Powers Garden Trail #96 • Hike • Arizona • All Triplogs • HikeArizona.COM

Guides 38
Routes 182
Photos 1,602
Triplogs 232

40 male

Joined Dec 09 2014
Gilbert, AZ

Tent Lookout Loop, AZ

Backpack		Feb 17 2025
		jacobemerick • Triplogs 232

Backpack	32.00 Miles	6,694 AEG

Backpack	32.00 Miles	2 Days
	6,694 ft AEG

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South Field Canyon Trail #294A

Field Canyon Trail #294

[ checklist ] Field Canyon Spring Powers Garden Spring Upper Sycamore Tank

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Route Recorded on Route Scout | Pop | Map | Popup | MapDEX

Tortilla
Started about 20 mins before sunrise and enjoyed some dreamy light over the yellow, parched landscape. There was some rain out here a few days ago, enough to collect in a few rock tanks and catchments, otherwise the land felt thirsty. Made quick time over to Mud Spring (which was prolific in water & smell), made a quick detour on Sycamore to the Horse Canyon(?) connector, then trotted the rest of the way to Powers Garden to refill at the spring. Made some deer friends here who were soothed by soft reassurances about my lack of boom sticks. Trail conditions were good.

Field Canyon
Quick climb up a catclaw-covered hill and then drop down into the canyon. Trail was quite overgrown and I opted to boulder-hop most of the way, enjoying the rock formations along the creek. Not a lick of water was found along the way until the spring, which was overflowing right next to the trail. After the spring the trail turns and zips up the rest of the way to W Divide with only minimal route-finding.

West Divide
Bracing myself for a bloodfest, I was surprised at how much easier the two miles between Field & S Field (or Tent Lookout) trails passed. Think I was more patient and willing to "just follow tread" instead of fighting for elevation, like I did last time I was on this stretch. The next few miles were similar conditions, with some great views along the way. I assumed that the trail would stick to the very tippy-top of the ridge the entire way -- instead, it drapes like lazy garland, swinging from one side to the other, only occasionally riding the top.

Swung out on Grassy Knoll for camp with some stellar views out west. Wind was a slight issue, even nestled in a small grove, which woke me up a few times before I gave in and piled clothes around me. Solid sleep afterwards.

West Divide pt. 2
I had forgotten my phone cord and over-used my phone yesterday texting with the kids from Grassy Knoll (had a bar or two), so I rushed this section with the little bit of GPS-battery I had left. It felt more overgrown today with numerous sections of greedy manzanita encroaching on the trail, still offered some good views over towards Kielberg. Reached the junction, turned off tracking, and enjoyed second breakfast with my remaining water.

Powers Garden
Dropping down to the valley on the unnamed? connector was fairly easy, and then the highway along the creek is always a cruise. Spent some time searching below the marked Rattlesnake Spring for some pools -- years ago, some horse riders had told me that there was usually pools of water in the creek here -- and came up dry (heh). Maybe they were talking about another spring. Anyways, watered up again at Power's Garden Spring and reached Horse Creek before noon.

Tortilla
My plan had been to exit via Corral Canyon. However, with a near-dead phone and the route-finding involved on that grassy slope, Tortilla seemed safer, so I had to settle for backtracking (most of) my route in. It was rather enjoyable, with a pleasant breeze cutting through the sun's heat. There were a lot more cows at Mud Spring this late in the afternoon, and I tried to have some conversations with them before they scattered off. Guess I'm more of a deer person. Anyways, was a heck of a fun overnighter, and I'm glad I finally completed the last few miles of the northern wilderness.

Named place

Named place [ checklist ]

	Field Canyon Spring	Quart per minute	Quart per minute
	Deep enough to scoop water out of and overfilling onto and beyond the trail. Seems fairly dependable.

	Horse Canyon	Dry	Dry
	Dry along trail, very disappointing.

	Mud Spring	Gallon per minute	Gallon per minute
	Trough is overflowing, but entire area is fouled by cattle and stinks.

	Powers Garden Spring	Quart per minute	Quart per minute
	Lowermost pool was full and trickling over, was also greenish and stunk. Upper pools were delightfully clear and tasty.

	Rattlesnake Spring	Dry	Dry
	No sign of spring, dry in creek below.

	Upper Sycamore Tank	1-25% full	1-25% full
	A few small pools of water from recent rains. Wouldn't depend on it more than a week past rains, especially during a dry season.

_____________________

1 archive

Apr 27 2024

azdesertfather

Guides 16
Routes 81
Photos 1,269
Triplogs 1,144

51 male

Joined Apr 30 2008
Tucson, AZ

Tucson, AZ

Backpack		Apr 27 2024
		azdesertfather • Triplogs 1,144

Backpack	29.23 Miles	6,257 AEG

Backpack	29.23 Miles	16 Hrs 41 Mns		1.98 mph
	6,257 ft AEG		28 LBS Pack

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Great, memorable weekend in the Gailuros! Started out with animal sightings, including antelope again on the paved roads after Wilcox.

East Divide #287
From the trailhead at Deer Creek Road, we hiked 287 to the junction with Tortilla Trail. This section is pretty easy and scenic.

Tortilla #254
Lots of bare rock, but in those areas lots of good-sized cairns. Water reports attached but I found in most of the seasonal stream beds that there was flowing water. At places it would go underground but then come back up a little farther down a bit with a light flow.

At the Upper Sycamore Tank area there was some oak overgrowth, but generally speaking this trail was in good shape. Heard wild turkey a couple of times in this area. The stream in Horse Canyon before turning onto Powers Garden was a good place to get water.

Powers Garden #96
Turned south into Powers Garden Trail and made our way to the garden house. House was in good shape for being so remote. 3 spring bunk beds set up, 4 more single spring beds on their side inside, roof well sealed and secure. A little evidence of mice in the cabinetry, leaving any food or trash isn’t a good idea. Lots of air mattresses, metal folding chairs, sleeping bags… a guitar, a cast iron stove heater for colder nights, pots and pans, even disposable utensils, and paper plates and cups in stock. No evidence at that time however of people in the area and dropping gear. Fresh bear scat near cabin, that we think was left while we were there for lunch, though we never spotted him. After lunch we checked out the property and some of us laid down and rested on the beds for a few minutes, before heading down the trail. Heading down this trail we saw lots of bear scat, every few yards, some old and some fresh. Deadfall in spots along the trail.

Came to another abandoned cabin on the east side of this trail. Some of the sides of the cabin are no longer there, but still a fairly sound structure with an empty storage locker inside. There was a mine up the hill on the opposite side of this trail that we explored as well, with a bunch of old equipment. Mine shaft covered with heavy sheet metal. Nearby there also was a stamp mill with parts dating back to 1880 in San Francisco; it had everything but a boiler, and the Power family were waiting for it when the shootout occurred in February 1918. From the accounts I'm reading online, this was the Gold Mountain area, where gold first started getting prospected in 1902-03, but was abandoned when the Powers moved in, and they worked this mine until 1911.

Good flow in the stream flowing by the south end of the trail, we topped off here before climbing to the intersection with West Divide.

West Divide #289
As we started descending onto the West Divide, almost immediately we ran into lots of catclaw, that was growing over the trail from both sides to the point it was connecting to each other in the middle. In this section I had a short-sleeved shirt on and I just had to put my hands over my heads and push through with my torso, until we made it to the cabin.

We explored almost all the mine by the Powers Cabin. The flies weren't as bad on this day as have been reported by others in the past. The only area we didn't explore was the vertical shaft, descending with a wooden ladder; we didn't have any confidence after a century that that latter would hold weight! There was also another vertical mine shaft a few yards away from teh main mine opening. Supposedly Jeff Power (the father) was buried outside the mine, but it wasn't clear where the gravesite was. The next morning we headed out the way we came in.

The cabin was in worse shape than I expected, the walls are starting to shift on all four sides. One of the doors was gone, and the other was sitting inside but unable to open and close. Dirt floor has lots of mouse holes. Most of us decided to sleep in the cabin, but as it became dark they came out all over the place, so some of us set up our tents inside the cabin and some outside the cabin. Found a couple of bullet holes to the left of the front door. Pretty cool to experience, but honestly I will be surprised if the structure is still standing a decade from now.

Powers Garden #96
After making our way the next morning back through the catclaw, we refilled in the stream by Rattlesnake Spring and started heading toward Corral Canyon. On the way we ran into a family (Granddad, Dad and two kids) who had hiked in from the north end of this trail with permission from the landowner, and had arrived at the garden house and spent the night that night. It ended up being the only people we saw the two days we were out in the Gailuros.

Corral Canyon #291
This is where the fun of the weekend begins! Corral Canyon had a little bit of water in a few places along the stream bed, maybe a gallon per minute max. What it left of the trail is mostly gone due to massive amounts of deadfall and overgrowth. Game trails are all over the place, so making your way up the canyon you really couldn't know. It was a long, difficult slog, and not one I'll repeat. About halfway up the canyon we heard a lot of birds start squawking and we looked up, and saw several birds chasing away a owl, quite a sight to see! When we hit the high point after going around the edge of this unnamed peak at about 7150', we finally caught a little break and trailfinding became a little less brutal and hazardous. Up on top views opened up including nearby Kennedy Peak, and we made our way to the junction with East Divide.

East Divide #287
Once we started heading down East Divide, trail finding was a little bit better. Still a good bit of deadfall and overgrowth, but nothing like Corral Canyon. Great, long views to the east all the way out to Mount Turnbull. Lots of orange tape marking branches that should be cut. The final stretch was a delightful stretch through open grassy area, the same one that we hiked in on the day before.

Wildflowers Observation Light

Corral Canyon

Light flow

	Horse Canyon	Light flow	Light flow
	3-4 gallons a minute.

Horse Canyon Tank

Dry

	Mud Spring	Dripping	Dripping
	Corral full with a slight flow out of it.

	Rattlesnake Spring	Gallon per minute	Gallon per minute
	Report for stream just below spring.

	Upper Sycamore Tank	26-50% full	26-50% full
	half full, pipe feeding it from higher elevation

_____________________

"I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived." — Henry David Thoreau

2 archives

Apr 13 2024

West Divide Loop - Galiuro Mountains

Guides 38
Routes 182
Photos 1,602
Triplogs 232

40 male

Joined Dec 09 2014
Gilbert, AZ

West Divide Loop - Galiuro Mountains

Tucson, AZ

Backpack		Apr 13 2024
		jacobemerick • Triplogs 232

Backpack	43.73 Miles	9,276 AEG

Backpack	43.73 Miles	3 Days
	9,276 ft AEG

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7 linked trail guides

Juniper Spring Trail #271A

Pipestem Trail #271

South Field Canyon Trail #294A

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Route Recorded on Route Scout | Pop | Map | Popup | MapDEX

Alternate title: Galiuro Waterfallin'

East Divide / Tortilla / Sycamore
The lower foothills were a total vibe. I usually think of them as a means to an end, merely an access to the "good parts" of this wilderness, but today the hills were verdant, creeks aflowin', and temps perfect. Reached Mud Spring (no beef stew there today) and then continued on Sycamore for another 1.5 miles, dodging a few muddy messes on the way.

