Elmore Wash Trail - Wickiup Mesa, AZ

Overview
The Wickiup Mesa Trail System is a group of trails located on the southeast edge of the community of Rimrock. Its creation was through the efforts of the Beaver Creek Trail Coalition, the Forest Service, and Yavapai County. The trail system covers 700 acres and ties into the Wet Beaver Creek Wilderness. It currently only has 6.5 miles of trails composed of 7 different routes. Two trailheads and two access points allow entry to the trail system. The main TH, at the end of Forestglen Rd., is an oddly shaped oval with room for about 10 cars. This is also an entry point for vehicles that want to use the forest service roads, so keep that in mind when parking. There are no bathrooms or water at the TH so come prepared. The TH does have a nice info board with a brief history of the area, wildlife, and foliage. All trails are well-signed and all junctures have trail maps that allow you to see how the trails interact.


The Elmore Wash is considered to be the other entry point to this system and has parking for maybe 2 vehicles just off of FR 618. Like the main entry point off of Forestglen, there are no bathrooms or water at this TH. And like the other TH, there is an info board and a trail map of the area.Hike
The trail starts off heading west passing through a latched gate. The trail is a single track composed primarily of compact dirt with brief sections of loose or embedded rocks. It is obvious that this trail doesn’t see the action that the other trails in this system do. The trail tread isn’t as worn and there are a couple of sections where catclaw is starting to encroach on the trail. In addition to catclaw, there is plenty of high desert grass, mesquite, and juniper trees to be seen on the trail. There are even several pine trees along the way. As you start, there are a series of hills in the foreground and within 0.3 miles the trail cuts to the left of one of these. The trail stays along the slope losing elevation gradually. Initially, you have what seems to be a shallow basin off to your south, but as you proceed it develops into a wash and you get a brief feeling of being in a canyon. Brief, because by 0.45 miles the canyon opens up and you get a distant view of Jerome. This is one of the more rewarding distant views of this trail.

The distant views don’t last long as the trail does some minor twisting as it drops lower into the hills. The trail keeps a fairly steady westward direction crossing a decent-sized wash twice before veering to the south. The views are lacking, taken up by the slopes of the surrounding hills. The trail starts to get back some of its lost elevation, crossing another wash and swinging to the north. Around 1.5 you are starting to emerge from the encompassing hills and you are treated to semi-decent views to the east and north. The views get a little better as you gain elevation but never amount to much. At 2 miles the trail ends when it connects to the Sunset Loop Trail. Options are minimal. You can return the way you came for a 4-mile hike or you can continue to explore Wickiup Mesa TS. All junctions are signed and the trails are easy to follow. However, you will need to return to the TH via the Elmore Wash. There are no other trails that connect to that TH.

Synopsis
The Elmore Wash Trail feels like a stand-alone trail. All the trails in this system are short and/or interconnect with each other. This trail goes off on its own and is isolated not only from the other trails but from the feeling of being a “community trail”. This trail is a little more rugged than the other trails with no signs of civilization. That being said, the trail is well-defined with minimal elevation change. This trail is very doable coming from either trailhead and because of their locations, you have the ability to decide on what kind of hike you want to the Elmore Wash. (Roughly 8 miles if you start from the ForestGlen TH and 4 miles if you start from the FR 618 TH). An added bonus, the Elmore Wash Trail connects directly to the road that leads to the Walker Basin TH, one of many trails in the Wet Beaver Creek Wilderness.

2024-07-06 mt98dew