Bridge Spring Arch • Canyon Trip • Nevada • All Triplogs • HikeArizona.COM

login for filter options

Nov 25 2016

autumnstars

Guides 26
Routes 21
Photos 562
Triplogs 1,393

female

Joined Jan 04 2011
Las Vegas, NV

Bridge Spring Arch

Vegas, NV

Bridge Spring Arch

Vegas, NV

Hiking		Nov 25 2016
		autumnstars • Triplogs 1,393

Hiking	1.96 Miles	267 AEG

Hiking	1.96 Miles
	267 ft AEG

no routes

no photosets

Linked

none

no linked trail guides

Partners

none

no partners

Post-stuffing day hike with the whole family.
A sobering look at the reality of letting yourself get old without any physical activity.

A fun, short, easy hike recommended for all.

	Bridge Spring	Dripping	Dripping
	Really just a small pool, but not dry.

_____________________

"Let it ride / Let it roll / Let it go"

Dec 06 2014

autumnstars

Guides 26
Routes 21
Photos 562
Triplogs 1,393

female

Joined Jan 04 2011
Las Vegas, NV

Oak Creek Canyon Exploration, NV

Hiking		Dec 06 2014
		autumnstars • Triplogs 1,393

Hiking	6.61 Miles	1,075 AEG

Hiking	6.61 Miles
	1,075 ft AEG

no routes

no photosets

Linked

linked

Bridge Spring Arch

Partners

none

no partners

Driving out this morning was an odd experience - the entire Eldorado Valley was filled with fog. Only my second time seeing real fog since moving here. Instead of enjoying the ambiance, though, I had to concentrate on the drivers in front of me, who were acting like they had never seen fog and were scared in might eat their cars. :sl:

Anywho, I arrived safely at the roadside parking, and hopped out to begin hiking. The smell of damp soil filled the air, and it was nice to inhale this uncommon aroma throughout the hike. Dropped over the ridge into Oak Creek Canyon via my usual route. Today was a day of exploration, so I took the time to climb up and around to all the caves along the way. Each cave seemed to lead to seeing 4 or 5 more that weren't visible from below. Interesting, but very windy up out of the wash.

After tiring of this, I decided to head south up Oak Creek Canyon, instead of north as on previous hikes. This opened some great views of a very large arch that doesn't seem to be on the map. Headed toward the arch, but decided the lead-up washes were not suitable for solo exploration, so will have to leave that for another time. Changed course and hiked to the head of the wash. Pretty great views down to the Techatticup mining area and surrounding peaks.

Headed back with a side trip to the actual Bridge Spring Arch, since it had been a while. Saw my only other hikers of the day headed back up from the arch. Bush-whacked and boulder-hopped a little way down below the arch, but it was tough going and I just wasn't in the mood. Maybe some other time - you can hike all the way down to Techatticup in this wash, maybe catch a mine tour.

Some unusual trash picked up on this hike today - the plastic skid plate off a sedan. Guess someone tried driving a vehicle with poor clearance up the bit of road this hike starts on.

	Bridge Spring	Dripping	Dripping
	Maybe dripping, maybe not - have yet to confirm the actual source. Either way, there was a scummy pool, more than what I've seen before.

Oak Creek Canyon

Dry

_____________________

"Let it ride / Let it roll / Let it go"

Oct 14 2013

autumnstars

Guides 26
Routes 21
Photos 562
Triplogs 1,393

female

Joined Jan 04 2011
Las Vegas, NV

Oak Creek / Lonesome Wash Exploration, NV

Hiking		Oct 14 2013
		autumnstars • Triplogs 1,393

Hiking	14.16 Miles	3,635 AEG

Hiking	14.16 Miles
	3,635 ft AEG

no routes

Linked

linked

Bridge Spring Arch

Partners

none

no partners

Another hike to explore this little-visited area. I had set a potential goal of reaching the Colorado, but just didn't get an early enough start. Oh well.

Popped over to Oak Creek Canyon from the Bridge Spring Arch trail, picked my way down the boulder-choked wash, and turned north down Oak Creek Canyon. In Oak Creek Canyon, you can climb the boulders and dry falls, or work your way around most of them. Several of the downclimbs have changed quite a bit since I was last here due to flow from the summer storms we got, but all are still doable. I did, however, waste approx 1/2 hour trying to climb around one spot, bush-whacking through the dense catclaw and creosote on a side slope. Turned out I could easily climb right down the boulder jam - lesson learned for the hike out. Meeting up with Lonesome Wash (poetically named), I continued in the direction of the Colorado River. Eventually, my late start caught up with me and I never did make it all the way down to the river, but that will remain a goal for another visit. Although I recalled the nice rugged ridges surrounding Lonesome Wash from previous hikes, it was still amazing to see all the great rock formations.

No sign of people other than a few balloons. Saw a few bluebirds, phainopepla, assorted LBJs, and a hawk on the bird front. One toad. A nice group of 9 bighorn to round out the animal sightings.