Horse Canyon Trail
This dashed line on the topo maps has been on my mind. I tried to pick it up at the curve of Sycamore Trail, wandered around until I found some tread, then backtracked to find the "start", which is marked by a small cairn with the old sign's metal support hung over. Between cairns and good tread, it was easy to follow the route up and over the saddle and to Tortilla Trail, where its kinda signed. Continued on the tread down to Sycamore Creek proper for a quick breakfast.

Picked up the tread on the other side of the creek and continued heading west through a burn scar. The trail is surprisingly easy to follow and reminded me of a VERY tame Sandy Saddle - this one is well-cairned, and the patches of manzanita are less than a few feet high. Lost it momentarily at a grassy saddle, otherwise was able to keep on tread all the way to Topout Divide, where the burn ends and a steady line of cairns march south (slightly up-creek) to Horse Canyon.

The magic started almost as soon as I met the canyon, with a series of impressive drops that were rushing (well, rushing with little-creek energy). The trail was still well-defined, solid bypasses around the biggest drops and overgrown where rock-hopping is an option, just like any official trail out here. The middle section dragged a bit, when the creek mostly dried up and the afternoon began to heat up, and then I found the tallest plunge about .5 miles east of Tortilla Trail junction. After that I was a bit over-stimulated and tired, so I trudged the rest of the way down the canyon and set up my hammock next to Rattlesnake Creek for a snooze.

Powers Garden / Mailbox / Pipestem
Rattlesnake Creek was flowing strong, which complicated a few crossings. Wanted to do some scouting in Mailbox, and did find some hints of trail in the tangle, it was just more difficult than I had the energy to deal with today. Both the tread and creek were pretty cluttered for the half mile I explored. The rest of Powers Garden trail got tough and I soaked one leg up to my knee on a crossing. Anxious about finding a campsite for the night, I made some olympic-level athletic leaps to reach Pipestem Creek, which was flowing at a much slower pace.

The sun had already "set" in the deep valley, and my shoes were both damp, so I cruised up the creek. Lower Ringtail was the first candidate, and while it was an interesting location, there were no good trees for my hammock. A short distance later and I bumped into the "red rock falls", where the trail swings around through two grassy clearings that were begging me to stay. Rushing falls, good trees, minimal cold sink, and solid sky views made for an excellent sleep that night.

Pipestem / Juniper
Cold predawn temps made for an adequate alarm, and I was packed and on trail with the sunrise. My chattering teeth accompanied the gentle trickle of an otherwise quiet morning. Without many drops along this section I spent more time trying to track tread until I reached the "sliver" of a sign that marked the start of Juniper. This one was tough to track for the first half, so I rock-hopped along the pleasant little drainage, and then picked up some good sections near the top. I think this is because the trail continues north, outside the the wilderness, and most traffic (hunters or cattle) come in from the north (Fourmile?). Watered up near the spring and backtracked to Pipestem.

The next 3 miles was a steady uphill march. There was at least one wholly unnecessary, catclaw-choked section of tread that climbed high up the hillside only to drop back down. Not many waterfalls, though there are some nice rock pools that probably hold water year round. While I didn't see an obvious path or sign zipping up to the south (where the topo map claims Pipestem meets West Divide), there was a fork in that area that may have been it. I kept close to the creek until I was below Maverick Tank, where I pulled to my full (5.5L) capacity for a dry afternoon and evening.

West Divide: Pipestem -> Field Canyon
From the junction, this trail makes a steady, uphill climb up the grassy hillside, the trail varying from a very thin tread perched precariously on a steep slope to a very wide, cairned path dancing on the ridge. About a mile in I bumped into the first serious overgrowth, near 6602', and had to fight through thick brush to continue forward. This was how the the next few miles went - easy strolling one minute, crawling and cursing the next. I didn't see much wildlife.

Conditions improved the closer I got to Rhodes Peak. There's a cool "break" that the trail goes through, and things immediately changed. Before it was mostly forested, blocked from the wind, and a mixture of great & terrible conditions - after it was grassy slopes (except for the manzanita on Rhodes Peak) with huge cairns and ridiculous winds that threatened to hurl me right across to East Divide. Doing my best to lean into the wind, I kept my head down and marched from one cairn to the next, wishing I had done this section in the opposite direction. Before I knew it I was at the unmarked junction with Field Canyon, tumbling downhill in the search for a campsite without wind. Found an unremarkable section with convenient trees & no cold-sink about .5 miles in and called it.

West Divide: Field Canyon -> Tent Lookout
I slept like an absolute log that night, only waking up once to turn over. Hammock is life. Briefly thought about continuing down Field Canyon for an early exit and decided to continue a little bit more down West Divide. After all, @chumley promised (posted a photo) that the trail conditions were pristine (in 2015) between Field & S Field trails (only half), so I figured it'd be very easy morning hiking (from a photo posted in 2015). It wasn't. I could not even tell if there had been any trail maintenance along this section, losing the tread over a dozen times, and even resorted to walking backwards to let my pack take more of the beating.

Blooded, bruised, and with many a hot take on what a "wilderness trail" should entail, I hauled up the short spur to Tent Lookout and was astounded by the view. It's by far the best one I had from the West Divide, great views of the interior of the wilderness. There's a few giant nails, hooks, and posts that make me curious about what else was up here - maybe a hitching post for horses? Anyways, this is a mandatory future campsite on a less-windy weekend.

S Field Canyon
There was no part of me that wanted to continue on West Divide, not today, so after resting at Tent Lookout I started the trudge down S Field Canyon Trail. It's fine, though it feels very utilitarian compared to other Galiuro trails. There's no shade and some minor catclaw at the bottom, and the views are just okay compared to what you get at the top. Reached the bottom with little fanfare, zipped up past Powers Garden (no one was home today), and then watered up at Horse Creek, where I learned my water filter was plugged up and my dirty water bag was broken.

Tortilla
Squeezed out 2 liters for the 8 mile hike back to the trailhead and then hauled up to the saddle. With low water I decided that a snack + .5 liter drink every 2 miles would help ration out my supplies, and that worked out well, especially because this trail is quite familiar. My original plan would have me going out on Corral Canyon, a final dose of waterfall goodness before descending from Kennedy, and I just didn't have the gumption for that today. Anyways, this trail was easy to trot along and still had the green grass & trickling drainages that had been delighting me all weekend, so I made it back to the trailhead a tad thirsty yet very satisfied with the adventure.

Flora

Flora [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Catclaw Acacia

Culture

Culture [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Dam - Rock

Named place

Named place [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Juniper Spring Powers Garden Ringtail Canyon

	Horse Canyon	Medium flow	Medium flow
	Strong flow for most of it's length, especially the final mile before Rattlesnake Creek.

	Juniper Spring	Quart per minute	Quart per minute
	Steady flow coming out of spring. Slight (cleaner) trickle coming down the eastern drainage.

	Lower Ringtail Tank	26-50% full	26-50% full
	Steady trickle leaving tank and flowing over (filled-in) dam.

	Mailbox Canyon	Pools to trickle	Pools to trickle
	Intermittent trickle along first half mile, didn't proceed further.

	Maverick Tank	26-50% full	26-50% full
	Technically didn't go all the way to the marked location, but there was a dam and several large pools downstream that had good flow and appeared to be dependable (lots of growth around them).

	Mud Spring	Gallon per minute	Gallon per minute
	Trough was full, surrounding ground was soaked.

	Peepstem Canyon	Pools to trickle	Pools to trickle
	Muted flow coming into Pipestem.

	Pipestem Canyon	Light flow	Light flow
	Light, intermittent flow. Waterfall & pool areas had strongest flows.

Ringtail Canyon

Pools to trickle

	Upper Sycamore Tank	26-50% full	26-50% full
	Metal tank was empty, steady creek flow nearby with plenty of algae.

_____________________

Apr 12 2024

ShatteredArm

Guides 12
Routes 192
Photos 863
Triplogs 356

42 male

Joined Nov 30 2015
Phoenix, AZ

East / West Divide south loop, AZ

Backpack		Apr 12 2024
		ShatteredArm • Triplogs 356

Backpack	52.20 Miles	11,700 AEG

Backpack	52.20 Miles	3 Days 6 Hrs 4 Mns
	11,700 ft AEG

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8 linked trail guides

Bassett Peak

Ash Creek - Galiuro

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I've been eyeballing doing a loop through the southern half of the Galiuros for awhile, and the water situation seemed very promising, so I gave it a go. Plan was three nights, starting at Ash Creek, and making a clockwise loop over Bassett, down to Jackson Cabin, then up West Divide, and back via Rattlesnake and East Divide.

Friday

Got to Ash Creek TH at around 9:30am, with temps already in the 70s. Nothing notable, other than the fact that it was impossible to stay dry at the first few crossings. Ash had surface flow about half the way up. We decided to tag the summit since my friend hadn't been up there. Made it to the top of Bassett in about 3 hours.

I was really worried about the stretch of trail down from Bassett, given the FS doesn't have it on their maps, but it actually turned out to be a breeze most of the way down. Someone put a lot of work into building that thing, and the grade is intact in all but a couple of spots. The going didn't really get rough until we were all the way down into the canyon, where the vegetation got pretty thick. Eventually we decided to stop looking for the trail and just go down the wash, and that made things much easier.

Got to a stretch with light flow about a third of a mile before Jackson Cabin, and decided to camp there since I didn't know whether there would be water near the cabin (there was). Warm enough down there to leave the rain fly off.

Saturday

Got up at 6am, left camp by around 8am IIRC. We decided to poke around the cabin for a minute, and seeing water in the cabin and downstream in Jackson Canyon, decided we should've camped there. Stretches of trail in Jackson Canyon were apparent, but it was usually easier to stay in the creek.

When we got to Redfield, it was apparent water would not be an issue for awhile. There was surface flow for all but 100 feet. The walking was easy up to Hooker Cabin; it somewhat reminded me of hiking in Aravaipa Canyon. Took a short break at the cabin. The rest of the canyon got more difficult to move through, but it also got prettier. The upper part of Redfield was the highlight of the trip for me.

At around 1:30pm or so, after a bit of poking around, we found the trail back up to West Divide. A little brush, but not by any stretch the worst. Cedar Flat was really pleasant; the terrain there was grassland and large Junipers. Occasional water in the drainage. The trail was well defined most of the way down to Gold Gulch, where there was intermittent flow and a couple of nice campsites. By now it was after 3:30, so I proposed we camp there, but that would probably put a day hike to Powers Garden out of reach. My friend seemed to want to continue, and proposed we decided by coin flip.

