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| Backpack | 33.13 Miles |
5,942 AEG |
| | Backpack | 33.13 Miles | 2 Days | | |
| 5,942 ft AEG | | | | |
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| no partners | | My second time to Aravaipa, but first from the west entrance.
Day 1:
Arrived at the TH and were on the trail by 8:30 am. Explored Hell's Half Acre, which is short and ends in an impassable dryfall quickly. From there, we headed over to Cave Canyon with the intent of trying to follow it up to the Painted Cave Ranch. On the way, we passed one of only two other humans we saw that day--a female solo day hiker who reported that she had just seen a bear. We were hoping to also spot the bear from a safe distance, but no luck.
The explore up Cave Canyon involved scrambling/navigating up some rock features, but ultimately ended in another impassable dryfall. Perhaps if your life depended on it, you could find a sketchy way to ascend by by backtracking a bit, but definitely a turnaround point for those who don't desire to put their life in serious danger.
After that, we explored up Virgus, which was a real treat. Right near the mouth are a couple of layers of wall-to-wall, house-sized boulders that require some problem solving to get around/up. We found the best route to the right (looking up canyon). After passing through the boulder field, the canyon gets more aof a solid bottom and opens up. Very beautiful. Our turnaround in this side canyon was not dictated by any dead ends, but more by time, as several of our group opted not to explore this one and were waiting back at the creek. Another time, I'd love to wander up more.
As we approached Horse Camp canyon, we passed through an incredible campsite. Originally, we thought we'd make it to Booger (where I camped last time), but after dropping our packs and exploring Horse Camp Canyon up to another difficult dryfall, we returned and opted to backtrack a bit to the great campsite. We were very pleased. Lots of large trees, grass, open flat spaces, and of course, the creek close by.
Day 2:
Day two involved heading up canyon further east. One passer by indicated there was a nice waterfall in Paisano Canyon. Paisano was not on my list to visit, but based on the description we added it. The waterfall was a little underwhelming, based on the anticipation caused by the other hiker's description, but the geology of the fall provided excellent hand and footholds that enticed several in our group to rock climb it.
After Paisano, our group split, with several heading back to camp. The rest of us continued on to Deer Creek/Hell Hole Canyon and explored up its slot-like features. The arch/hole in the rock is a treat. I was surprised to see as much water seeping out of the ground as we did, given the limp monsoon season and time of year.
After Deer Creek, we marched back to camp, with a blue heron leading the way the entire length--he would fly down the creek 20-30 yards as we approached and then land. This repeated itself dozens of time over the next several miles.
Back at camp, we packed up and headed out to the west exit. I wore gaiters, which were a godsend for keeping the pebbles out of my shoes. The gaiter-envy was great amongst my fellow hikers.
Near the exit, we saw several deer and a gaggle of wild turkeys. Some in our group saw a black rattlesnake with white bands. They showed me a picture, but I have no idea what kind of rattler it was, and was sorry to have missed it.
Another excellent adventure in this amazing Arizona oasis! |
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