Thumb Butte South Area Loop • Hike • Arizona • All Triplogs • HikeArizona.COM

Moby Trail #737

Williams Peak Trail #738

Garden Party #324

Partners

partners

The_Eagle

Thumb Butte Trail #33
A grippy 0.7mi / 620-foot ascent is always a refreshing start.

Thumb Connect Trail #314
The joy ride transitions to a pine forest trot. The name is longer than the trail.

Thumb Butte Bypass Trail #326
A few paces through the pines nets another easy unique.

Butte Connection Trail #323
This gentle half-mile descent is loaded with pine trees. 4 uniques in 2.4mi puts a smile on any trail lover.

Butte Creek Trail #321 - Prescott NF
This one is always a pleasure and feels isolated. The trail travels along the east bank.

Potts Creek Trail #327
The pines keep coming. None of these trails are worthy of the drive by themselves but I've always enjoyed this one more than the name suggests.

Cold Springs Trail #393
A steady subtle ascent continues with distant urban views.

Aspen Creek Trail #48
Albeit short-lived the nicest creekside stroll of the day.

Moby Trail #737
Unknowingly hiked over 0.75mi, we enjoyed it so much we missed a turn.

West Spruce Trail #264
After a long forest road walk, this weaves along the Sierra Prietta ridge. Peekaboo views of Granite Mountain.

Williams Peak Trail #738
Impromptu addition was a better-than-expected treat.

Garden Party #324
The White Rock Trailhead is large. The west end slithers around some boulders, then evens out alongside a ravine.

Miller Creek Trail #367
Signage warned of being squashed by mountain bikes. The creek was clear but as shallow as I recall.

Thumb Butte South Area Loop
This would be a nice package-deal variation for rehabbing seniors.

Synopsis
Various loops here have always been enjoyed more than anticipated. Pleasant lowkey miles.

Flora

Flora [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Alligator Juniper

Wildflowers Observation Isolated

Aspen Creek

Light flow

Garden Grove Creek

Pools to trickle

_____________________

- joe

May 17 2024

Guides 41
Routes 1,626
Photos 14,983
Triplogs 2,760

69 male

Joined Jan 20 2009
Far NE Phoenix,

Thumb Butte - Mt Francis Loop, AZ

Hiking		May 17 2024
		The_Eagle • Triplogs 2,760

Hiking	18.73 Miles	2,535 AEG

Hiking	18.73 Miles	7 Hrs 14 Mns		2.95 mph
	2,535 ft AEG	53 Mns Break	12 LBS Pack

Linked

15 linked trail guides

Garden Party #324

Prescott Circle Trail - Trail #393

Williams Peak Trail #738

Moby Trail #737

Partners

partners

joebartels

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

Headed north to higher ground to put some distance between us and the heat from the fire orb.

I tweaked a route we did 6 years ago to get rid of a less than memorable off trail section and add some options.

You start this loop with an immediate 600+ foot climb to get to the Thumb Butte Saddle. After that there are tons of choices up here on nicely groomed trails. MTB's seem to be the largest user of these trails, but we did not see a single one on the day. In fact, we only crossed paths with a few hikers.

I can't begin to remember all the names of the trails we were on, but here are some of my takeaways.

Smooth trails, gentle grades, pine trees for shade, four flowing (lightly) Creeks, nice breezes, big views to the Prescott Valley and the Copper Basin from the Sierra Prieta Lookout.

Other takeaways included some of the things heard on the day:
"Is this hike all uphill"
"Is this hike all downhill"
"It's too hot"
"It's too cold"
"The wind's not blowing"
"The wind's blowing too much"
"My ear's bleeding"
"My feet hurt"
"Can you go pick up the car"

At one point he announced that he was too tired to whine anymore, but that never proved to be true.

This is/was a very pleasant loop (with earplugs). There's nothing that jumps out as being extraordinary, but one I'll do again.

Driving home, southbound on I-17, we were quite happy to not be going northbound. A jack-knifed travel trailer and a bad rear ender, had things a mess around the Sunset Point rest area. We waived to @FOTG as we passed and continued home.