So with less than 3 hours of daylight left, we continued onto what I expected to be the worst stretch of trail all trip. Probably 2/3 of the way up the divide there was no trail to be seen, and half of where there was trail, it was through very thick vegetation. It took us two hours to reach the divide, and I was really worried we'd be bushwhacking in the dark. Fortunately the trail down the north side was well-defined and somewhat clear, so we made it down to Kielberg Tank in short order. Found a corral, with water below the tank, and decided after 10.5 hours or so of hiking, it would suffice.

Sunday

Woke up in the morning feeling good knowing the Kielberg Divide was out of the way. Started hiking around 9am, took a short break at Powers Cabin, then down to Rattlesnake. We dropped packs here and hiked down to Powers Garden and back, and this was the most pleasant hiking of the trip. Warmer than I expected through Rattlesnake, but there was surface flow most of the way. Took about 3 hours to get there and back.

Rattlesnake trail was a lot rougher than I expected, with a lot of brushy stretches. Took a couple of hours to get up to the Holdout Spring area, where we set up camp (we used the flat area along Rattlesnake just east of the spring spur). Walked up to the spring to check it out, but I actually liked the water in the creek better.

Monday

Got up a little earlier so as to get home at a reasonable hour, and started hiking by 7am. The rest of Rattlesnake Trail was in pretty solid condition, other than one bad washout where I thought for sure I was going down (based on the satellite, it looks like there's a way to avoid the washed out area). The climb up to East Divide felt long, but not too bad overall. Got up there by 8:40am.

The first mile and a half of East Divide was outstanding. Trail was clear, and the upper part of Paddys River was pretty. After High Creek we hit our first stretch of thicket, but it was clear sailing for another mile or so after that. About half way through, we passed through one really bad thicket that had me nearly at my breaking point, so we took a little rest. The rest of the way wasn't as bad, with some clear stretches, some climbs, and some brush, but route finding wasn't really an issue at all. Took 5 hours to get from the Rattlesnake junction to Ash Creek trail.

Having closed the loop, we were feeling pretty good, and made good time down to the creek. The last mile or two really dragged, and I think I was running entirely on fat metabolism at that point, which made Ash Creek seem longer than it ever had before.

Overall

This was a phenomenal trip, and an amazing loop, but one that involves a lot of suffering. Highly recommended, but I'll never do it again.

	Cedar Spring	Quart per minute	Quart per minute
	Drainage has intermittent light flow the whole way up to the spring.

	Echols Spring	Quart per minute	Quart per minute
	Not at the spring, but there's light intermittent flow in Gold Gulch along West Divide trail.

	Holdout Spring	Gallon + per minute	Gallon + per minute
	Box is full but just a seep, plenty of water flowing into the pool 20 feet upstream.

	Jackson Canyon	Light flow	Light flow
	Intermittent flow from the uppermost spring down to Redfield.

Jackson Canyon Spring

Gallon per minute

	Kielberg Tank	76-100% full	76-100% full
	Tank overflowing the dam, intermittent flow in the creek below.

	Knothe Spring	Dripping	Dripping
	Nothing in the box. There's a little water in the drainage below the spring.

	Lower Ash Spring	Gallon + per minute	Gallon + per minute
	Lots of water from here all the way down past the FS boundary.

	Negro Canyon	Medium flow	Medium flow
	Looks like it had as much water coming from it as Redfield.

	Powers Garden Spring	Gallon + per minute	Gallon + per minute
	Tons of water, surface flow in most of Rattlesnake.

	Rattlesnake Spring	Gallon + per minute	Gallon + per minute
	Tons of water in the area.

	Upper Ash Spring	Quart per minute	Quart per minute
	Nothing in the box, light flow in the creekbed above and below the trail.

_____________________

Mar 25 2024

Layne32

Photos 18
Triplogs 3

male

Joined Jan 08 2023

Galiuro Loop, AZ

Backpack		Mar 25 2024
		Layne32 • Triplogs 3

Backpack	35.00 Miles

Backpack	35.00 Miles	4 Days

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I am an experienced backpacker with over 300 backcountry nights in the past half-decade all across the country from the Southern Appalachians to the Northern Rockies to the Desert Southwest. The Galiuro Mountains may be the toughest place I've ever hiked. They weren't made any easier by 2 days of snow before my trip began and 2 more days of snow while I was out there.

On a related note, 3 of the most recent trip reports in the Galiuros are from the same guy. Does anyone know this dude, jacobemerick? Is he ok? Must be an absolute madman. The Galiuros left me feeling like an abused spouse - beaten up, knocked down, battered & bruised - but head-over-heels in love - but feeling like I shouldn't go back for my own good.

The maps I used had inaccurate trails, no topography, and not many place names. I will do my best to describe things but I don't know the name of many of the canyons, features, etc. along the way.

Tortilla
From Deer Creek TH the route nominally starts along the East Divide Tr before connecting with the Tortilla Tr. Snow started falling in the open beginning stretches of Tortilla. I had trouble following Tortilla after it dropped down by Sycamore Cr, there was a lot of overgrowth and snow covering the ground. I began to wonder what I was getting myself into. Tortilla eventually, mercifully, finally left Sycamore Cr and began climbing around the mouth of a couple cyns before dropping into Rattlesnake Cyn & Powers Garden Tr. I made camp just south of the ranch area, not a great place really but the sun was setting & temp dropping into the 30s.

Powers Garden
I had trouble following the trail directly out of Powers Garden for the first mile or so, finding it easier to just walk down the streambed once it dried up. After that the rest of Powers Garden was very nice (for a trail in the Galiuros, it would be considered mildly rough elsewhere). A bit of overgrowth but much better compared to other cyn trails in the Wilderness. So much interesting history along here - from the Powers Garden meadow to the cabins, structure on a hill, & tons of old equipment further down.

West Divide
I hiked a short out-and-back stretch of this trail from Powers Garden Tr to Shootout Cabin & Powers Mine. Worst catclaw portion of the trip. But what incredible history around the cabin - of the 8 men involved in the shootout in 1918, 4 died there that day and 3 later received life sentences after Arizona's biggest ever manhunt.

Rattlesnake before Holdout
Things got rough(er) for me. As I was finishing up West Divide back to the Powers Garden-West Divide-Rattlesnake intersection a thick wet snow started falling. The beginning of Rattlesnake was among the worst trail stretches of the trip, I had trouble. Horrifically overgrown and snow covering everything made navigation difficult. Often I could identify the "trail" only by finding the thickest patches of vegetation in the woods. The wet snow covered the vegetation and soaked me from navel to feet.

Holdout Spur
As the temp dropped into the 30s I made it to Holdout Spring. Holdout Cave was an absolute miracle that I didn't expect. I slept on the shelf in the cave - not sure if that is recommended because I did see rodent droppings so hantavirus may be a concern. I was so cold and wet that I was desperate for shelter.

Rattlesnake after Holdout
Back on Rattlesnake the next day, the section directly east of Holdout Spur was in much better shape than the section directly west. After ascending out of Rattlesnake Cyn the trail gets a bit sketchy climbing to the ridge, and the entire thing was covered in 6+ inches of snow, but I was able to maintain course pretty well to the East Divide Tr intersection.

East Divide before Paddy's River
The first few miles of East Divide were the best trail of the trip. For the most part it was a nice wide highway along the ridge. A bit of overgrowth and tricky navigation in the snow from time to time but very nice for the Galiuros. I found a bald hill off the trail to cowboy camp on for the night - I named this hill Yeehaw Point.

East Divide after Paddy's River
Absolutely brutal. I wouldn't see much more than a hint of trail from the Paddy's River intersection until the Corral Cyn intersection. A mile or 2 after the Paddy's River Tr intersection the East Divide Tr dropped down into a canyon. I had trouble, lots of overgrowth and snow. After climbing out I think it dropped into and climbed out of another cyn. After that it contoured around Kennedy Peak through a lot of burn. Snow was everywhere and combined with the downfall to make navigation extremely difficult.

East Divide after Corral Cyn
Still absolutely brutal. There was some very helpful flagging tape showing the first stretch of trail from the Corral intersection switchbacking down through overgrowth. With the brush and the thick snow cover I may still be out in the Wilderness to this day if not for that flagging. After a certain point the snow stopped but the brush got worse. There started being a lot of downfall mixed with thick brush before and after Oak Creek. The final flat and open stretch of East Divide back to Deer Creek TH was no problem.

I couldn't in good faith recommend anyone backpack the Galiuros. But if you do, there is breathtaking canyon scenery (I actually think Galiuro Canyons is a more accurate representation of the area than Galiuro Mountains), unique history, and plenty of chances to build your character. Hopefully you can find better maps than the ones I used which were often inaccurate. It took every bit of route-finding experience and skill that I possess to make it through this Wilderness in the snow, brush & downfall. I, or more accurately the trail, was often lost. Do not underestimate the Galiuros.

Named place

Named place [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Galiuro Wilderness

3 archives

Nov 04 2023

Guides 38
Routes 182
Photos 1,602
Triplogs 232

40 male

Joined Dec 09 2014
Gilbert, AZ

High Creek - E Divide - Corral - Rattlesnake, AZ

Backpack		Nov 04 2023
		jacobemerick • Triplogs 232

Backpack	25.91 Miles	6,202 AEG

Backpack	25.91 Miles	17 Hrs	1.91 mph
	6,202 ft AEG

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High Creek Trail #290

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Route Recorded on Route Scout | Pop | Map | Popup | MapDEX

After an inexcusably long break from adventuring, headed out to the Galiuro Wilderness with three objectives: check out the fall colors, explore some more of the trail system, and test out some gear changes.

High Creek #290
Got my 2WD, meh-clearance vehicle a mile from the "official" trailhead a few minutes after sunrise. Watered up and shivered along the climb up High Creek, gawking a few times at the color show. Trail is easy to follow, deceptively steep, and has little overgrowth. Vibing.

E Divide #287
Turned north. Climb keeps on climbing until you reach the saddle a quarter mile in. Paused here to check out the entry log and look for the marked spring. Found a few promising spots and even some damp dirt, NO water on surface, and a decent tread that continued downhill... Back on official trail to enjoy the non-stop visual treat of Big Views, also found a nice (exposed) campsite on the north side of the 7100 BM saddle. The section of trail from 7100 BM -> Rattlesnake is phenomenal, stellar views of the southern half. After reaching the junction I cruised, since I had already been here two years ago.

Paused at the Paddy River junction to down some calories and try to mentally prepare myself for a potential slog. It was worse than I expected. The western slopes were a mess of deadfall, loose rocks, and confusing treads; Douglas Canyon was filled with more deadfall, thick brush, and washout; and the general area around Kennedy Peak was devastated. With a light pack I was making about a mile an hour along this section, tho some of that was spent hunting tread to get a more accurate GPS route. Outside of the frustrating aspects, the geology of this area was pretty cool, and there was water! Hesitant on calling this a true one-and-done.

Corral Canyon #291
After the beating for the last few hours I was running low on patience and water, so decided to barrel in a generally correct direction instead of hunting tread. Few puddles above the waterfall and clear, tasty water at the spring itself. Rest of the trail was in fine shape, splattering of fall colors.