Since I can't work, at least I can enjoy a great day spent outside.

Edit: Almost forgot to mention the numerous fresh mountain lion tracks along the wash. The tracks were almost the size of my palm, so that seems to large for bobcat. Clearly, the animal was using the wash as a travel corridor, as do the bighorn. It was kinda creepy hiking down the wash alone knowing he/she was maybe watching me from on high.

Wildflowers Observation Isolated
A few plants here and there still flowering.

_____________________

"Let it ride / Let it roll / Let it go"

Feb 02 2013

autumnstars

Guides 26
Routes 21
Photos 562
Triplogs 1,393

female

Joined Jan 04 2011
Las Vegas, NV

Oak Creek / Lonesome Wash Exploration, NV

Hiking		Feb 02 2013
		autumnstars • Triplogs 1,393

Hiking	13.01 Miles	2,202 AEG

Hiking	13.01 Miles
	2,202 ft AEG

no routes

Linked

linked

Bridge Spring Arch

Partners

none

no partners

Another hike to explore this little-visited area. Thankfully, I recalled the best way to pop over from the Bridge Spring Arch side to the Oak Creek Canyon side from my trips out here last winter.

Popped over, picked my way down the boulder-choked wash, and turned north down Oak Creek Canyon. The lighting was very unusual today with lots of high clouds, really bringing out the color in all the varied rocks. In Oak Creek Canyon, you can climb the boulders and dry falls, or work your way around. Mainly I climbed since nothing was terribly dangerous or high. Meeting up with Lonesome Wash (poetically named), I continued in the direction of the Colorado River. Eventually, my late start caught up with me and I never did make it all the way down to the river, but that will remain a goal for another visit. Lonesome Wash was not quite the boring desert wash I had anticipated. Although it widened out considerably, it was still surrounded by nice rugged ridges.

I was shocked to see many brittlebush, some monkey flower, and even a few anemone flowering as I descended into the more open wash. Guess there is a warm air drainage effect here. Some dense forests of teddy bear cholla, but they were mainly on the side slopes in the side drainages so no need to dance through them.

No sign of people other than 3 balloons and some worked stone flakes. Saw only a few bluebirds, phainopepla, and assorted LBJs on the animal front. Also found 3 separate bighorn skulls - 2 were still in good condition with horns, one even had most of the body to go with it.

Another great day spent outside.

Flora

Flora [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Teddy-bear Cholla

Fauna

Fauna [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Bighorn Sheep

Wildflowers Observation Isolated

_____________________

"Let it ride / Let it roll / Let it go"

1 archive

Jan 22 2012

autumnstars

Guides 26
Routes 21
Photos 562
Triplogs 1,393

female

Joined Jan 04 2011
Las Vegas, NV

Oak Creek Canyon Exploration, NV

Hiking		Jan 22 2012
		autumnstars • Triplogs 1,393

Hiking	6.40 Miles	1,017 AEG

Hiking	6.40 Miles
	1,017 ft AEG

no routes

no photosets

Linked

linked

Bridge Spring Arch

Partners

none

no partners

Another hike to explore this little-visited area. I've definitely figured out the best way to pop over from the Bridge Spring Arch side to the Oak Creek Canyon side, but never have managed to find the "game trail" mentioned in all the descriptions I've read of this hike - oh well.

Pop over, pick my way down the boulder-choked wash, turn north down Oak Creek Canyon. It's not exactly what we think of when we think of a canyon out here, as the walls are pretty far away most of the time, but it certainly is interesting. To the east is a great-looking ridge, almost vertical (there's also a very large arch I noticed over there that doesn't seem to be on the map - on the list to check out next time). To the west is the ridge you just came over. Everything is rugged, mostly volcanic rock and you're very unlikely to encounter any other people. In Oak Creek Canyon, you can climb the boulders and dry falls, or work your way around. Mainly I climbed since nothing was terribly dangerous or high. There are caves absolutely everywhere, some accessible and some not. I checked out a few of them - no evidence of people. Turned around sooner than necessary due to my watch being one hour fast. Well, I'll be back, no doubt. Not sure if it's worth following Oak Creek Canyon until it meets up with Lonesome Wash, which you can follow all the way to the Colorado. On the map, Lonesome Wash looks like a more typical, open desert wash, so it may not be of much interest.

There are some truly huge scrub oaks in here, so I can see the Oak, but not too sure about the Creek part of the canyon's name.

_____________________

"Let it ride / Let it roll / Let it go"

Dec 22 2011

autumnstars

Guides 26
Routes 21
Photos 562
Triplogs 1,393

female

Joined Jan 04 2011
Las Vegas, NV

Oak Creek Canyon Exploration, NV

Hiking		Dec 22 2011
		autumnstars • Triplogs 1,393

Hiking	5.00 Miles	770 AEG

Hiking	5.00 Miles
	770 ft AEG

no routes

no photosets

Linked

linked

Bridge Spring Arch

Partners

none

no partners

Yesterday's hike was so enjoyable, I decided to go back to the area for more exploration. Since it was incredibly windy today, however, I decided to try and stick low.

