Each year we try to make a trip up north in Arizona to see the fall colors and that is the main reason for our trip up the Mogollon Rim. Of course finding the right areas might be difficult as the Rim covers a huge area so we first stop at the different overlooks to see if we can notice any color in the distance and while there is relatively little the views are great as usual and not blocked this time by campers as it is late in the season.
 |  |
| Mogollon Rim View | You can see far in the distance |
 |  |
| Rugged Mogollon Rim | Beautiful view from overlook |
On the Rim Road we stop also at the General Springs Cabin for a short tour of the cabin. Usually the parking lot is full but today the traffic is very light which makes the visit quite enjoyable.
 |  |
| General Springs Cabin | Inside the cabin |
Next is our first walk for the day a short jaunt along the Barbershop Trail where the trees are in full colors and we walk slowly taking photos and just enjoying the beautiful forest.
 |  |
| Color on the Barbershop Trail | Enjoying the fall colors |
 |  |
| Enjoying the walk | Mix of colors |
Afterwards we take a longer hike along the U Bar Trail which has much less color however it is a nice hike near a creek that we enjoy a lot. We stop and turn around at the ruins of a cabin we find in the woods, in fact the whole trail system here is known as the cabin loop due to the number of cabins that can be found along the loop.
 |  |
| Trail in the pines | Forest floor |
 |  |
| Riparian study area | The creek |
 |  |
| Is there a bear inside? | Destroyed cabin on the way |
While shopping in the area we stopped for a few minutes to walk around this artificial lake near a few businesses. On weekend it is peacefully quiet with ducks and turtles enjoying the nicely maintained area.
 |  |
| Pond full of ducks | Should I enter the water? |
 |  |
| Just swimming around | Close up of ducks |
 |  |
| Turtles on the shore | Right before jumping in |
Today we intend to explore a rarely visited trail, the Mail Trail. It has two trailheads both from the same road but while the first one is car accessible the second one is accessible only by high clearance 4WD so we stop at the first trailhead just off the 260 highway. The trail is mostly well marked by metal cairn markers and it is important to always be on the lookout for the next one as the trail is mostly non existent and is easy to lose.
 |  |
| Mail trail - descriptive board | Trail cairn |
 |  |
| Embelished cairn | Typical view |
In fact many times it felt like we were going crosscountry following the haphazard trail markers. Sometimes however it was following old trails and roads but only for a short time and then it veered off again crosscountry.
 |  |
| Trail is barely visible | This is the "well maintained" portion of the trail |
The landscape is dotted by trees and we see quite a few birds, especially jays, flitting between the trees in front of us.
 |  |
| Old tree near trail | Large tree |
After about 3 miles we decide to turn around and hike crosscountry back to our car (not a real change from the trail). Almost immediately we find a few cows and then we notice that we pass right through a large herd that is dispersed underneath the trees and is watching us intently.
 |  |
| First cow we noticed in the area | All cows were really alert |
On our return trip to Phoenix we stop a few times to take in the changing landscapes along the 260 highway, there are quite a few great views of the countryside from the side of the road. As it gets darker we enjoy the moonrise - the moon is full and shining brightly above the surrounding hills.
 |  |
| View from the road | Nice view of the typical Arizona hillside |
 |  |
| Moonrise | Zooming in closer |
Rio Salado Habitat Restoration Area has a few trails near a seasonal river that we wanted to explore for some time. When we found out about the art sale at the Audubon Center next to the trail we decided to combine it with a visit to the Rio Salado trails nearby. The art sale is quite popular with the parking lot threatening to fill up. We wandered through both the permanent exhibitions and the art sale stands and it was quite interesting and gave us a few ideas regarding locations to visit as well as an occassion to buy a few interesting items. The center is also worth a visit to go out on the veranda overlooking a nice pond.
 |  |
| Entrance of new Audubon Center- must be hot in summer | Art festival at the Audubon Center |
After exiting the Audubon Center we decided to drive across the bridge and park in the dedicated parking lot for Rio Salado. As we walk down to the river trail there is a relatively scary camera telling that it is taking pictures of you tresspassing even though you are on a city trail...weird. We also pass a point of interest named "Waterfall" that we cannot visit unfortunately as there is an entire tour group listening to a long lecture at the location. As we get to the linear trail near the wash there are lots of colorful trees and the trail looks interesting but we do not have that much time to explore today and after a quarter mile return back to the parking lot.