Powers Garden #96
Highway cruising. There is 5-10 large downs to circle around, otherwise easy walking. It was getting dark and the cold was settling in quickly, so while my original plan was to camp at Holdout, I stopped shortly after Rattlesnake Spring.

Had a small fire for warmth during dinner, and then doused it shortly after, chased by the cold temps into my hammock. Had one of my best sleeps outside in recent memory, nestled in a pair of 40F under/top quilts. Got chilly around 1AM, pulled on some extra layers, and survived. Morning was a shiver-fest, so I pushed back breakfast plans until a few miles could warm me up.

Rattlesnake #285
This trail is so good, with solid tread and wonderful fall colors and all, yet some parts of it is so overgrown, especially the mile west of Holdout Spring. Pulled water and had breakfast at Holdout, then pushed on, anxious to get the climb done. Ran into a chill bear shortly after leaving the creek. Briefly about exploring the unnamed "#285A" spur at the saddle - there is even an ineligible sign sitting there - and instead pushed on. More overgrowth along the climb, and that scree section was several notches above my comfort level, so I bypassed through some angry manzanita. I've done the scree before, in the winter, and this time seemed way sketchier. By the time I reached the top I was quite sweat, bloodied, and ready to be done.

E Divide #287 / High Creek #290
Nothing new. The sun was higher so the fall colors on High Creek popped more. Passed the miles by plotting out the next few adventures.

Gear Notes - this is my second underquilt and I'm getting more used to hammock camping, though I struggle a lot on finding good spots to hang, even in something as tree-rich as this wilderness. Need more practice. First time backpacking in trail runners and had zero issues. Also used a hydration pack with a hose for easy sipping... on the fence. I like having individual bladders so I can keep track of my intake, as well as have forced breaks.

Fauna

Fauna [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Black Bear

Named place

Named place [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Corral Spring Holdout Spring

Meteorology

Meteorology [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Autumn - Color Foliage

Autumn Foliage Observation Moderate
Some areas seemed pretty close to peak. Other areas seemed stressed and had shed everything already. Speculate that the peak will be in 2 weeks.

	Corral Spring	Quart per minute	Quart per minute
	Cement trough had a little bit of water. Underneath the trough it was several large tanks of clear water with a good trickle in/out.

	Corral Tank	1-25% full	1-25% full
	This one is confusing. I did not see any dam along North Fork, though there were a few puddles in North Fork with reasonable clarity. There IS a signed "Corral Dam" along the tributary, where the trail climbs up to the north, which was had a dribble that would be very difficult to collect.

	Holdout Spring	Gallon + per minute	Gallon + per minute
	Solid, as usual.

_____________________

Jan 13 2023

GrangerGuy

Guides 34
Routes 138
Photos 931
Triplogs 111

68 male

Joined Dec 26 2018
Phoenix, AZ

Tucson, AZ

Hiking		Jan 13 2023
		GrangerGuy • Triplogs 111

Hiking	19.73 Miles	4,718 AEG

Hiking	19.73 Miles	1 Day 11 Hrs 1 Min
	4,718 ft AEG	17 Hrs 25 Mns Break	27 LBS Pack

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I’ve been busy teaching and got 3 weeks behind on my trail writeups. I did a loop in the Galiuros, starting from Deer Creek Trailhead. This trip turned out to be Type II fun, although I got a lot of good pictures (I think).

The road to the trailhead, Forest Road 253, is easily navigated. It is high clearance when dry all the way to the trail head. You could even take a normal car on it if you were adventurous. The crossing of Aravaipa Creek had a very small amount of water in it.

My plan was to take the East Divide Trail south to Tortilla Trail, following it over to Powers Garden Trail and stay at Powers Garden for the night. Then south on Powers Garden Trail to Corral Canyon Trail, up to the East Divide Trail, and back to my car.

East Divide Trail #287
I started out about 8 am. It was 39° and sunny. Although the trail is in tall grass, it is easy to follow here. It can be confusing at times, however. I took a detour off the trail to set up my tripod on some rocks, and found a cairn in the tall grass at least 20 yards off the trail. After about 1.5 hours, I reached the Tortilla Trail. The intersection is marked by a cairn and the remains of a signpost.

Tortilla Trail #254
Continuing up, arriving at the first saddle, I could see my car far away at the trailhead. The path comes upon a recently-maintained barbed wire fence. It follows along north for a couple hundred yards before coming to a gate, and an intersection with the trail back down to Deer Creek Road. Through the gate, the trail descends to Oak Creek, which was flowing cheerfully.

Switchbacking up from Oak Creek, the path enters the wilderness. With the sun now on Mt. Graham across the valley, I could see the snow on the peak. The spring box at Mud Spring was full, but green and not very appealing, and indeed there is mud everywhere. Sycamore Trail #278 bears right, and Tortilla Trail bears left. The signs indicate 6.2 miles to Powers Garden.

A short distance past Mud Spring, there is a confusing intersection marking the East Divide Trail and Tortilla Trail. Since I’d already left the East Divide Trail, this did not make sense. It seems to be an old routing of the East Divide Trail, or a connector trail to it. At the intersection, bear right.

About noon, I reached the high point of 6250’, and could still pick out my car at the trailhead. It’s a little tricky finding the trail coming off the high point and down into the ravine leading to Sycamore Creek. Cairns are helpful. Once in the canyon, the trail closely follows the creek, right of it, left of it, or in it. The path is overgrown.

Eventually arrived at the dam, and the actual intersection with Sycamore Creek. The dam is filled with silt. The trail passes below the dam, and then by a large tank and a small tank. The large tank was overflowing.

Leaving the dam, the trail also leaves the creek, staying essentially level. The grass is tall and the trail is obscure, but if the going gets scary or difficult, you are probably off the path. The trail traverses in and out of 3 more canyons before eventually crossing a pass at the head of Horse Canyon. From here, it is 2.5 more miles to camp.

The trail down into Horse Canyon is not great. It alternates between scree and solid granite and catclaw. The walk along Horse Canyon at the bottom is idyllic. Eventually the trail comes to the crossing at Rattlesnake Creek, which was flowing enough to make me hunt for a good crossing. Once across, it is best to stay to the right of the fence to pick up the southbound Powers Garden Trail.

Powers Garden Trail #96
This old road is doing a good job returning to singletrack. It follows along the fence until arriving at Powers Garden, where there are several photogenic buildings. There was a large, noisy organized group of young adults camping at Powers Garden. I camped as far away as I thought prudent, but they still kept me awake at night. Lots of good campsites there.

In the morning, my watch indicated it was 34°, but a small amount of ice in my water bottle suggested it was colder. This campsite is notorious for being cold, and my hands were numb by the time I got breakfast going.

Continuing south on day two, I made a rookie mistake and headed upstream on the wrong path until it petered out. By the time I realized my error and got back to the right path, it was 8 am, an hour later than I should have started, as it turns out.

The Powers Garden Trail does disappear from time to time due to deadfall mostly. It crosses the creek several times, but even with a fairly high flow, it’s a good rock hop to get across. Past Brush Spring, there was no longer any water in the creek. The last bit before Corral Canyon seemed to best be traveled in the creek bed. The intersection with the Corral Canyon trail was not obvious.

Corral Canyon Trail #291
At the bottom, the trail is good. It is marked by occasional cairns and features good tread and not a lot of brush. Someone has clipped a few of the more offensive bits of brush, but it could do with a lot more maintenance.

At around 1.5 miles from Rattlesnake Creek, the trail becomes pretty vague. For the next half mile or so, just follow the creek, until you encounter a couple of large cairns directing you up the hill on the north side of the creek. If you get as far as Corral Spring, you must backtrack to find the switchbacks up the grassy north side of the canyon, which take you around a redoubtable waterfall.

The switchbacks are hard to find in the grass, but there are regular cairns that appear, letting you know you are on the right track. If you load the GPS tracks from previous HAZers, you can follow those. Eventually the trail returns to the stream just above the waterfall. The best path onward seems to be in the creek, following the south fork where it splits. There is quite a bit of deadfall to work around.

After a short section a ways up on the south canyon wall, the trail crosses it and begins another aggressive set of switchbacks up the grassy north side of the canyon. The trail is hard to spot, but again, cairns will appear suggesting you are on the right path. Just before the top, the trail makes a U turn around the end of a ridge. Near here is a nice outcrop with good views to Mts. Lemmon and Wrightson. From there, it is an easy ½ mile to the intersection at a pass with the East Divide Trail, which is tangled in deadfall.

East Divide Trail #287
From the pass, I followed the East Divide Trail down the switchbacks into the canyon of a tributary to Oak Creek. This north-facing slope had quite a bit of snow on it, and at one point I lost the trail and just headed straight down until I picked up the trail again. There are lots of large trees fallen and blocking the trail in the upper section as well. It was a bit of an adventure.

Farther down, as the trail begins to follow the riparian canyon, the brush becomes awful. My way was much slowed by pushing aside brush as I worked my way down. Eventually the trail bursts out of the brush onto grassland and leaves the nasty canyon.

Note that in the vicinity of the crossing of Oak Creek, the current (as of Jan 2023) official route of the East Divide Trail is very far off. Just follow the obvious and good trail as it curves south, then north around Oak Creek Canyon, staying pretty level, or follow the GPS tracks of the numerous unofficial routes, and you should be fine.

By the time I reached the intersection of the Tortilla Trail again, it was dark, but with my headlamp and light from my phone, it was not a problem to make it back to the trailhead.

Named place

Named place [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Oak Creek

	Corral Canyon	Medium flow	Medium flow
	Good flow of the creek up as far as the major waterfall above the spring.

	Horse Canyon	Heavy flow	Heavy flow
	Plenty of water in the lower part of the canyon.

	Mud Spring	Quart per minute	Quart per minute
	Tank is overflowing, albeit green.

	South Field Canyon	Heavy flow	Heavy flow
	Rattlesnake Creek was flowing strong here.

	Upper Sycamore Tank	76-100% full	76-100% full
	Large tank was overflowing.

Jan 14 2022

Guides 38
Routes 182
Photos 1,602
Triplogs 232

40 male

Joined Dec 09 2014
Gilbert, AZ

Powers Garden via Paddys River, AZ

Backpack		Jan 14 2022
		jacobemerick • Triplogs 232

Backpack	27.39 Miles	6,281 AEG

Backpack	27.39 Miles	2 Days
	6,281 ft AEG		15 LBS Pack

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Paddys River Trail #293

[ checklist ] Bassett Peak Galiuro Wilderness Home Ranch Tank Limestone Spring Mud Spring North Field Canyon Paddy's River at Paddy's River Trail Pinaleno Mountains Powers Garden Rattlesnake Creek Rincon Mountains Santa Catalina Mountains South Field Canyon Sulphur Springs Valley Upper Sycamore Tank

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Route Recorded on Route Scout | Pop | Map | Popup | MapDEX

Decided to try my luck with a risky loop in the Galiuros and was rewarded with an excellent adventure. It's a good time to get out there.