Named place

Named place [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Aspen Creek - Yavapai Granite Mountain Sierra Prieta Thumb Butte

Wildflowers Observation Light

Aspen Creek - Yavapai

Light flow

Garden Grove Creek

Pools to trickle

_____________________

There is a very fine line between "hobby" and "mental illness."
Dave Barry

Oct 07 2023

azdesertfather

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

51 male

Joined Apr 30 2008
Tucson, AZ

Prescott, AZ

Hiking		Oct 07 2023
		azdesertfather • Triplogs 1,144

Hiking	2.30 Miles	741 AEG

Hiking	2.30 Miles	2 Hrs 3 Mns		1.55 mph
	741 ft AEG	34 Mns Break	35 LBS Pack

no routes

no photosets

Linked

linked

Partners

none

no partners

Slow hike, as Michelle had a pretty serious food sprain and couldn't put pressure on her left foot. Carried her pack as well as mine most all of the way. Did give her a rest near the top while I did a rock scramble up the southwest side toward the top. Little bit tricky to navigate and I didn't try to make my way from the peak I climbed to the true one next to it, as it was too big of a stretch to jump and climbing down and back up would have taken quite a while!

_____________________

"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

Nov 18 2022

dhelder

Triplogs 71

male

Joined Jan 23 2025
Seattle, WA

Prescott, AZ

Hiking		Nov 18 2022
		dhelder • Triplogs 71

Hiking	9.60 Miles	1,850 AEG

Hiking	9.60 Miles
	1,850 ft AEG

no routes

no photosets

Linked

none

no linked trail guides

Partners

none

no partners

Oct 21 2022

MEWhiteman

Guides 47
Routes 96
Photos 850
Triplogs 385

81 male

Joined Dec 24 2005
Phoenix, AZ

Prescott, AZ

Hiking		Oct 21 2022
		MEWhiteman • Triplogs 385

Hiking	7.50 Miles	1,320 AEG

Hiking	7.50 Miles	2 Hrs 54 Mns	2.59 mph
	1,320 ft AEG

Linked

none

no linked trail guides

Partners

none

no partners

I hadn't hiked the long version of this loop in over 10 years. It is still a great hike. I skipped the up and down at the end making it somewhat shorted with less aeg than described in the guide. I kept to FR51 for the trail 327 portion of the hike to match the guide and track. There were several new single tracks on and off the road marked 327 which are worth exploring. I also noted that the handy trail guide is no longer available at the trailhead but can be downloaded from the forest service website.

_____________________

May 28 2022

Guides 41
Routes 1,626
Photos 14,983
Triplogs 2,760

69 male

Joined Jan 20 2009
Far NE Phoenix,

Thumb Butte Groom Creek Loop, AZ

Hiking		May 28 2022
		The_Eagle • Triplogs 2,760

Hiking	17.69 Miles	2,737 AEG

Hiking	17.69 Miles	6 Hrs 50 Mns		2.89 mph
	2,737 ft AEG	43 Mns Break	12 LBS Pack

Linked

10 linked trail guides

Groom Creek Loop Trail #307

Partners

partners

joebartels

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

We'd done both of these before, but It'd been awhile.

Started at the Thumb Butte TH and made the steep 600'/.8mile climb. Not a favorite, but it's over quickly.
The rest of the hike rollercoasters until you drop back to the start. All trails up here are in great shape and run in and out of the manicured forest. A smattering of MTB'ers, runners and hikers.

The birds were chirpin' and we (As Joe said) ran into a small pack of deer. Luckily they did not attack.

Next up was the popular Groom Creek Loop. Going CW, we stopped at the Groom Creek bouldering area for some lunch. We passed or were passed by a few runners and hikers. Breezes kept the temps delightful.

The southside of the loop had had plenty of thinning activity post Crooks fire. That portion of the trail has just reopened. Going through the area that was thinned, the trail is like talcum power and quite dusty. It'll take some rain to get this to lay down.

Good times in Prescott.

