Bean Peaks Loop • Hike • Arizona • All Triplogs • HikeArizona.COM

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Oct 08 2022

Whiffer

Guides 3
Routes 161
Photos 477
Triplogs 147

70 male

Joined Jan 02 2016
Prescott, AZ

Bean Peaks Loop

Prescott, AZ

Bean Peaks Loop

Prescott, AZ

Hiking		Oct 08 2022
		Whiffer • Triplogs 147

Hiking	9.01 Miles	1,486 AEG

Hiking	9.01 Miles	4 Hrs 18 Mns	2.22 mph
	1,486 ft AEG	14 Mns Break

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

This triplog uses the name of the guide I tried to follow, but my name for the hike is the Lakes-to-Peaks Trail after the Mountains-to-Sea Trail in North Carolina. The official route for Beans Peak Loop starts at the trailhead next to White Spar Campground on AZ 89 about a mile from the Prescott city limits. I hiked in the reverse direction and made a few deviations from the official route, some deliberate and others that I was unable to avoid. Roughly the first half follows Goldwater Lakes Trail #396. At 4.1 miles, I stayed next to Upper Goldwater Lake to talk to a fisherman, then tried to get back on the official route. However, there are many roads/trails near the southeast end of Upper Goldwater Lake and in many places the official route is not on any of them. It's simplest to just head generally south on available paths, checking Route Scout to not get too far off the official route. After passing the Hassayampa Water Line Project marker (see photo) and crossing east-west Schoolhouse Gulch Trail #67 which is a fairly wide dirt road not far from paved School House Road, the southbound trail/road matches the official route for about a mile. As shown in both this route and the official route, there is a 100+ yard detour to go around a fence that crosses the trail. Near both of the peaks, the trail disappears (see photo) and what appears to be trails don't follow the official route. I spent a lot of time looking at my phone to try to find a trail on the official route. It would have been easier to follow an obvious route and just check Route Scout every 5 minutes or so. Coming down from the westernmost peak (Lima Bean Peak according to Kingsnake's guide), there is a clear trail that matches the official route for about a mile. As you can see from the route I recorded, I stayed on the clear trail for about a half mile further than the official route did. Kingsnake's guide says there are dozens of pink and orange trail ribbons marking the route between what he calls Lima Bean Peak and the trailhead. They're all gone now and it's cross country over ground clear of undergrowth without any indication of a trail going downhill toward a wash that the official route follows past the Stone Shelter on the official route. Eventually, a fire road is reached and a clear trail can be found on the other side that gets progressively easier to follow once you cross the small hill next to the road and find the trail headed northwest. The views from the peaks are worth the hassle, but this is not a hike for someone who gets lost when a trail disappears.

Autumn Foliage Observation Isolated
More than the first weekend of October, maybe a dozen red vines approaching the trailhead and a few yellow trees along the shore of Upper Goldwater Lake.

Wildflowers Observation Light
A few Arizona thistles were still in bloom, some mostly seed heads, in the area west of the peaks. Other summer flowers were still blooming here and there.

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4 archives

Jun 29 2019

watkins11

Photos 5
Triplogs 3

32 male

Joined Sep 30 2014
Tempe, AZ

A few trails in the Prescott National Forest, AZ

Hiking		Jun 29 2019
		watkins11 • Triplogs 3

Hiking	8.00 Miles	1,246 AEG

Hiking	8.00 Miles	3 Hrs 25 Mns		2.34 mph
	1,246 ft AEG		4 LBS Pack

no routes

no photosets

Linked

linked

Bean Peaks Loop

Twist & Shout Trail #372

Apple Blossom Trail #373

Hidden Valley Trail #374

Goldwater Lakes Trail #396

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Got to the trailhead at 1pm. It was a bit hot heading out, but once I got into the woods, it cooled down quickly.

My initial plan was to follow the Bean Peaks loop, which initially started out incredible. The creek it follows is one of the lushest areas I've ever seen in Arizona. Simply incredible! At the point where it meets up with the logging trail though (~1.5mi), I mistakenly started following the road. I ended up heading up the hill and back down the other side, before realizing that I had been continuing on not only the wrong route, but also the wrong direction! After backtracking the mile or so to rejoin the proper route, I started following the trail on Route Scout.

This took me back to the creek I was following before, but there was definitely no trail to be found. I was essentially bushwhacking up the creek. After .4 miles of this, I decided to turn around and hike back out the same way. My phone was close to dead and I did not have a suitable map for off-trail hiking. Plus, I only had a few hours of daylight left. I'm looking forward to trying this again once I have more time and a good topo map as a backup.

I arrived back at the parking lot and started to take off my boots, but there were still two hours of daylight left and I saw a few other people parking in the lot. I was inspired to get back out on the trail and try something I had done before (since I was mapless) to increase my mileage and time on the trail. I ended up doing 372

373

375

376 and looping back to the parking lot.

