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| Backpack | 11.00 Miles |
2,846 AEG |
| | Backpack | 11.00 Miles | 2 Days | | |
| 2,846 ft AEG | | | | |
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| no partners | | We did this trail as an overnight backpack on a hot June weekend. Definitely fun to see a new, seldom visited area.
The trail had it's ups and it's downs... The trailhead and first couple miles are a scorcher during the summer. High desert flora, zero shade. The creekbed is bone dry through most of it, which was a bit of a concern since I brought enough water for the hike in and nothing more. Forest service website talked about perennial water. Overgrown maples and oaks galore starting maybe around mile 2. The trail will disappear at a wall of maples, you bust through about 30 feet of it, then the trail will reappear on the other side. Kinda fun if you don't mind that sort of thing (which I don't... At least they're not prickly). Others in the group didn't like it so much, though. After about 3 miles water was really starting to become a concern. I kept running off the trail to check the creekbed, and finally right around mile 4 I spotted small pools connected by trickles. We all rejoiced. From there the ponderosas get real thick and the water gets better the farther upstream you go. By the time you reach the junction with the side trail that leads you up to the East Rim Viewpoint you're in storybook mountain creek country. We camped on a shelf above the creek about 1/4 mile upstream from the junction. That evening I explored the creek upstream, which was amazing. Cascade after cascade with a couple 8 foot waterfalls thrown in for good measure. Lush, green vegetation everywhere and trout in the creek (protected trout... no fishing). None of the pools were big enough to swim in, but the water was ice cold anyhow. Definitely tasty, though. There was one other group camped almost a mile up from us. Otherwise, we were all alone the entire trip.
While I enjoyed the hike and the scenery was beautiful, I likely wouldn't go back. The drive from Phoenix rivals that of the white mountains, where you have many more foresty creek options once you're out there. The viewpoints accessed from the trail are very easily accessed from the East Rim area.
If I were to return to the area I would choose a trail with some more unique views of the Canyon and surrounding area. Saddle Mountain Trail, which was our original option, still looks rather intriguing to me. If I want creeks and trees I'll likely go to Rim country instead. |
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"Arizona is the land of contrast... You can go from Minnesota to California in a matter of minutes, then have Mexican food that night." -Jack Dykinga
http://www.joelhazelton.com |
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Route Editor
Route Scout
But after a lazy morning at camp we decided that this would fit the bill and also help finish the North Canyon Trail since we had hiked the upper portion of it as part of our East North South loop a few days earlier.](https://hikearizona.com/dex2/images/smilies/eusa_wall.gif "Brick wall"){kind=small}