_____________________

There is a very fine line between "hobby" and "mental illness."
Dave Barry

Sep 03 2021

nonot

Guides 107
Routes 249
Photos 2,067
Triplogs 514

male

Joined Nov 18 2005
Phoenix, AZ

Prescott, AZ

Hiking		Sep 03 2021
		nonot • Triplogs 514

Hiking	11.00 Miles	1,830 AEG

Hiking	11.00 Miles
	1,830 ft AEG

Linked

8 linked trail guides

Old Forest Road #9707T

Old Forest Road #9401J

Partners

none

no partners

Pretty nice weather for the day. As I was sitting and eating my lunch a nice sized deer came out of hiding. Need to add some trails to HAZ.

Wildflowers Observation Moderate

	Butte Creek	Medium flow	Medium flow
	Flowing nicely

	Miller Creek	Medium flow	Medium flow
	Flowing nicely

_____________________

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!

1 archive

Apr 20 2019

Guides 41
Routes 1,626
Photos 14,983
Triplogs 2,760

69 male

Joined Jan 20 2009
Far NE Phoenix,

Thumb Butte - Potts Creek to West Spruce, AZ

Hiking		Apr 20 2019
		The_Eagle • Triplogs 2,760

Hiking	17.47 Miles	3,498 AEG

Hiking	17.47 Miles	7 Hrs 54 Mns		2.56 mph
	3,498 ft AEG	1 Hour 5 Mns Break	14 LBS Pack

Linked

11 linked trail guides

Sierra Prieta Trail #366

Prescott Circle Trail - Trail #393

Partners

partners

joebartels

Smokin' good day up in the pines on Saturday 4/20.

Warmer temps in the valley had us jonesn' cooler temps and some new trails.

Up the paved Thumb Butte trail to begin, we passed Mary Jane to begin the day. She was one of the few hikers we saw all day. 6 miles to the Sierra Prieta Overlook, we passed over the Potts Creek Trail on the way.

We'd done a small portion of the West Spruce trail before, I wanted to see more, hit West Spruce Mountain. West Spruce is a worthy option if in the area.

We looped back on some well used "Use" trails used by MTB's.

Butte Creek and Miller Creek had plenty of water running

Interestingly, we finished at 4:20 MDT

_____________________

There is a very fine line between "hobby" and "mental illness."
Dave Barry

1 archive

Jul 07 2018

thirstylizard

Guides 1
Routes 2
Photos 472
Triplogs 38

female

Joined Apr 27 2015
cave creek, az

[ checklist ] Arizona Thistle Claret Cup Cactus Toadflax penstemon

Prescott, AZ

Hiking		Jul 07 2018
		thirstylizard • Triplogs 38

Hiking

Hiking

no routes

Linked

none

no linked trail guides

Partners

none

no partners

Thumb Butte Bypass Trail #326
Miller Creek Trail #367
Garden Grove Trail #392
Thumb Butte Bypass Trail #326

Calling this the "opposable thumb" hike. As in I am not "opposed" to the Thumb, but thought I would make use of the other options today. No track kept,but I was out for two hours. A couple of meet & greets on the trail and the usual plant and lizard photo distractions.

Started at Thumb Butte Trailhead. Overnight rain residue was present, with some muddy trails and some little catchments of water in Miller Creek. Nothing too much, but glad to see it anyway.

This is a great little loop. Incline so slow, you barely know you are ascending. Much signage and trails mixing in and out. Best to download tracks for the entire area so you can see what's what.

Wildlife was limited to lizards, pups and yes, some friendly opposable thumb types.

*$5 Permit Fee for Thumb Butte Parking Area - Good for the day at any permit location in the Prescott National Forest.

