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| | | Goldfields Dual Trifecta, AZ | | | |
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Goldfields Dual Trifecta, AZ
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| Hiking | 10.70 Miles |
2,657 AEG |
| | Hiking | 10.70 Miles | 7 Hrs 1 Min | | 1.98 mph |
| 2,657 ft AEG | 1 Hour 37 Mns Break | | | |
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[ show ]
| partners | | I somehow managed to convince Tracie the Intrepid to join me on a hike in the Goldfields where we bagged 3 peaks and went to 3 arches -- the dual trifecta! We went to the summit of 3 of the "lesser" peaks in the Goldfields -- Peak 3134, Peak 3089, and Peak 3047; and we also went to 3 arches -- Elliptical Arch, Overlook Arch, and Kissing Turtles Arch. Credit goes to @hikerdw for coming up for the name for Kissing Turtles Arch, and for providing a GPS track that leads to Overlook Arch and Kissing Turtles Arch.
I have counted 22 peaks in the Goldfields that are 3,000' or more in elevation, and with today's hike I have now been on top of 19 of the 22. Still remaining are Tuff Dome(3,145'), North Peak 3195, and Peak 3076.
We drove in through the North Bulldog Canyon Wolverine Pass Gate (I have a pass) to the Dome Mountain TH and parked. This saved about 4 miles RT of walking on FR 1356. The hike was an inverted lollipop loop hike. We first went to Elliptical Arch. Actually we went past it as I was wanting to get to a waypoint that I had saved on my GPS, but the waypoint was bogus. So we backtracked a bit and found the arch -- actually Tracie and her sharp eyes found it, as I am not sure that I would have seen it. We did not get up in the arch -- to do so I think that we would have had to go down a couple of hundred feet and come up through a slick rock drainage to get into the arch -- we'll save that for next time.
Then we went off-trail up to Peak 3134, then Peak 3089, then Peak 3047. We saw 4 javelina at the summit of Peak 3047, but that was all of the wildlike that we saw on the hike.
We continued the off-trail by descending NE from Peak 3047 to a nice use trail; from there we made our way over to Overlook Arch and Kissing Turtles Arch. We then reversed course and took the use trail back to Orohai Wash. From there we took the wash back toward Top Hat Hill until we hit FR 1356, and then took the forest road back to where we parked.
It was a great day to be out in the beautiful, rugged, seductive, and underrated Goldfields, and it was nice to bag 3 peaks that I had not been to before. Plus it is always nice to see some arches, and there are several of them in the Goldfields! |
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Wildflowers Observation Isolated
I saw a few wildflowers that were in the early stages of blooming -- I have a feeling that this year will be a good wildflower season, and I would think that the wildflowers will be blooming in late February to early January in the low desert. |
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| Civilization is a nice place to visit but I wouldn't want to live there |
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Route Editor
Route Scout
Route 
Lots of cool rock formations and stuff to see. Only saw a hand full of people all day!
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(I will share on the forum).
! As the Orohai (Kelly pronounced this several different ways during our hike) Loop veered toward Top Hat, it is such a cool mountain. We got to the 3-way intersection and determined we had to go north.
where we would have if we hadn't missed that turn. We were so proud of ourselves we decided to have lunch there. The spring is full by the way. Back on the trail we were now on FR 3512. We admired the lush green grass below the trees and the wash area to our left that we walked in for just a moment.
but it wasn't too bad really.
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