Paddy's River #293
Parked at Deer Creek TH and walked FR253 to the Deer Creek Ranch gate. Had some bypass options but didn't know if they would work - turns out the Forest Service already worked out the details. There's a small pull-out next to the gate with a FS sign (no mention of the trail, just a "foot traffic only") and a short ladder to get over the fence. Singletrack winds through the grassy pastures until the far side of Home Ranch Tank and connects with the original trail.

Old jeep trail only lasts a half mile, then back to singletrack (it was unmarked, I left a cairn). This time it goes uphill through manzanita, and while the tread is obvious, it is quite overgrown and gave me some early cuts. Brief grassy footpath and then into the scrub, which is also obvious tread with thick overgrowth. Made it to the saddle feeling optimistic about the trail conditions - I came in with low expectations and, even with the disuse, there was a discernible route.

Dropping down the other side of the saddle was interesting. There was little brush to fight through - now it was grassy slopes, bare rock, and minimal catclaw - but the old tread was more faint and there were a few lightly cairned re-routes. I meandered along, enjoying the partly cloudy skies and big views of Sulphur Springs Valley. The only time I truly lost the trail was right before the final drop into Paddy's River, when I stuck to topo and must have missed a re-route, and ended up perched on a steep slope above a drainage. Descent was painful.

Paddy's River was paradise. Surrounded by tall pines, plentiful flat spots for camping, and a happy little creek flowing through. If the flow was dependable I could see this being a great low-mileage alternative to Powers Garden. Took two breaks next to the water, soaking up the ambience and filling to full water capacity, delaying the inevitable slog to the divide.

Took some meandering to find the track leading out of the river, and the search was worth it - there is a lovely set of singletrack switchbacks marching uphill, cairned on each turn, that is overgrown yet easy to walk. Of course, I lost them after a half mile and couldn't pick them back up and chose to use game paths to continue. Pretty sure the trail stays south of the ridge and I was trying to ride the line. At 6200' there is a single cairn before the scrub forest begins and... bushwhack time. I did find two separate trails, one old and wide and the other a narrow singletrack that seemed newer. Even with the options, and sporadic flagging, this climb was tough, and I crawled and slithered many times to get through the thick forest. My opinion on burns definitely changed on this section. Last hundred yards were more open and I strutted out onto the Divide with ease.

East Divide #287
Good grief those views. Santa Catalinas, Rincons, and Pinalenos were all crowned with snow, and the dramatic lighting made for some legit gasps. Trail is slightly overgrown and there was snow on the north-facing slopes, never got deeper than a few slushy inches. I trotted happily along this trail, giddy with views and easy hiking. You could easily camp on this trail and have nearby water, with the melting snow and all.

Rattlesnake #285
My prints were the first on East Divide until I reached this junction. There had been several parties doing the High Creek -> Rattlesnake route, pressing down the snow and creating slick sections that were barely traversable without spikes (I did bring them, just didn't want to put them on unless I had to). Only spicy section was at that red-dirt slope where the mud was slick as ice. Dropping down into the creek was slightly overgrown, nothing pointy. Creek started flowing early on, only fading out a few times on the length. Met two backpackers at Holdout Spring who were very knowledgeable about the area (got a new lead on YLE access that I need to follow up on). Final two miles were surprisingly overgrown, and when I reached Powers Garden trail I was ready to be done.

Camped at the first fire ring I found. The chill had been settling for the last hour and I shivered through, not wanting to layer up until camp was setup and I had wiped some of the sweat/grime/blood off. Tried to start a fire but the larger pieces were stubborn, so when dinner was done I leaped into my tent. My lil' thermometer claimed 14F at 7AM (yesterday high was about 60F). Temps in my tent didn't get too low - my water didn't freeze - and a new down quilt kept my nice and cozy all night. Inflatable pad did get a little chilly, even supplemented with a sheet of reflective mylar. Quickly made breakfast and started down the trail, eager to warm up.

Powers Garden #94
Easily distracted by shiny things, I made it a few minutes before wandering over to the stamp mill, then hunt for Rattlesnake Spring (didn't find it), then follow an old tread on the wrong side of the creek until I was above the ball mill. Lots of suspicious little trails crawling around up there, lots of cool things to track down. Past that I was able to focus and make quick work of the rest of the trail, stopping briefly to talk to two knowledgeable men at the Garden who had brought 5 horses (and a son) in for a hunting expedition. Some new deadfall along the trail, nothing too worrisome.

Tortilla Trail #254
Hours after sunrise the cold temps at the base of Powers Garden was palpable. There's a great campsite near the junction that I wouldn't touch outside of summer. Anyways, trail climbed quickly and I stopped at the first creek crossing to water up. The next half mile is magical and had strong Little Blue vibes. Then it was time for the main climb, which went quick, and I appreciated the warm sun after the chilly morning.

Next few miles dragged. A sharp wind was picking up, and combined with the shaded slopes, had me alternating layers multiple times. Trail design is great and tread is in good shape (had to be for those horses to get in). Reached the dam on Sycamore Creek, which was flowing strong, and stopped for lunch, donning about every layer I had to keep warm. Noticed with dismay that there is a connection with Sycamore Trail and that the old tread up to Topout Divide seems to be sticking around, guess I'll need to make another Powers Garden loop to explore that further. Reached Mud Spring and bid welcome to the local resident, who had aged a lot since my last visit. Continued on to the junction with Deer Creek Administrative site spur (not sure if it has a name) and decided to check that out.

Dropping down to the site was steep and easy, and I swear there were some bootprints, but it was empty. There are corrals, a restroom, trough, and locked cabin - I wonder why this isn't the official trailhead, it's pretty nice. Road in isn't that bad (but is gated). I went cross-country to complete the loop.

Saw 5-6 deer, smelled a few skunks, didn't see any fresh bear sign. Only saw the two pairs of humans out there. Enjoyed this trip a lot more than my first one, already planning my return trip during the cold months.

Culture

Culture [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Mining Equipment Trail Signs and Markings

Named place

Named place [ checklist ]

Meteorology

Meteorology [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Sunrise

	Deer Creek Cabin Spring	Gallon per minute	Gallon per minute
	Clear water in trough, good flow in nearby drainage.

	Holdout Spring	Quart per minute	Quart per minute
	Water in springbox and cave. Also, the drainage was flowing and there was a lil' waterfall.

Home Ranch Tank

51-75% full

	Horse Canyon	Medium flow	Medium flow
	Happy flow coming down the canyon.

	Limestone Spring	Dripping	Dripping
	Springbox was half full. Spring itself looked to be collapsed in. Would not depend on this source during much of the year.

	Mud Spring	Gallon per minute	Gallon per minute
	Spring, box, and puddles below. Dead cow stench is minimal.

	Paddy's River at Paddy's River Trail	Heavy flow	Heavy flow
	Lots of water flowing through the creek, plenty of deep pools along stretch w trail.

	Rattlesnake Spring	Gallon + per minute	Gallon + per minute
	Spring location is sus, did not find anything resembling a spring on the hillside. Creek was flowing strong below. Some knowledgeable campers at Powers Garden stated that there is "always a pool of water in the creek" near here.

	Upper Sycamore Tank	76-100% full	76-100% full
	Both creeks were flowing strong. Dam had a trickle over. Metal water tanks were both empty (except for a thin layer of ice on the bottom).

_____________________

1 archive

Nov 29 2021

ShatteredArm

Guides 12
Routes 192
Photos 863
Triplogs 356

42 male

Joined Nov 30 2015
Phoenix, AZ

Tucson, AZ

Backpack		Nov 29 2021
		ShatteredArm • Triplogs 356

Backpack	36.00 Miles	9,000 AEG

Backpack	36.00 Miles	2 Days 5 Hrs 30 Mns
	9,000 ft AEG

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Put together a plan for two nights in the Galiuros, and found a few friends willing to subject themselves to it. Original plan was roughly a night at Powers Garden, a night at Holdout Spring (with a detour to Powers Cabin), then back via East Divide.

Friday

Got to Deer Creek TH at around 10:30am, and started with a slight diversion to the Deer Creek administration site. It was meh. Took Tortilla Trail out so a to get to the Garden with some daylight left. Trail was more enjoyable than expected, it's basically a highway. Horse Canyon was pretty. Reached the cabin by around 3pm, set up camp and had a nice campfire.

Saturday

Some in the group were concerned about whether there would be water at the spring, given the lack of recent reports. I felt very confident there would be, based on how much there was at the garden, but so as to keep everybody happy I acceded to the proposal to day hike to Powers Cabin and spend a second night where we were. I did like the idea of not having to break down and set up and extra time...

So off we went at a leisure pace, stopping when we found something interesting. Like the cabin just north of the Rattlenake Spring area, which I didn't know any. Tom mentioned stopping by someone's cabin on the way to the mine, I'm wondering if this was what he was talking about.

At the Rattlesnake junction, we found a pack sitting there, so it would seem we weren't the only ones out there. Ran into the owner shortly thereafter. The mine and cabin were interesting, but definitely not as pleasant a location as the garden.

Considered a day trip to Holdout Spring (other group confirmed there was indeed water), but would've been pushing daylight at that point. Got back and enjoyed another nice campfire.

Sunday

Learned on Sunday morning that I had, in fact, brought more whisky than necessary. But after getting some electrolytes in my belly, recovered well. Decided we would prefer to take a different way back, so we decided to try Sycamore.

The lower part of Powers Garden trail was very worthwhile, and Rattlesnake Creek started flowing a little about Pipestem, and by the Sycamore junction it was a real creek with water. Sycamore trail was rough, and the catclaw was vicious on some of the south facing slopes. Pretty much lost the trail after the spring, and eventually wound up just following the creek bed. Very slow going, over half the entire time getting back to the car was spent in Sycamore Canyon.

Couldn't find where the trail exits the canyon, so I ended up scrambling up to where it contours along a bench. Nothing like a little class 3 scramble with a full pack in the middle of nowhere! The track was faint up to the ridge, but there were occasional cairns.

Once over the ridge, the trail got much easier, and we made good time to the car. Got there just in time to enjoy a cold beer and a nice sunset.

Really enjoyed this outing. Kinda wish we had stuck to the plan, but as long as it doesn't burn down, there will be more opportunities...

_____________________

1 archive

Mar 20 2021

Guides 38
Routes 182
Photos 1,602
Triplogs 232

40 male

Joined Dec 09 2014
Gilbert, AZ

Tucson, AZ

Backpack		Mar 20 2021
		jacobemerick • Triplogs 232

Backpack	25.73 Miles	5,215 AEG

Backpack	25.73 Miles	2 Days
	5,215 ft AEG

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[ checklist ] Corral Spring Kennedy Peak Mud Spring Powers Garden Powers Garden Spring Sycamore Canyon Spring

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Route Recorded on Route Scout | Pop | Map | Popup | MapDEX

Long, dark drive from San Tan Valley. Was pleasantly surprised to see that FR253 was recently graded, that plus a dry Aravaipa made it very easy to reach TH.