Flora

Flora [ checklist ]

Fauna

Fauna [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Plateau Fence Lizard Plateau Striped Whiptail

Wildflowers Observation Isolated

_____________________

May 06 2017

joebartels

Guides 264
Routes 2,797
Photos 14,494
Triplogs 5,894

55 male

Joined Nov 20 1996

Mt Francis - Williams Peak - Thumb Butte Loop, AZ

Hiking		May 06 2017
		joebartels • Triplogs 5,894

Hiking	19.08 Miles	3,249 AEG

Hiking	19.08 Miles	8 Hrs 4 Mns		2.69 mph
	3,249 ft AEG	58 Mns Break	14 LBS Pack

no routes

Linked

11 linked trail guides

Partners

partners

The_Eagle

Aspen Creek #48 2nd Fav!
The hike started out with a babbling creek and towering happy pines. A mile out-n-back on this would suit 94%. We only hiked 1.5 miles of the 6 mi before heading off trail. It appears pines are with you for the top 3 miles of this gem.

Mt Francis Area
My legs are still screamin' tender from Gun Creek mafia style beatings so I wasn't thrilled about any offtrail. I put my health aside and tried to lighten up. We both got lucky, it was pretty easy to the towers around 7,100 ft. Great views. Didn't hit the official peak a smidgen higher.

West Spruce #264, Williams Peak
Roughly a 2.4 mi walk to West Spruce. Passed a couple dozen Whiskey Row Marathon runners. Most were crawling with running arm gestures. All were friendly and returned hellos!

We only hiked a little of West Spruce before following a fading road to Williams Peak just over 7,000 ft. Bruce had a final offtrail piece that didn't look good so he changed the loop a bit to accomodate my well being. If I've said it once I've said it a million times, nice guy!

Thumb Butte bypass #326
We followed FR373 about 2.4 mi then 0.25 mi on FR51 to the end of Thumb Butte bypass #326 nary a crowd has seen. Most loops in the South Butte Area would include this trail in part or whole. If you do not require bells-n-whistles like peaks, creeks nor a destination this is mighty fine tall pine hiking.

Garden Grove #392 1st Fav!
We hiked this top to bottom. Views of Granite Mountain are majestic. Meadowish in the middle with I'm guessing a seasonal creek that is a tributary to Miller Creek. Sold!

Interestingly I hiked this downhill seven years ago with @JimmyLyding and sorta met an idol
The day before I hiked with johnr1 to Miller Peak
The previous day was my first outta town hike with The_Eagle
Days earlier I hiked with Groth, SuperstitionGuy and the world famous AndreyP

Miller Creek #367
According to FS stelprd3811790.pdf we did not hike this trail. It's up for debate. Bruce included it. He claimed a peak last week we didn't summit either. I'm only correct 4% of the of the time and might have a 10% shot at this one so pardon the gloat.

Thumb Butte Trail #33 3rd Fav!
Wow my first hike on this iconic crowd pleaser. It has a 1960's National Park quality feel.

Potts Creek #327 & Cold Springs #393
Great perkless tall pine stolling.

Synopsis
It was nice to hike the mythical lure of dancing pines on a cool spring day most seek.

Flora

Flora [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Alligator Juniper Emory Oak

Wildflowers Observation Light

	Aspen Creek - Yavapai	Light flow	Light flow
	babbling magic

	Garden Grove Creek	Pools to trickle	Pools to trickle
	fierce trickle

_____________________

- joe

May 06 2017

Guides 41
Routes 1,626
Photos 14,983
Triplogs 2,760

69 male

Joined Jan 20 2009
Far NE Phoenix,

Mt Francis - Williams Peak - Thumb Butte Loop, AZ

Hiking		May 06 2017
		The_Eagle • Triplogs 2,760

Hiking	19.08 Miles	3,249 AEG

Hiking	19.08 Miles	8 Hrs 4 Mns		2.69 mph
	3,249 ft AEG	59 Mns Break	14 LBS Pack

Linked

12 linked trail guides

Prescott Circle Trail - Trail #393

Partners

partners

joebartels

After last weeks hike/injures, Joe asked me to put together Something "On Trail" and "No Water".

I drew up the Scottsdale Green Belt, he complained "Too Much Water".
So back to the drawing board.

I picked an area in Prescott, West and South of Thumb Butte and put together some choices.

