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| Hiking | 9.10 Miles |
3,108 AEG |
| | Hiking | 9.10 Miles | | | |
| 3,108 ft AEG | | | | |
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| no partners | | Have you ever had one of those trips where you get home and say: "I never should have left the house today?" Needless to say, the Sawmill Canyon trail has never recovered from the Florida fire. It looks like the Forest Service isn't all that concerned about this state of affairs, either. If anyone is looking to hit Florida Saddle from east/northeast - save yourself a lot of unnecessary torment and go to Cave Creek, instead.
The Coronado NF website says that you need a high-clearance vehicle and 4WD to get to the trail head at Aliso Spring down FSR 4084. Let's just say that may have been the case the last time any of their staff members went back there; now, it's a full-on, rated VI OHV trail. Anyone reading this and planning a trip to Sawmill or Greaterville should abandon any ideas about taking a stock SUV back to the trail head, regardless of your experience level. There are simply no lines to choose or negotiate. I had to build lines up a terrace before giving up and finally walking into the trail adding five miles to my journey.
The trail was promising at first, judging by the conditions at Aliso Spring. That promise faded quickly when I started up the west ridge and realized that the trail is *completely* unmaintained. It's overgrown by waist-high grass for the next mile concealing fist-sized rocks just waiting to trip you and roll your ankle. Every shrub and tree near the trail has conspired to obscure its course, and dead-fall is abundant. Things got a little better as I approached the Spring, but rapidly deteriorated after departing the Spring area. Enough was enough and I abandoned my bid for Florida Saddle before being completely eviscerated by catclaw.
To add insult to injury, the signage on FSR 4084 leaves a lot to be desired. The route of the road continues into FSR 4085 and the sign at the junction says "Gardner Canyon" and "Sawmill Canyon." This can lead one to assume that the "Gardner" on the sign is the canyon itself, not the road by the same name one needs to leave the area. Hey, what's another four or so miles of class VI tierod/draglink-bending gut-wrench in the wrong direction, right? 
The day's saving grace was the wildlife. I encountered two big packs of mule deer, a small gaggle of wild turkey, squirrels galore, and one coati...and not one snake.  |
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Autumn Foliage Observation Moderate
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Wildflowers Observation Isolated
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