235 Road Trail, AZ

235 Road Trail was once FR 235 and, apparently, FR 502 as well. But now the mesa (?) -- or whatever the land type is between the top of Wood Canyon and the top of Willow Springs Canyon -- is completely vehicle-free. (Except vehicles on official business.) The gate is locked.


There are old jeep trails all over the "mesa", but most of them were decommissioned decades ago. They show x'd out on the Apache-Sitgreaves website and as a hard-to-read light grey dashes on FS Topo. Even if you know where they were, you could easily walk by them if you are not looking. 235 Road Trail is obvious, though.

And straight.

And flat.

And rocky, though despite other online reports, you don't need to worry about ankle breakers.

I mean, the woods are nice and mostly untouched by fire. And there are some flowers, particularly fleabane and, near the trailhead, coneflower. So, less experienced hikers might enjoy the easy stroll. But otherwise, it is boring. On the other hand ...

The payoff is awesome!

Great views, particularly of Chevelon Canyon and Willow Springs Canyon, but Woods Canyon as well. (Though take care near the OPs, as it's a 400 ft. sheer drop to the canyon bottom.) I marked a few OPs: You will surely find others. Any one of them would make a great picnic spot.

Also, the "mesa" is a wildlife area, but I only saw birds and lizards. Plenty of elk poo, though!

Check out the Official Route and Triplogs.

Leave No Trace and +Add a Triplog after your hike to support this local community.

2021-07-22 kingsnake