All-in-all, while the issues with the Bean Peaks Loop were disappointing, it was a great hike!

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Aug 23 2017

tdwood

Guides 3
Routes 40
Photos 47
Triplogs 60

56 male

Joined Jul 04 2016
Phoenix, AZ

Bean Peaks Loop

Prescott, AZ

Bean Peaks Loop

Prescott, AZ

Hiking		Aug 23 2017
		tdwood • Triplogs 60

Hiking	1.20 Miles	468 AEG

Hiking	1.20 Miles	1 Hour 43 Mns	0.70 mph
	468 ft AEG

no routes

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All in all, the portion of the trail I did get to hike was in good shape, though some areas of this narrow path are quickly becoming obscured by grasses during this active monsoon. There's a serious erosion issue at 34.50103, -112.47960 where runoff from a steep intersecting trail has begun to do some damage and will continue to without some diversion. A bit further up, there's a couple of blow downs across the trail but nothing not easily surmounted (on foot, anyway). At 34.49055, 112.47353 is a significant blowdown which, at first, appeared to me to be a deliberate attempt by stewards to thwart users from continuing on that route. Seeing other possibilities that looked like detours, I tried a couple but they led elsewhere or nowhere. With time and confidence in my route both running out, I eventually trekked off-trail across a ridge to rejoin the dry creek channel (and, eventually, the trail) and backtrack to the location of the blowdown. From there, I returned to my starting point.

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Jul 21 2014

kingsnake

Guides 117
Routes 339
Photos 11,415
Triplogs 895

63 male

Joined Dec 20 2010
Sunnyslope, PHX

Bean Peaks Loop

Prescott, AZ

Bean Peaks Loop

Prescott, AZ

Hiking		Jul 21 2014
		kingsnake • Triplogs 895

Hiking	9.47 Miles	1,599 AEG

Hiking	9.47 Miles	4 Hrs 9 Mns	2.28 mph
	1,599 ft AEG

Linked

linked

Goldwater Lakes Trail #396

Partners

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Avoiding 110° Phoenix, yet again, for the relatively frigid climes of Prescott.

Morning shade was nice, but it got warm as noon approached, and part of the hike was through an old burn area. Did a bit of exploring, and ad-libbing, so my mileage is more than the official route. The little canyon up to Bean Peaks's west edge was a pleasant surprise, and MTB-free as well.

The way across the Bean Peaks ridge was obvious, but it was still festooned with an incomprehensible melange of pink and orange ribbons. (Tie pink & orange ribbons around this burnt old pine, it's been two hours now, and it's half past nine ... la-la-la.) I searched both Lima Bean Peak and Pinto Bean Peak, it's northerly twin, for geocaches and summit logs, but found nuthink! There were some modern "inscriptions" on Lima Bean Peak, though.

Like The Eagle indicated in a Trail #396 triplog, the dams on Upper and Lower Goldwater Lake were fenced and siged off, but I had to look for myself. You never know; sometimes things change. After checking out the lower dam, I got in the small, and very lush canyon below it. It was so thick with reeds and vegetation, that it was a bit difficult thrashing through, but worth it anyway to avoid the many MTBs on Trail #396. (Though I must admit the bikers were all polite, and not banzaing the trail.) There was a small trickle of water, ending in a pool just before the intersection of #396 and #81.

Not sure why I was walking so slow, compared to last week's trip from White Spar to Mt. Francis, then down to to East Copper Creek. That was 12.2 miles / 1933 AEG / 2.57 mph, to 9.47 / 1599 / 2.28 for this one. Despite the stats appearing less, I was significantly more wore out by the end. Maybe it was warmer and less breezy? Next time I'll park at Upper Goldwater Lake so I can take a post hike dip. ("No swimming" sign, or not.) Recuperated with a wood-fired Mediterranean pizza and Blue Moon beer (BYOB) at the T-Bird Cafe in Peeples Valley.

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Hike Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jzBqDlgQ5qw?mo ... autoplay=1 (different pictures than the photoset ...)

Flora

Flora [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Arizona Thistle Butter and Eggs

Fauna

Fauna [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Common Raven Ornate Tree Lizard

Culture

Culture [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] HAZ Food Humor Memorial Mine Shaft Stone Dwelling

Named place

Named place [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Bean Peaks Granite Mountain Lower Goldwater Dam Lower Goldwater Lake Upper Goldwater Lake Upper Lake Goldwater Dam

Wildflowers Observation Isolated

	Lower Goldwater Lake	76-100% full	76-100% full
	Not sure on percentage, but looked good to me. Rest assured, plenty of water no matter the percentage. ;-)

	Upper Goldwater Lake	76-100% full	76-100% full
	Ditto.

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http://prestonm.com : Everyone's enjoyment of the outdoors is different and should be equally honored.

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

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