Ended up going through the saddle and eventually dropping down into Oak Creek Canyon. Some scrambling and boulder-hopping, but nothing too severe. There are loads of arches and shallow caves all over in this area, pretty nice for exploring. Coming back I thought I'd be clever and take a different route. This landed me on the same scree-filled descent I had been on yesterday, sigh. Oh well. On the way back, side-tracked back to Bridge Spring Arch to try and get a few pictures, but they turned out just as disappointing as they had yesterday.

Although it was fun, I was happy to get back to my car and get out of the wind.

Edit: Roughly estimated the distance and AEG based on a topo.

_____________________

"Let it ride / Let it roll / Let it go"

Dec 21 2011

autumnstars

Guides 26
Routes 21
Photos 562
Triplogs 1,393

female

Joined Jan 04 2011
Las Vegas, NV

Bridge Spring Arch to Peak Loop, NV

Hiking		Dec 21 2011
		autumnstars • Triplogs 1,393

Hiking	3.00 Miles	350 AEG

Hiking	3.00 Miles
	350 ft AEG

no routes

no photosets

Linked

linked

Bridge Spring Arch

Partners

none

no partners

Another chance to check out a nearby hike. Bridge Arch was pretty interesting, since you would rarely expect to find an arch in this type of rock. On the hike through the ridges before you hit the wash, I noted 6 different species of cacti, and I wasn't even looking for cacti! After the gentle descent to the arch, I scrambled up the unnamed peak to the north, which boasted views and solitude in abundance. No log or benchmark at the top, but a perfect spot for lunch.

Descending from the peak was a bit more difficult due to loose scree. The safest way seems to be to make your way to the saddle north of the peak and use the washes to descend - exposed bedrock is your friend! Once down off the peak area, just head toward where you parked. More than likely, you'll meet up with the "trail" to the arch. I estimated distance and AEG for the loop.

I don't know if the feature is really a natural bridge or a natural arch. How confusing is it that it's named Bridge Spring Arch?

Edit: Ah-ha! I looked it up and a natural bridge is just a special type of arch. So, it is correct to call them all arches.

Wildflowers Observation Isolated

	Bridge Spring	Dry	Dry
	Ground in area of spring wet, water possibly could be collected by digging. At this time, better to obtain water from the bedrock pockets in the wash.

_____________________

"Let it ride / Let it roll / Let it go"

Apr 29 2011

AZLOT69

Guides 177
Routes 249
Photos 10,213
Triplogs 2,215

74 male

Joined Feb 12 2002
Gold Canyon, AZ

Bridge Spring Arch

Vegas, NV

Bridge Spring Arch

Vegas, NV

Canyoneering		Apr 29 2011
		AZLOT69 • Triplogs 2,215

Canyoneering	4.60 Miles	877 AEG

Canyoneering	4.60 Miles	3 Hrs	1.53 mph
	877 ft AEG

Canyon Hiking - Non-technical; no rope; easy scrambling; occasional hand use

A - Dry or little water; shallow or avoidable water; no wet/dry suit

Linked

linked

Lonesome Draw Ridgeline

Partners

none

no partners

and more.........

Wildflowers Observation Light

_____________________

It's best for a man to remain silent and be thought a fool, than to open his mouth and remove all doubt.
--Mark Twain

Apr 23 2010

AZLOT69

Guides 177
Routes 249
Photos 10,213
Triplogs 2,215

74 male

Joined Feb 12 2002
Gold Canyon, AZ

Bridge Spring Arch

Vegas, NV

Bridge Spring Arch

Vegas, NV

Canyoneering		Apr 23 2010
		AZLOT69 • Triplogs 2,215

Canyoneering	2.10 Miles	220 AEG

Canyoneering	2.10 Miles	2 Hrs	1.05 mph
	220 ft AEG

Canyon Hiking - Non-technical; no rope; easy scrambling; occasional hand use

A - Dry or little water; shallow or avoidable water; no wet/dry suit

Linked

none

no linked trail guides

Partners

none

no partners

Did the bridge and beyond exploring alternatives. Great spring flowers and saw no one. Great short outing only an hour out of Vegas.

Flora

Flora [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Banana Yucca Indian Paintbrush

Geology

Geology [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Natural Bridge

Wildflowers Observation Moderate

_____________________

It's best for a man to remain silent and be thought a fool, than to open his mouth and remove all doubt.
--Mark Twain

WARNING! Hiking and outdoor related sports can be dangerous. Be responsible and prepare for the trip. Study the area you are entering and plan accordingly. Dress for the current and unexpected weather changes. Take plenty of water. Never go alone. Make an itinerary with your plan(s), route(s), destination(s) and expected return time. Give your itinerary to trusted family and/or friends.

username		X
password		X