There are tons of trails up here, most in the pines, most on friendly grades and well marked trails. Real Trails.

After making our way through the detours associated with the now in progress Whiskey Row Marathon, we started at the Aspen Creek Trailhead.

Aspen Creek #48
What a gem in the pines. We were only on it for 1.6 miles before starting our only off trail section. I want to hit the rest of this trail sometime.

Climb to Mt. Francis Area
.4 mile and 300' AEG off trail to get to an old Forrest Road climbing to the towers around the Mt Francis area. At 7100+ there are great 360 views.

Sierra Prieta Overlook, West Spruce #264, Williams Peak
FR373 took us over to the overlook. We passed scattered runners from the marathon. Great views of Copper Basin and Skull Valley. [ youtube video ]
Next an easy out and back up Williams Peak to take in the views.

Thumb Butte
Thumb Butte bypass #326, Garden Grove #392, Miller Creek #367 are all nice hiking trails taking us to the Thumb Butte area. Thumb Butte #33 climbs steeply to the saddle to the West of the Butte.

The remaining trails wind in and out of pines, juniper, oaks and creeks on gentle grades, back to where we parked.
Potts Creek #327 and Cold Springs #393 were the highlight of the remaining trails we traveled.

This hike, was almost the identical mileage to what we did last week, but took about half the time... and that was with 2 long breaks. This is the hike that was needed this week.

I was able to hike all new trails for me and only made Joe suffer on one short off trail section. Minimal whining too!

There are plenty of looping opportunities out here.

Culture

Culture [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Benchmark

Named place

Named place [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] K228DF-FM 93.5MHz Williams Peak

Wildflowers Observation Light

_____________________

There is a very fine line between "hobby" and "mental illness."
Dave Barry

May 26 2014

gregrev

Routes 4
Photos 33
Triplogs 11

42 male

Joined Aug 04 2012
Prescott, AZ

Prescott, AZ

Hiking		May 26 2014
		gregrev • Triplogs 11

Hiking	9.60 Miles	1,850 AEG

Hiking	9.60 Miles
	1,850 ft AEG

Linked

none

no linked trail guides

Partners

none

no partners

First trail run in Arizona coming from Florida. 550ft of climbing with the first .7 miles was a bit brutal but awesome.

The rest of the run was gentle up and down on well maintained trail. The GPS track was a bit off course at one point but if you continue going, you'll get back on track. The view of the butte are multiple along the trek. A bit of wildlife if you're lucky too. I'd recommend bringing water in the spring/summer, just in case.

_____________________

May 23 2014

kingsnake

Guides 116
Routes 337
Photos 11,399
Triplogs 894

63 male

Joined Dec 20 2010
Sunnyslope, PHX

Butte Creek Trail - City of Prescott

Prescott, AZ

Hiking		May 23 2014
		kingsnake • Triplogs 894

Hiking	9.20 Miles	1,570 AEG

Hiking	9.20 Miles	3 Hrs 26 Mns	2.68 mph
	1,570 ft AEG

Linked

linked

[ checklist ] Cag Shot Informational/Interpretive Sign Memorial Trail Signs and Markings

Partners

partners

Prescottstyle

There's like five Thumb Butte hike descriptions on Haz, most of which describe various connector trails. Despite that, there are even more trails -- numbered and otherwise -- out there than are listed here. I am not entirely sure what numbers we were on. Even after I post my route, it won't reveal numbers as MyTopo is mostly dashed line free.

Anyway, prescottstyle and I started off from somewhere west of the Prescott Shopping Center on Gurley St. We took a trail past several holes of the abadoned Troon golf course. And prescottstyle -- who knows an amazing amount of Prescott gossip -- filled me on who owned it, how they went broke, etc. He also knows plane models, minerals, trees, animals. Blows my mind!

So, we wandered up to Thumb Butte itself, but the summit is closed until July 15 due to peregrine falcon nesting. (Which, if I was Hindu, would be what I would choose to reincarenate as.) No big deal, great views of the Prescott area were had, including several peaks I plan on hiking this summer: Tritle, Maverick, Union, Davis, etc. We may even do Little and big Granite, as the anniversary of that fire is only about three weeks away. Lots of beetle damage could be seen west of town.

