensure they do not wander too close to the rim’s edge. There is no protective fencing at either high point.

The Summit: Both high points have a rock pile near the rim’s edge to mark them. Promontory Butte’s rock pile is fairly large, and there is a summit register inside a jar at the base of the rock pile. Myrtle Point’s rock pile is more of a cairn, and the summit register was destroyed by the elements.

TRIP SUMMARY

Date Visited: April 22, 2026

Route Used: Cross-country travel from each high points respective access road. The hike to Promontory Butte’s summit was 0.9 miles round-trip from NF-76. The hike to Myrtle Point’s high point was 1.9 miles round-trip from the junction of NF-300 and Rim Road.

My first real experience with Gila County’s dueling high points was during my 2023 thru-hike of the Highline Trail. This 58-mile National Recreation Trail runs just below the Mogollon Rim and was once used by 19th-century homesteaders in “Rim Country” to reach the town of Pine, AZ.

My plan that spring was to hike a circuit around this uber scenic section of the Mogollon Rim. I wanted to hike the Highline Trail eastbound from the Pine Trailhead to the 260 Trailhead. Then, the return trip would take me up the escarpment via the Military Sinkhole Trail #179, where I’d hike west on a combination of trails and Rim Road #300.

Unfortunately, 2023 was a significantly high-snow year in Arizona. The snow was still packed high atop the rim in mid-April, and one horseback rider I met during my hike told me she rode up one of the trails to the rim’s edge, but had to turn back because the snow was still 3-4 feet deep.

As a result, I was only able to reach the lower-elevation section of my proposed loop. And I was limited to viewing Myrtle Point and Promontory Butte from below rather than hiking to each of them that spring.

Sign from the AZT Association at my starting trailhead in Pine, AZ, warning hikers about the snow on the top of the Mogollon Rim

Views of the Rim in 2023 (it didn’t look too snowy from afar)

My return trip to the Mogollon Rim was part of an 8-day highpointing trip in April 2026. After summiting Mt. Union (the Yavapai CoHP) yesterday afternoon, I drove east from Prescott toward Payson, AZ. This was my first time approaching the area from the west, and the drive from Camp Verde and the Montezuma Castle National Monument along AZ-260 was fantastically scenic. It’s one I highly recommend every Arizona lover do at least once.

Drive from the west from Camp Verde toward Payson

Unfortunately, I didn’t arrive at the Mogollon Rim Visitor Center until right around dusk, so I had to race up Rim Road to get to the overlooks where I could take in the views of a magical pink sunset from the this elevated vantage point.

With zero chance that I would get to either of the Gila CoHPs with any daylight, I drove west on Rim Road until NF-76 (Promontory Butte Road) and then found myself a nice dispersed campsite where I could spend the evening.

Once daylight arrived at 5 am (thanks to Arizona’s refusal to observe Daylight Saving Time), I was up and ready to tackle these two high points. Since I was already camping on NF-76, Promontory Butte would be the first one I’d visit.

The dirt forest road was pretty slow going in my small rental car (an AWD Kia Niro), and I didn’t want to risk doing anything too crazy or going too fast because this would have been a terrible place to try to call for a tow truck. After driving about 2.7 miles south down dirt forest road, NF-76 began to turn east, away from where I’d marked the high point on my map.

This was my signal to park the car near a wider spot on the road and set off cross-country toward the part of the woods where I believed the high point would be. There was no trail or road out to the highest point on Promontory Butte, so it would have to be a half mile of dodging and weaving boulders and fallen trees.

Thanks to fellow highpointers, I’d marked exactly where the CoHP should be on my map, and I was able to walk right to the rock pile that marked the highest point on the butte. Although it was bright enough to see during my walk, the sun’s glowing orb was just starting to rise above the trees to my east when I reached the rock pile. Talk about some great sunrise photos to accompany last night’s sunset views..

The rim and just as the sun was peeking over the trees

Side view of the rock pile showing the rim’s steep and drop-off

I’m glad I hadn’t tried to do this hike in the dark. One wrong step over the rim could have been a tragedy. Besides, who wouldn’t want to see the sunrise from this vantage point?

The rockpile held a red coffee can and a plastic jar containing the summit register. So naturally, I had to sign my name before returning the full notebook and a few loose blank pages to the jar.

Summit register in the red can at the rock pile

After hiking cross-country back to the car, it was time to return to NF-300 and continue driving west toward the second possible Gila CoHP. I assumed the drive would be just as easy as it had been last night, but I was barely back on NF-300 when the pavement ended and the road transitioned to dirt.

