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| | | Perry Mesa - Squaw Creek Loop, AZ | | | |
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Perry Mesa - Squaw Creek Loop, AZ
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| Hiking | 17.75 Miles |
2,132 AEG |
| | Hiking | 17.75 Miles | 9 Hrs 30 Mns | | 1.97 mph |
| 2,132 ft AEG | 30 Mns Break | 10 LBS Pack | | |
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| partners | | I had been looking in this area for a different hike (Still on my to-do list) and stumbled upon a triplog from Terry @Nightstalker and his Harem from 2018. [ triplog ] . This mining area looked interesting and would serve as entertainment for the later half of the loop.
Other things on my agenda included checking out all native artifacts in Hansenville as well as the mining ruins on the way into Squaw Creek, seeing if travel down Squaw Creek was doable, and finishing up with looking for the elusive Red Deer.
We started clockwise down FR14 and jumped into a creek bed. We followed this to a larger-than-expected dam, just downstream from Brooklyn Well. The well did contain plenty of water. There was a pump submerged in the well, hooked to a solar cell, but it did not appear to be working.
We took our time and visited numerous mining and native artifacts on our way to Squaw Creek. The cross-country portion from the last mining ruin to the creek was the most problematic with catclaw, but we dodged most of it.
We both agreed that travel in Squaw Creek was enjoyable with the geology and numerous downclimbs. The 6 miles seemed to tick off quickly. At one point, just downstream from the intersection with the North Fork of Squaw Creek, I stopped to bleed off some of the morning's coffee. I turned around and glanced across the creek and saw some of the best petroglyph panels that we saw on the hike. If not for coffee, we would have missed these.
We continued 0.5 miles past the tramway area and had lunch at the Ontario Mill area. Now it was time to turn around and make the biggest climb of the day. To this point, we'd hiked 10 miles, and Route Scout said we had a total of 300' in AEG. That would change quickly.
At the bottom of the tramway area, we fumbled around and checked out the various mining ruins. All pretty interesting stuff. I was amazed at the effort it must have taken just to get all the bricks out there.
The climb up the path of the tramway started innocently enough. There was an obvious cut. It was steep but very doable... until it wasn't. We could see where the Tramway cable dropped into the canyon. It did not look like something we wanted to attempt, so we traversed along the side hoping to find an easier way in. No luck. Our line kept taking us higher, then straight up to gain the top of the ridge. I can't stress this enough... Do not follow this part of our track. Steep, loose, crumbly rock, prickly vegetation. One slip, and we would have been at the bottom of the canyon... Just not gracefully.
We made our way over to the mines, and I entered one for about 30 or 40 feet. It kept going but was too muddy to go further in.
Next stop, Squaw Creek Ruins. We were both looking forward to some flat walking on top of the Mesa. Halfway there, after Linda assured me that the storm forecasted for the day was a "Cold" storm and therefore there would be no lightning. The light rain started, shortly thereafter, a crack of thunder directly over our heads.
We made it over to the Squaw Creek Ruins in a steady drizzle that turned to hail. We found the Red Deer petroglyph and then headed back. At the ruin site, we encountered our only person on the day. He had just completed a 7-mile walk all the way from Bloody Basin Rd to get to the ruins. He was going to have a long walk back on the same muddy roads to get to his car. He would encounter the steady heavy rains on his way back to his car, which we noticed on the way out; he'd left the driver's window open. We walked the 3 miles on FR 599 back to the jeep. The rain had stopped, but the walk was arduous with 5 lbs of clay attached to each of our feet.
The drive out was another page in the adventure for the day. After the storm had rolled through with probably no more than 0.1" of rain, FR14/9014 was extremely slick. For some reason, Linda got very quiet on the drive out. At one point, she had to drop it into 4-wheel low. It was becoming increasingly hard to keep it straight. We both agreed that if we'd taken the Subaru, there would have been a different outcome for the night.
Note to all: Do not attempt this drive if wet, or it's forecasted to be wet.
A tiring and fun day. Mining stuff, native ruins, petroglyphs, 2 F35's buzzing by following the canyon, thunder, lightning, rain, hail, mud, and some pronghorns in the distance.
My first foray into Hansenville. |
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There is a very fine line between "hobby" and "mental illness."
Dave Barry  |
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