Prescottsyle had some beer which he shared, and at 6.0% I could actually feel the effect for about 10 minutes.

First four miles flew by, which is rare, and we eventually ended up finishing exactly at noon. AEG was barely noticeable.

Lots of cars heading north on 17, and *lots* of cops along 69 and 17 as well. Just on the south bound lanes, I saw five DPS between Cordes Junction and Deer Valley Rd. Guess they are getting an early start on this weekend's quota of drunks ...

-----

Video: https://www.youtube.com/embed/1OLO6DjSCy ... autoplay=1

Flora

Flora [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Claret Cup Cactus Golden ragwort Wood's Rose

Fauna

Fauna [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] American Robin

Culture

Culture [ checklist ]

Named place

Named place [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Granite Mountain Little Granite Mountain Thumb Butte

Wildflowers Observation Light

_____________________

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

Apr 27 2013

Photos 68
Triplogs 70

female

Joined Oct 27 2011
Prescott, AZ

Prescott, AZ

Hiking		Apr 27 2013
		BOHOHiker • Triplogs 70

Hiking	7.00 Miles	1,850 AEG

Hiking	7.00 Miles
	1,850 ft AEG

no routes

no photosets

Linked

none

no linked trail guides

Partners

none

no partners

_____________________

Mar 13 2013

Photos 68
Triplogs 70

female

Joined Oct 27 2011
Prescott, AZ

Prescott, AZ

Hiking		Mar 13 2013
		BOHOHiker • Triplogs 70

Hiking	7.00 Miles	1,850 AEG

Hiking	7.00 Miles
	1,850 ft AEG		5 LBS Pack

no routes

no photosets

Linked

none

no linked trail guides

Partners

none

no partners

_____________________

Jan 22 2013

azalcook

Triplogs 23

37 female

Joined Jul 23 2012
Arizona

Prescott, AZ

Hiking		Jan 22 2013
		azalcook • Triplogs 23

Hiking	9.60 Miles	1,850 AEG

Hiking	9.60 Miles
	1,850 ft AEG

no routes

no photosets

Linked

none

no linked trail guides

Partners

none

no partners

This is my new favorite hike. Very relaxing.

_____________________

Jan 10 2013

azalcook

Triplogs 23

37 female

Joined Jul 23 2012
Arizona

Prescott, AZ

Hiking		Jan 10 2013
		azalcook • Triplogs 23

Hiking	9.60 Miles	1,850 AEG

Hiking	9.60 Miles
	1,850 ft AEG

no routes

no photosets

Linked

none

no linked trail guides

Partners

none

no partners

Great hike, very private. Some areas still had snow and ice, but mostly clear.

_____________________

Jun 13 2012

Photos 68
Triplogs 70

female

Joined Oct 27 2011
Prescott, AZ

Prescott, AZ

Hiking		Jun 13 2012
		BOHOHiker • Triplogs 70

Hiking	9.60 Miles	1,850 AEG

Hiking	9.60 Miles	3 Hrs 10 Mns	3.03 mph
	1,850 ft AEG

no routes

no photosets

Linked

none

no linked trail guides

Partners

none

no partners

_____________________

Jun 07 2012

MEWhiteman

Guides 47
Routes 96
Photos 850
Triplogs 385

81 male

Joined Dec 24 2005
Phoenix, AZ

Prescott, AZ

Hiking		Jun 07 2012
		MEWhiteman • Triplogs 385

Hiking	5.73 Miles	892 AEG

Hiking	5.73 Miles	2 Hrs	2.87 mph
	892 ft AEG

Linked

none

no linked trail guides

Partners

none

no partners

Did a shortened version of this hike. Took 322 off 327, then to 326 and back to car. Made for a short day and an early lunch.

_____________________

May 30 2012

Photos 68
Triplogs 70

female

Joined Oct 27 2011
Prescott, AZ