 |  |
| Map of the Rio Salado Habitat Restoration Area | Trail through the park |
 |  |
| View from the trail | Yellow splash |
As we return to the parking lot we stop and enjoy the maintained pond that even has a few ducks. There are a few families that are feeding the ducks who seem really eager to get the crumbs. Overall it is a nice area during the day but probably not the best place in the evening due to the likelihood of homeless people coming from downtown to sleep in the park.
 |  |
| Maintained pond near the entrance | Ducks on pond |
 |
| Black Canyon River Wash |
The area on the west side of I-17 between the Bumblebee and Bloody Basin exits is an area that we explored multiple times using both established trails such as the Black Canyon Trail as well as just going offtrail to whatever point of interest captured our attention. Today our goal is to explore the Black Canyon area. From the maps it has roads entering it from both north and south and it also shows quite a few mines on the topo map. We try first the access near Bumblebee however there are lots of people in the area ATV-ing and we prefer a quiet hike so we drive around to the other entrance near Cleator. While Cleator (especially the bar) is busy as we leave the main road and drive away from Cleator there is no one around. After driving for about a mile we stop and decide to hike in the rest of the way (high clearance needed up to our parking spot but 4WD necessary when descending in the canyon. After leaving the car as we follow the road on the crest the views are very nice and typical of this area with mountains on both sides. However after a mile we start descending in the canyon and after arriving at the bottom (about 400 ft descent) there are different sights and sounds - trees with leaves changing color, pools of water and birds singing.
 |  |
| View of the surrounding mountains | Beautiful wash with changing colors |
 |  |
| Road near the wash | Sometimes the road goes through the wash |
The vegetation both on top and at the bottom of the canyon is interesting and varied, one of our major finds right next to the road was a crested saguaro which is a relatively rare mutation.
 |  |
| Grass near the road | Interesting tree |
 |  |
| Chollas near the road | Rare crested saguaro |
But nature is not the only thing that we see in the area. There is evidence of human presence especially through the many mines we see dotting the canyon walls. We even hike up to one which actually didn't seem that old but it also didn't seem to be in use anymore. There are lots of remains of human activity mostly metal detritus.
 |  |
| Mine from the distance | Close up of mine |
 |  |
| View of area from the mine | Remains from the mine |
We also find proof that it is still an active mining area or at least there are a lot of claims staked on both sides of the road but there is no one out here and we do not see any evidence of recent mining even though somebody was nice enough to maintain the road. As it gets later during the day we decide to turn around and we find a good point to do this as we discover stone remains from houses probably during the mining or ranching time of the area. We have hiked 4 miles to this location and it is getting late so we start back after examining and enjoying the historical area.
 |  |
| Mining claims are everywhere | Ruins of stone walls are relatively common |
 |  |
| A better preserved building near the road | Back of the building looks natural |
On the way back it gets chilly as the sun is not falling anymore in parts of the canyon and a cold wind starts blowing strongly at times. Still the views are beautiful and the walk in the canyon is level so we make good time back to our car and arrive right before sunset so we can turn around and leave the area.
Overall this area was beautiful at this time of the year and very quiet when arriving from Cleator. There are both natural and human made attractions so it is worth a visit if in the area. We intend to try to access it also from the opposite end sometime in the future to see if it matches in beauty with the area that we hiked through.
 |  |
| Quiet road through wash | Late afternoon view of the mountains |
While in the area to buy stuff for the holidays we decided to also explore shortly the National Forest area near New River. We tried different ways to access the area until finally finding the correct access of New River Rd which is via Circle Mountain and then 12th Street. The area is full of cholla cacti which makes for difficult hiking if you intend to go offtrail and there is some trash due to the proximity to the city. There are a lot of trails crisscrossing the area but we didn't explore them in depth given our time constraints but we intend to come back and do a longer hike in the area.
 |  |
| Saguaro near road | Desert area |
 |
| View from Apache Maid trail |
Bell trail, the busy hiking trail next to the Wet Beaver River, is a trail that we passed a few times and intended to return and hike on it. Today is the day and as we get to the trailhead we are happy that it is relatively empty. This is because the trail is mostly used by people trying to get to the riverside and swim in the river and today it is cold even though it is sunny. The trailhead and the trail are well marked and soon we are on our way. The well maintained trail passes initially near private land that is signposted with "No Tresspassing" but soon enough it get closer to the river and we enter public lands.
 |  |
| Start of Bell trail | Well developed trail |
The river is in a canyon which has lots of evidence of human occupation from the ancient times (petroglyphs) to current (mines and farms). It is quite pictoresque with nice views of the river and the vegetation that surrounds it and the canyon sides.
 |  |
| View of the hillside | Rock with fainted petroglyphs |
After about two miles we try a side trail, Apache Maid Trail, that goes up the canyon rim to a mesa. The views are great but the climb is difficult due to the steep and not well maintained trail. As we arrive on top the wind starts to blow and it is getting chilly so we hurry downhill to the Bell trail and the parking lot. On the way we notice that parts of the canyon have become intensily red in the sunset light so we take quite a few pictures before continuing our retreat to the car which is showing 35 degrees F outisde.