East Divide #287
Easy walking up the grassy lowlands with a few cairns to keep you moving forward. Everything looks toasted, even with the recent snows/rains. Passed what felt like a half-dozen signed junctions before reaching Mud Springs, bit of a maze to figure out at the start. Noticed something weird here that several of the other trails had - two treads that were not-quite-parallel, sometimes collapsing to a single track and other times devolving into game trails. Unsure if this is due to chatty cowbows or meandering livestock. Regardless, it had me backtracking many times throughout the weekend.

Sycamore Creek #278
Picked this up at Mud Springs, took a bit of wandering to find where it started. Recent maintenance and a few re-routes were appreciated. Once I reached the saddle by China Peak the trail plummeted down over steep switchbacks, and while the cairns were huge, the re-routed tread is hard to track. Once the trail hits the creek it does a very good job at sticking to the banks and cleaning hopping from one side to the other. There is some minor deadfall and overgrowth to navigate, and I chose to boulder-hop a few times, overall it was pretty fun.

Bumped into a large group of teenagers w/ chaperones who were hiking from Rattlesnake Canyon to Redfield over two weeks. Chatted for ten minutes, could have spent all day sharing stories, but we were heading in different directions and each had many miles to cover before nightfall. That was shortly before Sycamore Canyon Spring, and I spent much of the rest of the trail following tread high up the banks and trying to imagine how I'd fit two weeks worth of food in my tiny pack.

Powers Garden #96
Rattlesnake Creek was flowing happily, a nice change from the stagnant pools in Sycamore, which gave me (temporary) hope for water sources. Also, this trail was annoyingly well-maintained, recently trimmed back neatly and a small army of bootprints pounded into the tread. As there was no one at Powers Garden, my guess is that a crew had walked in from Rattlesnake Road and done some work on the trail or at the Garden, and then hiked out on Friday.

This was a very enjoyable section, with the big trees and views on each side. I passed Pipestem (signed), Mailbox (unsigned), and Tortilla (signed) junctions, and somewhere along the way my happy little creek completely dried up. Camping in the middle of a field of dead grass with a single liter of water didn't sound like fun, so I bailed my original plan (set up camp here and go hunting for the Mailbox spur) and decided to push forward instead. The rest of the trail to Corral Canyon seemed to drag, mostly because I kept veering into Rattlesnake Creek in hopes of finding a crystal-clear pool of water.

Corral Canyon #291
Bit more deadfall and overgrowth, and the creek crossings can be confusing, yet the tread is solid and was much better than expected. Followed it for a mile and found some trickling water, pulled to full capacity and backtracked a half-mile to a nice campsite.

Took my time setting up camp and getting some firewood for the night. I was expecting a cold night and wanted to glamp, even brought a little chair along. Managed to stay up until 8 before crashing, and then slept in the next morning. New sleeping pad was a real winner, probably got down to high 30s and kept warm. Woke up feeling wonderfully refreshed.

Tracking the creek crossings got a bit more difficult, and I did spend some time boulder-hopping. The one crossing that is truly important is right at Corral Spring, where (if you're heading uphill) you leave the south bank, backtrack downstream to the spring about twenty feet, and then head up the north bank. If you miss this, you'll end up at the bottom of a very formidable waterfall. Going up the north bank is a set of steep switchbacks with a few re-routes due to deadfall, which is something that you need to repeat near the end of the trail.

The final leg of the trail is on the top of a ridgeline, and this is where the burn comes in full. There's good tread, and a few cairns, and enough deadfall to turn the whole thing into a maze. Two nice campsites and a small stand of surviving pines wait at the end of the trail.

Kennedy Peak #287A
Short jaunt south on East Divide and a humble sign point to the peak, which is another maze of deadfall. There are plenty of cairns, though sections of the tread have been washed out. I lost the trail on both the hike up and down. Anyways, views on top were totally worth it - after spending yesterday on the grassy north side and in deep canyons, seeing the expansiveness of the wilderness was a moving moment.

East Divide #287
Return to the junction and then heading down over the million switchbacks. Snow was a minor issue, a few stretches where the narrow tread was covered in slick iciness that promised an quickened descent. Eventually the snow obstacles were replaced with deadfall, and then overgrowth kicked in. I didn't care too much - I was heading downhill and the trailhead felt within reach.

As soon as the junction to Mud Springs shows up the trail veers back onto grassy flatlands and makes a sizeable re-route to the south to avoid the deep tributaries of Oak Creek. At least, it was a re-route according to the route I had. Eventually the track swung north, joined with my route from yesterday, and I rolled back down to the trailhead.

Named place

Named place [ checklist ]

	Brush Canyon	Dry	Dry
	Dry at mouth.

	Corral Canyon	Pools to trickle	Pools to trickle
	Dry at mouth. Trickling pools start to intermittently show up after 1 mile upstream.

	Corral Spring	Quart per minute	Quart per minute
	Water directly below the cement box.

	Horse Canyon	Dry	Dry
	Dry at mouth.

	Mailbox Canyon	Dry	Dry
	Dry at mouth.

	Mud Spring	Gallon per minute	Gallon per minute
	Spring box was full, trough was overflowing, downhill tank & trough were full. Cow corpse is still there fouling up trough overflow, but trough still seems clean enough.

	Pipestem Canyon	Dry	Dry
	Dry at mouth.

	Powers Garden Spring	Dripping	Dripping
	Two large, algae-clogged pools. Totally unappealing. Rattlesnake Creek was completely dry from Corral Creek to Pipestem, this spring did nothing to help that.

	South Field Canyon	Dry	Dry
	Dry at mouth.

	Sycamore Canyon Spring	Quart per minute	Quart per minute
	Several appealing pools trickling, plenty to pull from.

	Sycamore Creek	Pools to trickle	Pools to trickle
	Handful of sad pools, mostly between spring & mouth.

_____________________

Nov 14 2020

chumley

Guides 94
Routes 840
Photos 22,055
Triplogs 1,993

52 male

Joined Sep 18 2002
Tempe, AZ

Deer Creek to High Creek, AZ

Backpack		Nov 14 2020
		chumley • Triplogs 1,993

Backpack	23.00 Miles	5,808 AEG

Backpack	23.00 Miles	3 Days
	5,808 ft AEG

no routes

Linked

7 linked trail guides

High Creek Trail #290

Partners

partners

	JoelHazelton	John9L
	Jonnybackpack	KatClaw

Kathleen had been begging me to take her to Powers Garden for a while, and not to turn down an excuse to spend time in the Galiuros, I penciled in a date on the calendar. Of course, the plans went all crazy and the whos and whens weren't finally settled until a few hours before we started. Kathleen had to work, until I fomo-guilted her on the drive east, and she managed to pull everything together and make the trailhead before sunset. Jon was gonna meet us in the morning, but that got thwarted and he didn't leave the valley until mid morning. Joel had a bunch of stuff keep him from getting out of town on time and he drove through the night. Patrick was on time and Nate somehow got his Prius all the way out there in time for a Friday night car camp.

Saturday morning, Joel rolled up and he and I opted to set up a shuttle so we could come out via High Creek instead of returning back to Deer Creek. This took longer than expected ... the shortest route isn't an option because a ranch owner has restricted access. So after the long way around, we weren't ready to hit the trail until after 11. Patrick, Nate, 9L, and Kathleen had all started a few hours earlier while we were shuttling. Jon was running about an hour behind us but we opted to head out rather than waiting.

A couple of miles in we met Kathleen and Chewy in bad shape. An illness had set in and despite making it halfway there, she decided that it wasn't worth backpacking and waking up in the middle of the wilderness with a worsening sickness of unknown severity. It's a tough call to make, but it was the right decision. I wouldn't want to be sick like that in the middle of the woods either. She assured us she would make it back to the truck, so we said our goodbyes and continued on.

There was a foul-smelling rotting cow carcass at Mud Spring, which didn't pose any issues since nobody would drink from that spring anyway. The views on the Tortilla trail are open and ok, but really not a good descriptor for this range as a whole. There was a puddle or two of water in a couple of shaded drainages from the previous week's rain, but it was otherwise a very dry hike in. Some maples splashed bright reds near the mouth of Horse Canyon providing a welcoming entrance to Powers Garden after the steep and scree-ey descent from the crest.

Despite evidence of some very recent horse traffic, we were pleased to find the Garden unoccupied, except for 9L, Patrick and Nate who had already set up camp. Jon arrived around sunset after stopping for some photos along the way.

The cabin was unlocked and very well stocked. Actually, people abandon property here instead of carrying it out, and I wish they wouldn't. Sleeping pads, sleeping bags, tents, canned goods, you name it. Even a bottle of whisky!

But seriously ... it's not helping to leave anything here. If you carry it in, carry it out too. Your 12-lb Ozark Trail sleeping bag is trash. The cabin does not need another bottle of mustard!

We had a good fire, and managed to stay warm until bed. Always a cold sink, the garden dropped into the 20s and all our waters were frozen solid. We reconsidered why we hadn't all just slept in the cabin as it would have provided a few degrees of relief. No matter, once the sun hit the valley, the frost melted and things warmed up quickly.

The spring had plentiful water, but despite being clear, had a bit of a funky odor. If the spring area doesn't get a little bit of maintenance, I think this may become a less-than-ideal water source in the next few years. All the former infrastructure has gone to feces and I'm not sure there will ever be running water at the cabin or a clean trough for filtering and wildlife again.

Nate took off at first light and hiked out on his own. 9L and Patrick left in late morning, heading back via Tortilla. Jon and Joel and I headed south on what should have been an "easy" day. I had planned to make another visit to the cabin and mine, but when we got to the junction, I wasn't feeling it, and having been there before, didn't need to do it again this time.

The Rattlesnake Trail has flashed since the 2014 fire and much of the tread is gone as you meander through a dense stand of Arizona Cypress growing in the sandy and rocky flood debris. After pleasant hiking so far, this last 2 miles was a lot of work. It's quite overgrown and between route-finding, creek crossings, bushwhacking, and the end of our second day of hiking, we were all pretty happy to get to camp at Holdout Spring.

As expected, Holdout was full of clear, delicious water ... the first we had seen all day since leaving Powers. Camp here was at least 15 degrees warmer than down in the garden, and we were all thoroughly pleased by that.

The next morning we took it slow getting going and stopped a few times along the way to enjoy the fall colors along the trail as we climbed up toward the divide. We may have been a little bit late for colors, but it's tough to tell ... it seems that there had been an extended freeze at some point in the previous couple of weeks that had put an abrupt end to most of the colors.

The hike to the divide from Holdout is truly scenic, and so much better than Tortilla on the way in. I had forgotten a few of the sections and really enjoyed the tired grind on the climb out. Heading down High Creek was a delight as always, with a few pockets of really nice color that deserved a break. At one point, my phone fell out of my pocket as I sat and I left without it. This near-disaster was averted as I take enough photos that it hadn't been more than 100 yards before I grabbed for it and realized where it must be!

