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| | | Black Cross Butte-Chalcedony Cave-Peak 3042, AZ | | | |
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Black Cross Butte-Chalcedony Cave-Peak 3042, AZ
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| Hiking | 7.09 Miles |
2,152 AEG |
| | Hiking | 7.09 Miles | 7 Hrs 29 Mns | | 1.33 mph |
| 2,152 ft AEG | 2 Hrs 9 Mns Break | | | |
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| partners | | It was a cloudy but comfortable morning as we got started--one of the warmest mornings of the year so far. Our first destination was Black Cross Butte, and we could see a few campers set up below in one of the dirt pullouts off FR80. The sky stayed overcast most of the morning, but we had some nice views of the sunshine hitting the Superstitions and Goldfields during the first mile, and we could see the double arches across the canyon.
Once we were on top of Black Cross Butte, we visited the medicine wheel on the way to the north end for the views overlooking the Salt River, with Four Peaks hidden in thick clouds. We hiked south to the high point next, then started west toward Chalcedony Cave. Coming down off the butte, we passed a group of three hikers who were on on their way up.
I'd only previously seen the cave from a distance, and it looked shallow, but there was more to it than expected. The right and left sides both extend back beyond the exterior opening, and it's bigger than it looks from far away. We spent a few minutes there before the three hikers approached again. We packed up and let them enjoy the cave for themselves and took off four our next destination, Peak 3042, making our way southwest toward the saddle where the official 3042 route comes up out of Crucifix Canyon.
On our way, the three hikers approached again and passed us up on the hillside as we followed a drainage...it was starting to feel like they'd copied our itinerary for the day  . They asked if we were heading down into Crucifix Canyon, which they were, so we finally parted ways for good. Getting up to Peak 3042 was pretty straightforward--the narrow chute leading up toward the southern base of the mountain looked brushy from a distance, but there was enough rock that getting through that section didn't require picking up a bunch of scratches. TboneKathy waited in that area a few tenths of a mile from the peak while I made my way up. The final approach was a little steep but short, and the the rock wasn't too loose.
The views from the top were spectacular, looking across at Sheep Mountain and over toward Four Peaks, which was still in the clouds. The sun finally came out for a few minutes, so I got to enjoy the scenery with a variety of lighting. A few boats passed while I was up there, and I could see a kayaker on the river. Skull Cave was visible across from me, and I think I spotted Skeleton Cave to the northeast when I zoomed in.
No zoom: [ youtube video ]
With zooming: [ youtube video ]
I took a bunch of pictures, ate a snack, then headed back down to rejoin TboneKathy for the hike out. We stopped for lunch near the saddle where the route dropped into Crucifix Canyon but stayed up high and followed our same route back on the way out. Along the way, we saw our first rattlesnake of the season a few feet off the trail...it gave us plenty of warning and was far enough away to not pose a threat but close enough to get some decent pictures.
The parking area had really filled up when we got back--there were five other vehicles there, we saw a big group hiking down into Crucifix Canyon, two hikers starting up toward Black Cross Butte with a dog, and one hiker coming out behind us. Like so many places, this one seems to be gaining popularity, unfortunately. This was short hike but fun to see some new places, and the views were impressive. On the drive out, we pulled over and decided to hike to Coronado Mesa as clouds gathered to the north. |
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Route Editor
Route Scout
I may need to come back another time to do Crucifix down to the river. 
Route 
I should note that I’ve been a bit sick (not covid!) and am still recovering so I wasn’t at my best, but damn this one was tough for me! We explored the spire and surrounding area before making our way towards the cave. So much cool geology right in the beginning so I was excited! The “trail” is pretty much non existent so it’s slow moving and just kept going up up and although it was only in the high 60’s, the sun felt really strong in a few spots. I had to take a break in the shade to cool down and apply sunscreen. Alas, we kept moving up until we finally reached a Ridgeline; the views from the Ridgeline were gorgeous and we had flat terrain for a bit 
The canyon had such cool geology and so many interesting rock formations. We had a bit of a late start so did not have too much time to spare in exploring much around. We did admire some cool arches and alcoves from afar though! There was one particular arch that looked huge that’ll be exciting to visit at another date, but no time today. It was nearing sunset and we still had a good stretch of canyon to go. It was completely dry so I’m sure that made it easier but the constant rock hopping, maneuvering around boulders and light scrambling were pretty draining for me. It appeared that Andy’s route left the canyon and went up to the left, but when James went to scope it out, he ultimately decided it would be safer for us to continue in the canyon instead. We were losing light quickly and it’s tricky terrain in the daylight, so that was certainly a factor. The end of the canyon had some more challenging scrambles and required some climbing. Definitely not my favorite thing to be doing by headlamp. 
Thankfully, James was very patient and helpful in all the tricky spots and we made it out {mostly} unscathed! It ended up being closer to 6ish miles, not under 4 so it was much harder than anticipated. The plus side is that we saw no one (except two guys target shooting towards the beginning of the hike). The solitude was amazing and I wish we had a bit more time to explore all the cool geology in there. I’ll be excited to revisit once the scrapes and bruises heal 
Overall, it was a nice type 2 fun day in the Supes!
