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| | | Deer Creek Gold Ridge Loop, AZ | | | |
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Deer Creek Gold Ridge Loop, AZ
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| Hiking | 19.28 Miles |
3,595 AEG |
| | Hiking | 19.28 Miles | 9 Hrs 13 Mns | | 2.24 mph |
| 3,595 ft AEG | 37 Mns Break | | | |
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| no partners | | I've dubbed this the Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde loop.
We hit it up counterclockwise, which is highly recommended (get the bushwhacking done, and enjoy better views on the ridgeline on the return).
First up, Mr. Hyde, aka, Deer Creek trail. The trail is easy to follow for the first couple of miles on the way to the Deer Creek drainage and up paralleling a private cattle operation past David Gowan's grave.
Shortly after, we began commenting that it appears Mother Nature is trying to reclaim this trail. That comment proved prophetic, as it became very clear that She is succeeding. Tons of bushwhacking, very sparse indications of a trail, and forests of poison ivy to contend with. Trail maintenance seems to consist of cairns--many of which are quite large and helpful, and actually do a reasonably good job of assisting hikers navigate. That said, having the gps route downloaded was very helpful, and despite the cairns, we found ourselves consulting it regularly (and often having to adjust our course to stay "on route").
From about mile 3 to just shy of mile 9, it's solid bushwhacking. Long pants mandatory if you care about your legs; long sleeves are probably a good idea as well, though I managed to keep the damage minimal in short sleeves.
The only redeeming qualities of this section were: (1) solitude (it appeared that only about 5 people hike this entire section each year), and (2) the creek, which had a decent flow in it for nearly the entirety of the section, despite the very dry winter.
Eventually, about 9 miles, the trail turns up steeply and way from the creek for an abrupt climb that pops out at the Mt. Peeley trailhead. There were two cars at the TH and while we were taking a break, one of their owners and his friend returned to the TH from their hike up Peeley. They were the first humans we encountered.
From there, it was a couple miles of road walk to connect over to the Gold Ridge trail. Normally, I'm not a fan of road walks, but this was very welcome after several miles of bushwhacking. Plus, the views of the surrounding Mazatzals provided ample distraction.
The turn off to Gold Ridge starts as an old FS road, suitable for SxS, but it is clear trai for hikers. Near the "official" start/end of Gold Ridge, the "road" turns into a single track. We were worried that we would need to do more bushwhacking, but were pleasantly surprised to see Gold Ridge was very well maintained--clear of the ubiquitous manzanita that lines the trail for miles, and smooth tread underneath the foot. We found that this is also open to mountain bikers, and we saw one come through as we hiked.
The Ridge, as its name suggests, offers great views of the mountains and provided a delightful descent, which gets pretty steep in sections.
The last mile or so to the TH is a bit ho-hum. The prickly pear blooms are about to explode. If you want a great show, they will likely be popping next week.
Overall, I don't think I'll be doing Deer Creek again anytime soon, but Gold Ridge as an out and back seems to be a pretty ideal R2R training hike. |
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Route Editor
Route Scout
Route 
. Fun times. 
. I had first planned to hike the Ballantine Trail before I decided on Gold Ridge. This fire totally engulfed the Ballantine Trail as the lower portions and as far up as we could see. I was beyond very happy with my choice of hike for the day at this point. 
. A little over 3.5 miles in, I left the trail to go up to the "GOLD" benchmark on peak/hill 5776. It's only a quarter mile off the trail but pretty brushy getting up there. I pulled out the gloves and clippers again and picked up another round of Mazatzal scratches to add to the collection.
, but I found it really braced me up and I felt much better and ready to take on the rest of the hike. 