Overall a nice and easy trail especially if you stay near the water and do not try any side trails.
 |  |
| There are also red stones sprinkled in the landscape | Red stones are catching fire in the evening sun |
 |
| View from the top of the mesa |
Today we decide to head up Cave Creek Road past the Seven Springs Area and investigate a mystery trail - Tonto National Forest trail 8. It is a mystery trail because there is no description of it on the main National Forest site as well very few descriptions online. But before starting on the long dirt road towards the trailhead we take a look at the Wildcat staging area to investigate it for a future trip - there are lots and lots of ATV so it doesn't look like a great area for a hike.
 |  |
| Wildcat staging area | Trail and road near the Wildcat staging area |
Cave Creek Road (which becomes Seven Springs Road) is paved the first few miles but is really curvy so it is best to drive slowly. It passes some interesting indian ruins (Sears Kay) that we visited some time ago. After that it becomes a good maintained dirt road and the only bad spots are when passing the Seven Springs area where during most times of the year you have to cross through a few inches of water. After about 1:30h we arrive at the side road leading to the trailhead. We drive half a mile on it and then continue on foot even though it is possible to drive to the trailhead carefully in a high clearance vehicle (4WD recommended). As we start walking we admire the snow-covered peaks in the distance and are surprised when we find also ice on the road even though it is relatively warm.
 |  |
| Mountains in the snow | Ice on the road |
We decide as a goal to climb if possible on a mesa (Hutch Mesa) that towers the area to get a good look of the surroundings. The road is quite level from the point we left our car so we make good time towards the mesa which seems more imposing the closer we get.
 |  |
| This is our goal | Getting closer |
Finally we arrive at the trailhead for trail #8 and it has a few parking spots and a sign pointing in the right direction. The trail however was one of the least maintained trails we have been on so we had to be really careful not to lose it as we made our way slowly to a crest from which we intended to access the mesa. We still have to stop of course when we see an eagle watching us from a tree and then flying around us and sounding really unhappy. Finally at the crest we start our ascent up the mountain. The ascent is really slow as the slope is steep but there always seems to be a way forward and in due time we reach the mesa top.
 |  |
| View of the area | This is a trail (barely) |
 |  |
| Hawk studying us intently | Starting the climb |
The view from the top is worth the climb for us with what seems unending views in the distance. We enjoy the view for quite some time and take a few pictures but then the sun starts falling towards the horizon and it starts to get cold which is a sign for us to return back to our car. The return trip is uneventful except the fact that we are a bit concerned that we will not have enough fuel to return (there was more than enough in the end).
 |  |
| View from top | View of mountains in the distance |
 |  |
| You can see far in the distance | Lots of mountains and hills in the area |
 |
| Eagle's view of the area |
One of our long term goals in the Phoenix area is to scout a way to reach the Cochran Coke Ovens either by 2WD or by hiking. We tried once from the north with no luck and this time we decided to try from the west. While we didn't find a good access route we found some good desert scenery and a cool spot by the impressive Gila River. Our trip was focused on the area surrounding Price Road leaving out of Florence but on our way home we detoured on the Florence-Kelvin highway.
Price Road starting out of Florence is a good dirt road (first few miles are paved) that runs alongside the train tracks and the Gila River for quite a few miles. Initially there are quite houses but they start to thin out as you get further away from civilization. On the left (north) side as you drive in is a live artillery shooting range so follow all signs and do not enter that area if live exercises are going on. There is some classic desert scenery with cacti and mountains close to the road and we stopped a few times to take pictures of the nice views.
 |  |
| Four Peak hill | That doesn't look natural |
 |  |
| Good dirt road in the area | Road is parallel to the railroad |
As the road starts curving towards the Box Canyon we stop and decide to try to make our push towards the Cochran Ovens. The river looked dry further down so we walk until we find a side road going to the central wash that we intend to take upstream towards the Ovens. To our surprise when we reach the wash it is choke full of fast flowing water it looks beautiful but unfortunately it also cuts us from our goal for the day. We take lots of pictures and then return to the car to further explore area. As an aside...why was there no water downstream? We kept an eye open while returning and saw a huge dam on the river...bingo.
