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| Paradise-Haunted Canyon Loop, AZ | |
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| | Paradise-Haunted Canyon Loop, AZ | | | |
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Paradise-Haunted Canyon Loop, AZ
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| Backpack | 9.00 Miles |
2,500 AEG |
| | Backpack | 9.00 Miles | 2 Days | | |
| 2,500 ft AEG | | | | |
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| Partners |
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none
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| no partners | | Six of us did a 1-night backpack on the west end of Haunted Canyon. We left a car shuttle at the Upper Haunted Canyon Trailhead and then proceeded to the Paradise Trail TH to start the hike. The plan was to hike in the Paradise Trail and then connect with the Haunted Canyon Trail going southeast. We would camp overnight at a campsite near Tony Ranch and then retrace our steps along Haunted Canyon Trail, following it all the way back to the Upper Haunted Canyon TH along FR 287A (with a car shuttle back to the Paradise Trail TH to complete the loop).
We did this hike just a little more than one day after a fairly significant rain soaked the area, so there were streams everywhere. The waterfall about 1/2 mile in along the Paradise Trail was absolutely raging. In hindsight, I wish we had stopped and spent more time there, but you encounter it so quickly after you start the hike that you are inclined to keep going rather than to stop and enjoy it. Oh well... next time. As we continued on the Paradise Trail, there was quite a bit of overgrowth that we had to plow through. Fortunately, on this stretch of trail, the overgrowth was mostly that AZ shrub with the holly-like leaf (name?) without too much of the catclaw (which would have made things much worse). There's a fairly significant vertical climb on the Paradise Trail (~1500') and when you combine that with the trail overgrowth, this was not my favorite section of the hike. Plus, the weather was starting to turn by that point and a light rain started to fall. As we approached the 5000' saddle (adjacent to Government Hill), that rain turned to a light hail which made our planned lunch stop at the saddle pretty cold and a wet. Fortunately, the rain/hail moved on after that and we remained dry for the rest of the trip.
Once we got within a mile or two of Tony Ranch, we encountered a few stream crossings that were tricky due to the high water, but there was nothing we couldn't handle. We arrived at the planned campsite and setup camp, but we soon realized our planned short hike to see Tony Ranch was in question due to the high level of water in Haunted Canyon (nowhere to cross). We've been to this exact campsite before and the stream was dry that time, but it was a different story this time (March '23). Eventually, a few of us persevered and found a place to jump/rockhop across the stream with only a moderate amount of boot soaking, but most of the group avoided this entirely by staying in camp.
Overnight, we were reminded of a very strange phenomenon within Haunted Canyon (which we've seen before). Namely, the low temperatures are significantly below what is expected for a 3800' elevation. Case in point, the Globe forecast (at 3500' elevation) for this particular evening showed a low of 42 degrees. The temperature we experienced that night in Haunted Canyon was 26 degrees! Now, we always account to a colder low temp than the nearest town, but that adjustment is nearly always 5-10 degrees. A 16 degree delta is significant. Keep this in mind if you ever plan to backpack to Tony Ranch in the colder months.
The hike out the next day was uneventful. Another 1000'+ climb, but it just didn't seem that bad without the overgrowth, rain or hail. We passed "Dirt Tank" on our way out and it was a gorgeous lake due to all the recent rains. On the last leg of the hike between Dirt Tank and the Upper Haunted Canyon TH, we encountered a large crew of volunteers clearing brush along the trail and moving some fallen trees. We were extremely grateful to the group and mentioned that maybe they should tackle Paradise Trail next (but I don't think that was in their plans for that day).
Overall, this is a short backpack with a lot of elevation gain, a significant amount of overgrowth and a camp area that seems eternally cold. Compared to hiking in Haunted Canyon the "normal way" (off FR 287), this route is quite a bit more difficult, but if you're looking for something different this just might be the thing. |
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Wildflowers Observation Light
We were still a little early in the season for wildflowers, but it will undoubtedly be a strong season starting around the end of March. |
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Dirt Tank - Haunted Canyon |
76-100% full |
76-100% full |
| | | Dirt Tank was a gorgeous lake on this visit. There has been significant rain recently. |
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Paradise Spring |
Quart per minute |
Quart per minute |
| | | There was so much water everywhere (due to recent rains) that it was hard to estimate whether the spring was generating any. |
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Tony Ranch Spring |
Quart per minute |
Quart per minute |
| | | Trough was full. Streambed was full. Lots of water on this visit. | | _____________________
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