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| | | Turks Trifecta - Superstitions, AZ | | | |
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Turks Trifecta - Superstitions, AZ
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| Hiking | 7.22 Miles |
1,831 AEG |
| | Hiking | 7.22 Miles | 6 Hrs 23 Mns | | 1.72 mph |
| 1,831 ft AEG | 2 Hrs 11 Mns Break | | | |
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| partners | | This was my first time hiking with ishamod since December, and we were looking for something relatively short today because he needed to be done by mid-afternoon. The Superstition side canyons work well in these situations, and neither of us had been to Turk's Backyard (Ermahgerd Canyon), so we picked that one.
We started from Hieroglyphic Trailhead just after sunrise and followed Lost Goldmine toward Old Turk's Head. The desert is very green right now, and the wildflowers are just starting to bloom. I'd only approached Old Turk's Head from the east side previously, which has no trail and gets brushy in places, so it was a surprise to find a well-worn use trail all the way up from the west/southwest.
We took a short break at the top and before starting down toward Turk's Backyard. There are some steep/loose areas on the northeast side that slowed things down a little, but it flattened out pretty quickly, and we eventually picked up a cairned route leading into the canyon that seems to get quite a bit of use--there was a cleared path through the brush that made things very easy.
The canyon wasn't as deep as I expected, and it didn't take long to reach the dryfall/rappelling area. From there, we could see the ladder and caves up above us to the right, where the canyon curves to the east. On our way up to the base of the ladder, we passed a lot of rusty scraps of metal that made us wonder if this was once an old mine site. Other than missing a rung near the bottom, the ladder was in good shape and felt sturdy...it reminded me of a less sketchy, more modern version of the rickety wooden ladder in Long Canyon in Sedona...we convinced a friend to climb that one a few years ago [ youtube video ] , so with a much stronger ladder here, climbing this one was a no-brainer  .
We went up to the ledge and took a closer look in the cave...there was more to see here than in Long Canyon. This one definitely looked like the remnants of a mining operation--there was a bolt in the rock and some metal equipment and thick pieces of rope inside the cave, and the opening appeared to go back 15+ feet and narrowed into a mine shaft. I'd be interested to know was mined there...another guano cave like Crucifix Canyon?
After exploring, we climbed back down, took a short lunch break, then followed the cairns back to Turk's Head and went up. There was one other person at the top who left just before we got there, then we returned on Lost Goldmine among the crowds of people. We saw multiple groups starting up/returning on the use trail toward Old Turks Head, so it seems like that one has gained popularity recently. Back near the trailhead, a helicopter flew over a few times and hovered near Hieroglyphic Spring for a few minutes before flying away.
This was a short, easy day--and shorter than expected--some of the similar routes I'd looked at were a few miles longer, but I think their GPSs added a bunch of distance when the signal got lost in Turk's Backyard. I had to do some major cleanup in Route Editor to get my track closer to an accurate distance/AEG. Regardless, it was fun to explore another one of the Superstition side canyons and great catching up with ishamod again. The forecast for today said strong winds, but we never had more than a light breeze, and the temperature was perfect. |
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Hiked the road on the return because the Cougar Trail isn't dog friendly. Too much cholla.