Interestingly, this is always where I came upon a few large forest signs. It appears that Promontory Butte was inside the Apache-Sitgreave National Forest, while Myrtle Point was in the Coconino National Forest.

National Forest sign on Rim Road between the two Gila CoHPs

After close to 9 miles of driving on the flat dirt road, I finally made it to NF-300C, the road leading toward Myrtle Point. Unfortunately, this was another place where I wasn’t willing to risk getting the rental car stuck. The road entrance was flooded and muddy, and the mud was like thick peanut butter. It would create a suction that was sure to result in nothing good.

So, I sighed with some resignation and parked at the junction with Rim Road, once again lamenting the fact that I’d been too cheap to rent something with 4WD.

Entrance to NF-300C was not rental car friendly

Once again, I had the CoHP marked on my map, and after about 0.5 miles, I could see a modest rise off to my right side. I hiked cross-country again toward the higher ground, then circled it for a bit while looking for a rock pile marking the spot.

There were more than a few fire pits made from rocks, and some small boulders that naturally emerged from the ground. But nothing that clearly seemed to be the high point. Maybe this wasn’t it??

This appeared to be the highest point on Myrtle Point

I decided to continue the rest of the way down NF-300C, just to see if there was anything higher in that direction as it approached the rim. Unfortunately, that was a bust, too. The road dropped in elevation and the end of the road was 100% lower than the spot I’d come from.

As I turned around to head back, I could see the higher elevation from where I’d come. And I decided that I would follow the rim’s edge instead of the road, just in case I came across a rock pile marking the CoHP near the rim.

This turned out to be an excellent strategy because, just as I was beginning to turn inland to head back to the high ground, I spotted a small rock cairn near the rim’s edge. It was markedly smaller than the one at Promontory Butte, but it was 100% manmade.

Looking back at Myrtle Point’s high point from the end of NF-300C

There was a red can near the rock pile, just as there had been at Promontory Butte. But this summit register had seen better days. The lid to the plastic container holding the register was missing. And the notebook inside had succumbed to the elements as a result. It was just a wilted clump of paper, and there wasn’t even a pencil inside.

If I’d known this beforehand, I would have brought out a new jar and a CoHP register to replace this worthless remnant.

The lid to the jar holding this wadded up summit register was AWOL

I wasn’t going to spend too much time worrying about this loss today. It was early yet, and I still had the long, long drive to Chinle, AZ, where I planned to stop at the Tseyi Heritage Cottonwood Campground to get a permit to hike my next CoHP – Black Mesa HP in Navajo County.

And so I began the 22-mile drive east on Rim Road back to AZ Hwy 87 and the Mogollon Visitors Center before saying goodbye to Gila County once again.

BONUS MATERIAL

Public Camping Nearby:

Mogollon Campground is located on Rim Road/NF-300, approximately 1 mile from the junction with AZ-260. This USFS campground is open seasonally from late April to early October and features 26 campsites, picnic tables, vault toilets, and potable water. Online reservations are available for the peak season, and are only available on a first-come, first-served basis at the start/end of the season. Cost: $18/night.
Aspen Camground is located near Rim Road/NF-300, near Woods Canyon Lake. This popular USFS campground is open seasonally from late April to early October and features 135 campsites, picnic tables, vault toilets, potable water, boat ramp, marina, and a small general store. Online reservations are available for the peak season, and are only available on a first-come, first-served basis at the beginning and end of the season. Cost: $35/night.
Canyon Point Campground is located on AZ-260, approximately 5 miles east of the Mogollon Rim Visitor Center/Rim Road. This USFS campground is open seasonally from late April to early October and features 113 campsites (including 32 with electricity), picnic tables, toilets, showers, potable water, trash, and an RV dump station. Online reservations are available for the peak season, and are only available on a first-come, first-served basis at the beginning and end of the season. Cost: $38/night (standard campsite), $50/night (electric campsite).

Alternate Routes:

Highline Trail (#31) is a 58-mile, physically demanding National Recreation Trail that runs from east to west below the Mogollon Rim. Backpackers and hikers can access the Highline Trail from multiple trailheads near AZ-260 to see Promontory Butte and Myrtle Point from below. Numerous side trails break off from the Highline Trail, taking hikers north up the steep escarpment to the top of the Mogollon Rim, including the Horton Springs Trail #292 (near Promontory Butte), the Babe Haught Trail #143 (near Myrtle Point), and the Myrtle Trail #30 (Myrtle Point).

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