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hey all looking to drive to sheeps bridge from bloody basin use it as base camp,any info about the road in would be welcome.I have high clearance but no 4x4 .Taking my little bro from big bro big sis,he's 16 never been out to the verde area.Will go over thanksgiving weekend.

From what I've heard, although I've never driven, it's okay for high clearance w/o 4wd; however, I also hear the Cave Creek approach is less rough. Seeing that you're from Prescott, though, I suppose that second bit of info doesn't matter much.

Bloody Basin Road is very easy going. Even sedan accessible. FR279? is a bit rougher but you should be able to take it in good weather. But it's a long, long way from somewhere real. On that weekend however, expect to see plenty of other people (which means potential help if you should get stuck). Bring some earplugs or else the drunken gunfire will keep you up at night.

Safest bet is to call Tonto NF Cave Creek Ranger station and ask them the current condition of the road. Sometimes summer monsoon storms can wash parts of the road out, and I haven't been up there since the Cave Creek Complex fire, so I don't know if there is any erosion or other problems as a result of that.

Cave Creek Ranger Station:
40202 North Cave Creek Rd.
Scottsdale, AZ 85262
Phone: (480) 595-3300
Fax: (480) 595-3346

Bloody Basin and FR279 is doable without 4x4 as of the beginning of October. I didn't have any problems in my '90 4runner.

In response to nobert15:
thanks

Hey again I was looking at maps <I think going in from blood y Basin should work but the cave creek rd side looked way longer.I m coming from prescott.

If you're coming from Prescott, you will defiantly wont to use the Bloody Basin access. I was just in there about one week ago and the colors were just starting to come in at the Agua Fria crossing. Should be starting to get real good since we have had below freezing temps in the high desert areas for the last couple of days. Assuming the road is dry, you will probably be ok getting to Sheep Bridge with a two-wheel drive truck if you have upgrade AT tires. The road has lots of sharp rocks. The portion from Bloody Basin down to the river very rough and rocky, however I believe traction is pretty good most of the way. Be very careful in the sand areas down by the river! The last time I was down there, the sand seemed bottomless in places. While there you may want to check out Red Creek if you haven't already been there. Red Creek is just Northeast of Bloody Basin. Take FR16 off of the main Bloody Basin road. A two-wheel drive truck will be fine to access Red Creek. Park on the hill just above the creek drainage and walk in. The last part of the road heading into Red Creek requires four-wheel drive. This is another location that could be getting some good fall colors by now. See TrailDex for more info on "Red Creek"

thanks for info