The Mark-KO tree has settled from forehead height to a more manageable chest height.

I had left my truck at the most popular camp area and since I was a few minutes ahead of the others, I drove a half mile or so back up the road to pick them up. There are some sections up there that just make it not worth the drive vs just walking it!

We didn't see any bears in person, but they were obviously plentiful across the entire range. Over the course of the three days, I don't believe we ever went more than 100 yards without encountering a healthy pile of poop, and often could not go more than a few steps. On no hike that I can recall have I seen so much sign of bear activity over such a large area.

We drove back to Deer Creek to fetch the other cars before heading back home. But not before getting to enjoy the spectacular beauty of the Aravaipa Valley as daylight waned. Each trip to the Galiuros makes me wonder why I don't come back here more often! So Kathleen ... I guess we'll have to schedule this one again and finally get it done!

Named place

Named place [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Galiuro Wilderness Powers Garden Spring

	Brush Canyon	Dry	Dry
	No sign of water

	Corral Canyon	Dry	Dry
	No sign of water. Didn't hike up far to investigate further

Deer Creek Cabin Spring

Dry

	Holdout Spring	Quart per minute	Quart per minute
	Clear and cold. Good water in the cave spring box and in the main spring box which was full and delicious.

	Horse Canyon	Dry	Dry
	No sign of water even though it rained a little bit the previous week

Horse Canyon Tank

Dry

	Mud Spring	Quart per minute	Quart per minute
	No idea how much flow ... plenty of water, but gross due to cattle traffic. Rotting dead cow carcass made it even worse.

	Powers Garden Spring	Dripping	Dripping
	Good pools of clear water, but foul smell possibly due to rotting leaves and debris. Filtered and flavored, and nobody got sick!

	Rattlesnake Spring	Dry	Dry
	No water anywhere

Upper Sycamore Tank

Dry

_____________________

I'm not sure what my spirit animal is, but I'm confident it has rabies.

2 archives

Nov 25 2018

nonot

Guides 107
Routes 249
Photos 2,067
Triplogs 514

male

Joined Nov 18 2005
Phoenix, AZ

Tucson, AZ

Backpack		Nov 25 2018
		nonot • Triplogs 514

Backpack	24.50 Miles	5,300 AEG

Backpack	24.50 Miles	4 Days
	5,300 ft AEG

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linked

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none

no partners

First time in the Galiuros!

Sycamore canyon appears to be a trail the forest service no longer cares about as once you drop off the mesa it is pretty badly overgrown. Still I was able to find most of it, including a corral not shown on the map at the last crossing of Sycamore Canyon.

The Powers Garden Trail is in good shape other than one or two spots.

Visited Mailbox canyon where I slipped on some granite/moss and cracked my GPS. Wandered a little further up Mailbox following the trail, but after perhaps a mile I wasn't feeling it being any special and turned around, as I also wanted to give myself enough time to explore the ranch area of Powers Garden. It is reminiscent of the Tony Ranch in the Superstitions with the exception that the main building is still being fairly well maintained.

Nights were cold and a bit below freezing since the entire area is a cold sink for the air between East and West Divides.

Last day I took the Tortilla trail out, which is in pretty good shapre with just a little bushwhacking but more noticeable erosion problems in several areas.

Fauna

Fauna [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Wild Turkey

Meteorology

Meteorology [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Autumn - Color Foliage

Wildflowers Observation Isolated

	Horse Canyon	Pools to trickle	Pools to trickle
	Dry at Rattlesnake but small pools as you ascend, probably from recent rains.

	Mailbox Canyon	Pools to trickle	Pools to trickle
	Dry at Rattlesnake but a little surface water in pools, probably from recent rains

	Mud Spring	Gallon per minute	Gallon per minute
	Hard to tell the flow amount, the area has been destroyed by cows.

	Pipestem Canyon	Dry	Dry
	Dry at the intersection with Rattlesnake

	Powers Garden Spring	Gallon + per minute	Gallon + per minute
	The entire creek was flowing well at this point, so impossible to know how much the spring itself is pumping out.

	Rattlesnake Canyon	Medium flow	Medium flow
	Water was intermittent, alternating between good surface flow and underground flow. It was roaring pretty well at maybe 600 gpm at the intersection with Sycamore canyon

	South Field Canyon	Dry	Dry
	dry at intersection with Rattlesnake

	Sycamore Canyon Spring	Quart per minute	Quart per minute
	I'd estimate a quart per minute, light trickle coming from the small natural rock pool.

	Sycamore Creek	Medium flow	Medium flow
	Dry where you drop in. Surface water is random but by the end it is flowing 200 gpm.

	Upper Sycamore Tank	1-25% full	1-25% full
	The giant swimming pool had a little bit of water in it but the plumbing is hosed up and the tanks are dry.

_____________________

http://hikearizona.com/garmin_maps.php

Hike Arizona it is full of sharp, pointy, ankle-twisting, HAZmaster crushing ROCKS!!
Hike Arizona it is full of sharp, pointy, shin-stabbing, skin-shredding plants!
Hike Arizona it is full of striking, biting, stabbing, venomous wildlife!

3 archives

Nov 03 2018

sami_h

Routes 1
Photos 6
Triplogs 7

41 female

Joined Sep 25 2011
Tucson, AZ

Tucson, AZ

Backpack		Nov 03 2018
		sami_h • Triplogs 7

Backpack	13.00 Miles

Backpack	13.00 Miles	3 Days

no routes

no photosets

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none

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Short version: Sycamore Canyon Trail between Lower Sycamore Spring and ??? is very overgrown and hard to impossible to find.

Long version:
Working for the Forest Service and Sky Island Alliance, we backpacked into Sonora Basin (the drainage between Rattlesnake and Sycamore) to validate water rights at an old dam/spring. We had permission to come in through Power's Hill, so we parked on Rattlesnake Mesa, and hiked in the last 3 miles of the road. We headed down Power's Hill, and turned off onto the Sycamore Trail about halfway down, at the sign (which is fallen over). Like last fall, there is a fair bit of catclaw mimosa to deal with on this trail. Rattlesnake Creek was running well. The trail is pretty easy to follow and decently cairned until Sycamore Canyon Spring (really, Lower Sycamore Spring). A fair bit of catclaw between Power's Hill and the Rattlesnake Creek crossing, but manageable. We camped up on the top of the hill (man, that's a steep hill!) between Rattlesnake and Sycamore - a sweet little spot for a few tents, with great views. The next day, we headed up Sycamore Canyon. The trail was mostly easy to find to the spring. Once you cross Sycamore Creek, go about 15' downstream, up on the other bank, and through the corral. Then climb the hill and continue up canyon. It's easy to lose the trail on the final approach to the spring, but by then you can see where you're aiming for anyway. After that, the trail is really hard to find. We alternated between following it, and shoving through catclaw in the general vicinity of where the trail should be. Lots more catclaw, one several minute stretch where I really wasn't on the trail, and I managed to lose the trail on the way back and came in too far below the spring. Anyhow, we only went about 3/4 mile past (south of) the spring. Once we came back down to the creek, we just went right up it until we reached a side drainage on the west side, where we bushwhacked up to a saddle that drops you into Sonora Basin. This was surprisingly easy. Headed down into the basin, found the dam, which must be fed by a nearly-perennial spring or groundwater. Beautiful pools below it, ash, dock, sedges, deergrass. Then back to camp. As you near the top of the hill to drop back into Sycamore Creek at the corral, it's so easy to keep going on a game trail. I've done this hike twice now, and missed the turn both times. Anyhow, we found our way back the right way eventually. Backpacked back out the next day (missed a fork near Power's Hill and came out a little below the trail sign), only had to hike up half the Hill (yay!), then back down the road, with another exciting bushwhack detour with full packs over to Grapevine Spring. What a pretty spot.

Autumn Foliage Observation Light
Ash in full swing.

Wildflowers Observation Isolated
Turpentine bush was all pretty yellow.

Grapevine Spring

Quart per minute

	Lower Sycamore Tank	26-50% full	26-50% full
	This is upstream, at the Dam marked on the topo. The dam is filled with sediment, but there were large pools below it.

	Sycamore Canyon Spring	Gallon + per minute	Gallon + per minute
	Really running strong. Couldn't climb the first small waterfall to get to the main hanging garden, cause it was too wet.

Sycamore Creek

Medium flow

_____________________

Sep 30 2017

sami_h

Routes 1
Photos 6
Triplogs 7

41 female

Joined Sep 25 2011
Tucson, AZ

Tucson, AZ

Backpack		Sep 30 2017
		sami_h • Triplogs 7

Backpack	8.50 Miles	1,560 AEG

Backpack	8.50 Miles	3 Days
	1,560 ft AEG		35 LBS Pack

no routes

no photosets

Linked

linked

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none

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A couple SIA volunteers and I hiked in to Power's Garden to gather water rights data for the Forest Service at some springs and dams. It took us about 7.5 hours to go each way on the Tortilla Trail. We started at noon on Thursday and only made it to the saddle before you drop into Horse Canyon. There wasn't much water out there. We got lucky and found some in a small drainage right before the saddle. In retrospect, we really should have filled our water at Upper Sycamore Spring/Dam. After stopping by Horse Canyon Spring and Horse Canyon Dam, we made it to Power's Garden late the next morning, where we encountered a large and very unafraid black bear wandering up the creek to the main spring for water. There wasn't water in Rattlesnake Canyon until we got pretty close to the spring (about where the trail goes to the creek). We hiked out to Apache Dam and were shocked to find that it existed and was actually not totally full of sediment. We headed back for a rather restless night listening for bears. Friday, we headed back up the Tortilla Trail. We stopped at Upper Sycamore to gather data, refill on water, and eat lunch. We made it back to the truck by 4:30. The Tortilla Trail was in ok shape. It was there, but the tread was often very rocky and cobbly, and grasses and small shrubs covered it so that you had to look through them to see the tread. There were a couple washed out spots that weren't too hard to navigate. But overall, I'm really glad I had my phone's GPS and a map with the HAZ trails loaded on it to follow in several places. It definitely requires a bit of route-finding skill right now. It needs some work. Last October, we talked to some gentlemen who took 9 hours and a few falls to hike in and they thought the trail was in pretty rough shape. We only had to climb over one dead tree, though.

	Horse Canyon	Dry	Dry
	One tiny pool of water upstream of trail/canyon junction at small confluence.

	Horse Canyon Tank	Dry	Dry
	Totally dry on this visit. Filled with sediment.

	Mud Spring	Quart per minute	Quart per minute
	The small dugout pool was dry, the trough had only a little water in it, but the spring box had plenty of water and the big tank down the hill was full - it's apparently being diverted there right now for the cows.

	Upper Sycamore Tank	1-25% full	1-25% full
	The dam is filled in. The tank had a little water. But there were some nice pools in the drainage below the tank to filter water. I'd estimate the flow rate was <1 liter/min. Fill up here if you're on this trail!