 |  |
| Gila River flowing impressively | Doesn't feel like Arizona |
With the suddenly free time we decide to explore a side road of Price Road the Sandman Road. It is still a good dirt road but less busy as the main road. We stop to take a few pictures of a cholla cactus and while exploring the surrounding area also find a discarded horn of a bighorn sheep...quite interesting.
 |  |
| Cholla cactus - beautiful to watch but painful to touch | Discarded horn of a bighorn sheep |
Before returning to the main road as we stop near the road we suddenly decide to take a more eagle's eye view of the area and the mountain nearby seems perfectly suited to the task. As we start climbing we notice it is a bit more difficult than we initially envisioned but all tiredness disappears when we find that the whole area is full of moss something unexpected here. From the top the views all around are really great and we enjoy a well earned rest.
 |  |
| Wonder what's on top of this hill? | Mossy hillside - quite unusual |
 |  |
| View from top | Road in the distance |
After descending and returning to the main road we start back towards Phoenix. However just to mix things up a bit we decide to use the Florence-Kelvin highway to pass through the mountains and then return on the US177 and US60. The road is again paved the first few miles and then becomes a good dirt road. As we pass another possible entrance for the Coke Ovens - this time from the south - we stop at a large parking area close to an area of boulders that seems to have become a free for all for graffiti artists. In a way it is almost an art side but it is becoming really cold and windy so we return to the car and pan to zip through the rest of the road and back to Phoenix. The plan works fine besides having to stop on US 177 for about 15 min because of an accident that closed the road in both directions and was just being cleaned up.
 |  |
| Graffiti boulders parking | Some boulders escaped for now from the painting spree |
 |
| Phoenix view from South Mountain |
South Mountain is a great place for short hikes in the winter and this day our intention was to do some short hikes from Buena Vista trailhead to enjoy the beautiful weather and take in the fine views from the top. Also seeing any hummingbirds or meeting a coyote on the trail is always a plus. However the start was not auspicious as the limited parking at the trailhead was full and we had to drive around until somebody finally left. After that we descended on a little used road that merges later with the National trail in order to avoid the first busy section of the National trail. And we were rewarded almost immediately with a coyote who after a condescending look decided to go his own merry way.
 |  |
| Hummingbirds are common (and aggressive) | Meeting a coyote is always memorable |
The views from the mountaintop are memorable with an almost 360 degree field of view. One of the best places to see the views is close to the trailhead from the bench however it is almost always really busy in that area. As it is close to Christmas some trees near the trail have been adorned with decorations, probably by very busy elves.
 |  |
| Phoenix in the distance | Close up of downtown Phoenix |
 |  |
| It's Christmas time | Bench close to parking lot |
One sight that we didn't want to miss was the "Chinese Wall" rock formation which is an interesting geological site with a natural wall of rock crossing across the length of the mountain. In order to see it we descended a few hundred feet down the Corona de Loma trail which was easy downhill but quite difficult when coming back uphill.
 |  |
| Part of the Chinese Wall | Chinese Wall |
As the sunset is approaching the mountains appear to catch fire and the views are really breathtaking. After enjoying them for a while we take the car down the really curvy road to the city and our home.
 |  |
| Camelback in the Sunset | Tempe in the distance |
 |
| View from National Trail |
Our goal for this trip is simple; we want to see the rare elephant trees that reputedly live in a side canyon in South Mountain. After some research we think we identified the place where they are hidden and so we start our hike from a less used trailhead on the south side to access the Desert Classic Trail at a distance from the main trailhead at Pima Canyon. The trail is really popular for bikes with quite a few of them passing by at high speed. So we are happy when we veer into the side canyon where we guess that we will find the elephant tree. The way becomes gradually more difficult with large boulders that need to be negotiated.
 |  |
| Desert Classic Trail | Arizona Wash |
 |  |
| Is this really a trail? | Interesting rock |
After a quarter of the mile of hiking through the bush we catch our first glimpse of the elephant trees that look like a mesquite tree from a distance. The main thing that differentiates them from the mesquite trees is that they are green while the mesquite trees don't have any leaves. As we get closer we notice the other difference which is the one where they get their name from which is that their trunk looks like an elephant trunk and is quite distinctive. We enjoy the area quite a bit and the solitude and eat lunch in the wash near the trees.
 |  |
| Our first elephant tree | Quite a few elephant trees |
 |  |
| This is the reason for the name | Green everywhere |
As we still have some time left we continue up to the National Trail that we take for a short distance enjoying the great views and then return on a No Name trail to the Desert Classic trail and then to the car. On the way we even get some raindrops which of course is a bit unusual in Arizona.
No comments:
Post a Comment