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| Hiking | 9.84 Miles |
1,586 AEG |
| | Hiking | 9.84 Miles | 4 Hrs 45 Mns | | 2.07 mph |
| 1,586 ft AEG | | | | |
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| no partners | | Decided to try this trail on my way back from Camp Verde. It sounded simple enough being a road, but somehow my route didn’t quite match the trail description. Got to the Green Gulch TH a little after 2pm. First time using this TH. Nice, quick access to the Bradshaw Mountains. It was refreshing not having to drive through Prescott or Prescott Valley to get to the trails.
The Charcoal Gulch starts off heading south from the TH. At .48 passed an unsigned road heading east. I assumed it was the Nemo Spring Trail because of location. At .66 passed another split in the road. This split was at least partially signed and it showed 9419 continuing south. At .96 the trail junctured with trail #42. Kind of weird; initially there was a steep berm separating the two trails, however, a path soon opened up between them. At this point the Charcoal Gulch turned left and crossed a wash and started to do some moderate climbing for the next .8 miles. The elevation grade varied with some steep sections, but never for any great duration. Then came a series of 5 “shelf’s”, where the trail would reach an outcropping saddle and then cut back into the slope of the mountain to climb to the next shelf. Usually the elevation gain wasn’t that much to the next shelf, but there was always “ups” and “downs” getting there. I was surprised at how “trail-like” the road would appear at times. Frequently there was the impression of following a single path rather than a motorized route. At 2.52 the trail came to a steep decline. Lost 190 feet in .15 miles. Crossed a wash at the bottom and then received my reward for trudging along an open OHV trail. Then next 1 mile was fantastic. An unexpected treat. From 2.67 to 3.33 walked along an enclosed canyon shrouded in pine and oak trees with only mild elevation gain. Around 2.85 passed an all but empty water tank, more dried green algae than water. At 3.33 miles reached a very steep climb out of the gulch. Slippery going up or down. Reaching the top of the hill, it flattened out briefly before starting another steep climb that did one switchback up to what I think was Salida #93 Trail (3.84 miles). There was a downed marker that was so abused that no information was legible. Passed a nice memorial for a biker that had passed. Continuing straight from there I came upon 9419 trail marker about .25 miles later, so I knew I was still on the right path. This segment was a secondary bonus for the hike. The path, which had been very rocky at times, turned into very smooth dual track dirt road. Plus, though the trees weren’t compact, there was a nice array of pine trees to invoke a forestry feeling. At 4.37 there was an unsigned dirt road that went south. At 4.59 passed another muddy water tank and then at 4.67 miles there was another split in the road with a downed carsonite marker. Interestingly, the two roads were signed as 30 and 31. Not sure what happened to 9419. (Looking at maps afterward I didn’t see a road 30 or 31). Since the day was getting on, I decided that was a good turn around spot. On the way back I briefly checked out the unsigned road and a couple of use tracks. Nothing I saw made me think that 9419 went anywhere except where I had gone. I plan on coming back sometime and doing Nemo and maybe I can figure out where I went awry.
Not an overly fun trail to hike, but certain sections made it worthwhile. The steep sections weren’t bad going up, but I found an old branch to help with the descents. No big wildlife, though I did see a couple of squirrels, rabbits and a gopher snake. |
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