_____________________

1 archive

Oct 14 2016

toddak

Guides 13
Routes 38
Photos 1,651
Triplogs 577

60 male

Joined Nov 15 2005
Jackson, CA

Tucson, AZ

Hiking		Oct 14 2016
		toddak • Triplogs 577

Hiking	18.00 Miles	3,500 AEG

Hiking	18.00 Miles	9 Hrs	2.00 mph
	3,500 ft AEG

no routes

Linked

linked

Partners

none

no partners

Nice day in the Grass-iuros on an out-and-back to Powers Garden. Very long drive to the Deer Creek trailhead and the hike itself is pretty gnarly (and cow infested), but the destination is very cool. Lots of tents in the meadow but no one around, probably a trail crew out there. PG reminds me a lot of Reavis Ranch in the Supes.

_____________________

Apr 22 2016

nomphy

Triplogs 2

41 male

Joined Jan 23 2015
Tucson

Tucson, AZ

Hiking		Apr 22 2016
		nomphy • Triplogs 2

Hiking

Hiking

no routes

no photosets

Linked

none

no linked trail guides

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none

no partners

Made the drive out from Tucson to hike this trail, but access to the trailhead from FR 96 is now blocked by a locked gate on private property just off of Klondyke Rd. Couldn't find any way around it.

_____________________

Oct 12 2015

FOTG

Guides 37
Routes 556
Photos 10,872
Triplogs 1,052

43 male

Joined Jan 21 2013
AZ

Tucson, AZ

Hiking		Oct 12 2015
		FOTG • Triplogs 1,052

Hiking	36.68 Miles	7,322 AEG

Hiking	36.68 Miles
	7,322 ft AEG

no routes

Linked

9 linked trail guides

Rattlesnake Canyon - Galiuros

[ checklist ] Arizona Black Rattlesnake Canyon Tree Frog

Partners

8 partners

HAZ - Event

	BiFrost	chumley
	clairebear	John9L
	johnlp	Jonnybackpack
	slowandsteady	Tough_Boots

Its hard to imagine a three day backpack turning out this well after it was chosen as a somewhat last minute alternative to a cancelled LCR trip, but simply put it turned out to be nearly perfect. The landscape was rugged, the views were extraordinary, the company was great and the attractions in the area well worth it.

We made the long drive to the Galiuros Friday night. We agreed on knocking out the southern portion of our loop for our approach to Powers on Saturday with a stop at Kennedy Peak along the way.

The route to the cabin on Saturday was the best of times and the worst of times. The best of times consisted of: our fun group, the copious amounts of water spewing out of the mountain, a fun summit and some great scenery. The worst of times consisted of: the complete absence of a trail in spots, the thickest wildflowers any human has ever traveled through, concealed ankle breakers, not so concealed New Mexican Locust, grass as tall as one's eyes and trail obliterating washouts and landslides.

The trail conditions were much nicer day two and the hiking more rewarding. After the obligatory stop at the shootout site, we headed for some "fun" in the mine. The mine was very extensive inside and contained several remnants of its operational days. The more adventourous spent a considerable amount of time exploring the several passages and I completed a pretty dicey descent down an old ladder to explore a very deep vertical shaft. However, as my support team began to express their disaproval in the venture, I decided to call it quits. There was still probably a solid 30-40 more feet to drop, but I was starting to lose my faith in the old ladder, as the distance between rungs grew to a precarious 3 feet in spots and the bottom was still not clearly visible; that and I was not crazy about the wire holding some rungs on in replacement of nails.

After the mine and cabin, some headed for the garden, others headed for the ridgeline. John and I followed up on a a lead I had discovered while looking over some topo maps of the area. As it turned out, my lead turned out to be quite the rewarding little find. We came across presumably a prehistoric dwelling that had been recycled and certainly utilized in more contemporary times. The cave and its scenic surroundings were very interesting and the trail there was great with flowing water nearly the entire distance, modest cascades and the discovery of the classic wooden Galiuros Wilderness sign along the way. Inside the cave there was a man made cistern inside catching water from a seep and and a little loft area that was reachable by a ladder complete with some modern pictographs. After the cool little find, it was back to camp for the standard good times around the fire.

Day three offered some of the nicest views of the trip. A challenging little climb out, but some great creek side hiking due to the recent rains and some small waterfalls worth leaving the trail for a closer look. The trail was in better shape than our Saturday route in, however, it could certainly use a little TLC. Fast times out and fun times at the trailhead!

Fauna

Fauna [ checklist ]

Culture

Culture [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Benchmark Ghost? Mining Equipment

Brush Canyon

Dry

Corral Canyon

Pools to trickle

Corral Spring

Dry

Deer Creek Cabin Spring

Gallon + per minute

	Holdout Spring	Gallon + per minute	Gallon + per minute
	Full concrete box/trough, good water

Horse Canyon

Light flow

	Mud Spring	Gallon + per minute	Gallon + per minute
	Full trough

	Powers Garden Spring	Gallon + per minute	Gallon + per minute
	water at spring and creek was flowing

Upper Sycamore Tank

76-100% full

_____________________

10 archives

Oct 11 2015

chumley

Guides 94
Routes 840
Photos 22,055
Triplogs 1,993

52 male

Joined Sep 18 2002
Tempe, AZ

Powers Divide S.Field Loop, AZ

Hiking		Oct 11 2015
		chumley • Triplogs 1,993

Hiking	14.48 Miles	3,211 AEG

Hiking	14.48 Miles	7 Hrs 56 Mns	2.39 mph
	3,211 ft AEG	1 Hour 53 Mns Break

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linked

South Field Canyon Trail #294A

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partners

BiFrost

Day hike loop from Powers Garden to the shootout cabin and mine, with the return trip along the West Divide Trail.

Powers 96 was in fine shape, especially upstream of Corral canyon which was the source of a recent flood. South of Corral, there is no sign at all of the 2014 Oak Fire down in the valley. Once reaching the saddle and the Divide trail junction the trail down to the cabin is overgrown with catclaw. I'd say this trail should be cleared, but I suspect the FS is perfectly happy making it a pain to get to. And I'm actually ok with that. It's neat to see the cabin, having only scraped the surface of the history there. I'll have to watch Powers War again now that I've been there. I'm sure some of it will make more sense now.

We took a lunch break there and continued down the road to the mine where I was quick to voice my disapproval of the lack OSHA safety protocols in place.

On the way back, FOTG, LP, and Steady headed their own way while Karl and Pat and I decided to take the ridge back.

Like the other trails we hiked in the Galiuros, West Divide 289 is overgrown and involves some good bushwhacking, but isn't really too tough. The views were great, and a nice breeze kept the warm and largely shadeless route quite pleasant.

When we arrived at the first option to drop back to the garden, we opted to continue. The first trail is signed as Field Canyon 294, but I believe it is actually called Tent Lookout 294.

From this junction north on West Divide 289 we encountered the nicest trail conditions of the weekend. The ACC trail crew had been clearing this section and it was an absolute dream :y:

. Almost too good to be true! --And soon enough, in fact, too good to be true! We reached the end of where the trail had been cleared, and we were faced with about a mile of the worst trail of the weekend. The only good thing is there was no manzanita and no catclaw, but it was otherwise a linebacker's worth of pushing through trees, bushes, and branches. Crawling was a regular part of getting through. ](*,)

Finally we reached the junction with the trail that drops into South Field Canyon. The Divide Trail north of this point was clear again, as was the trail that we followed downhill. Despite the flowing water all over the east side of the Galiuros, we were surprised that this canyon was bone dry. Nonetheless, it was a scenic canyon and a pleasant hike. The trail deteriorated and fell into what seems to be a common state for trails out here ... overgrown.

One short climb up a ridge brought us to the junction of the lower end of the signed Field Canyon 294 trail that we had bypassed up top earlier. Before heading back to camp we decided to check out the Powers Spring area, which was an amazing narrows of rocks and flowing water.

This was a great day hike loop from the garden. It'll be great once the final northern section of the Divide trail is cleared.

Culture

Culture [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Benchmark

Named place

Named place [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Grassy Peak Grassy Ridge Powers Cabin Powers Garden Spring Powers Mine Rattlesnake Creek South Field Canyon

	Field Canyon Spring	Dry	Dry
	No sign of a spring here. Entire canyon was dry.

	Rattlesnake Spring	Quart per minute	Quart per minute
	Didn't find spring source. Water flowing in the creek. Water also in tank at junction with Powers Cabin trail just upstream from here.

_____________________

I'm not sure what my spirit animal is, but I'm confident it has rabies.

1 archive

Oct 10 2015

johnlp

Guides 1
Routes 14
Photos 7,202
Triplogs 5,208

68 male

Joined Mar 16 2008
chandler,az

Powers Garden backpack Oct 9-12, AZ

Backpack		Oct 10 2015
		johnlp • Triplogs 5,208

Backpack	36.40 Miles	7,250 AEG

Backpack	36.40 Miles	3 Days
	7,250 ft AEG

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8 partners

HAZ - Event

	BiFrost	chumley
	clairebear	FOTG
	John9L	Jonnybackpack
	slowandsteady	Tough_Boots

Four years ago JJ and I day hiked the loop counterclockwise but ran out of time to visit the shootout cabin, mine, and Kennedy Peak. So these were on the top of my list of things to see in the Galiuros this trip.

Chumley drove Lee, the dogs, and I to the Deer Creek TH Friday night where we camped with most of the group. We decided to hike up the Kennedy Peak side first and return on the Tortilla Trail. Trail conditions are less than optimal once you start getting within a couple miles of the saddle by Kennedy Peak. Lots of erosion and plant growth. Going down the back side on the Corral Canyon trail is even worse. Still, an excellent hike in to Powers Garden, but quite a workout.

Day two six of us donned our daypacks and headed out to see the shootout/Powers cabin and mine. Nice hike in the pines and oak most of the way. Some catclaw action near the cabin, but not horrible. The cabin and mine are very interesting. Lots of history to say the least. On the way out Lee and I split from the group that was returning on the ridgeline. A little too warm for the dogs. We hiked up Rattlesnake canyon for some mostly shaded sightseeing. Saw some pretty cool stuff.

Day three we broke camp for the traverse out via the Tortilla trail. Lots of water and big views once you gained some elevation. Many wild flowers on the way in and out. We took the fork that leads to the Deer Creek cabin. Nice spot.

Our group was twelve strong. But for so many it never felt crowded. Great group. Lots of fun. Thanks all.

_____________________

“Good people drink good beer.” Hunter S Thompson

1 archive

Oct 10 2015

chumley

Guides 94
Routes 840
Photos 22,055
Triplogs 1,993

52 male

Joined Sep 18 2002
Tempe, AZ

Tucson, AZ

Backpack		Oct 10 2015
		chumley • Triplogs 1,993

Backpack	20.95 Miles	5,253 AEG

Backpack	20.95 Miles	2 Days 4 Hrs 8 Mns
	5,253 ft AEG

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