|
| | | |
| |
|
| Hiking | 16.26 Miles |
2,130 AEG |
| | Hiking | 16.26 Miles | | | |
| 2,130 ft AEG | | | | |
|
|
| |
| Linked |
|
none
[ show ]
| no linked trail guides |
| Partners |
|
none
[ show ]
| no partners | | Only to be read if bored or plan on doing this hike. 
I was excited to do this trail. I had done the Elmore Wash Trail several months ago and discovered that Walker Basin started (almost) where the Elmore left off. On that day I followed the road that led to Walker Basin TH (about 1 mile) and then followed the trail briefly. The trail looked a little faint but followable, the TH had parking for about 8 vehicle and the road in was nice except for one wash which would involve high clearance.
Returned today to see what this trail had to offer. I had to park before the wash crossing which added about a mile to the total hike. Got started around 6:30. Crazy to think it is still dark at that time. Wasn’t a big deal…daylight was approaching quickly, it was a full moon and I was hiking a road to start with. The trail takes off from SE end of the TH. There is a gate and carsonite marker, but the marker is illegible so there is no clear indication of the trail name. In my mind, this hike can be broken down onto four segments: plains, climb, plateau, road.
The “plains” section was easy hiking. The trail is flat, with the exception of a couple of minor washes and does a sweeping curve to the north and then to the east. The trail is pretty well defined and actually has periodic, Sedona-like cairns to help keep you on trail. This is beneficial as cows seem to be common user, so there are a few game trails that weave with the actual trail. Some of the cairns have been “tipped” over. I suspect that the cows have had their revenge. Views are limited, though there are nice rock formations, with some color to the east. Junipers and prickly pear dominate with an occasional catclaw bordering the trail. The trail is compact dirt and at times sandy. This last for @ little under a mile, at .64 miles you pass your last cairn and begin a moderate climb.
The climb can be broken down into 4 sections with three shelves separating you from the mesa. The first climb last from .64 to 1.12 miles. The trail becomes quite a bit more rocky. Not so bad going up, but I was constantly kicking rocks on the way down. Distant views are still negligible though you are afforded a closer view of the cliffs you are climbing. The first shelf doesn’t last long, 1.12 to 1.18. The second climb starts with a brief change in rock type, becoming blocky sandstone steps. Pretty neat transformation, but it doesn’t last long returning to the loose rocks of the previous climb. The trail does a lot of short switchbacks as it continues to ascend. The second climb ends at 1.52. There is a fence line that borders the trail for much of the ascent. As you reach the second shelf the fence is just off to the left. There is a faint trail that follow along the fence. That is the way to go. When referring to the track on my Garmin, I started to notice that the trail I was following did not necessarily coincide with the route on my Garmin. Since the directions were the same I stayed on the trail I could see. The third climb started at 1.7. This one was much more aggressive than the previous two. The trail becomes fainter, being defined by its rocky nature. It switchbacks between the fence post on the north and a receding slope to the south. The third shelf starts around 2.04 and last longer than I anticipated. Instead of tackling the next slope immediately it works its way in between two canyon walls before ascending. The trail transitions onto a soft loamy like surface which was a pleasure to walk on the few times my feet made it past the volcanic rock that composed most of the trail. This final climb starts at 2.4 and was as intense as the previous one and just as rocky. The higher I got the better the long views, but I didn’t really appreciate that until my return trip. It switchbacks up summiting with the fence post to your left.
After 1300 feet and 2.62 miles you are now starting the plateau segment of the hike. Up until now the trail, though faint at times, has been pretty obvious. I used my Garmin route more as a confirmation than as an actual track. There is a faint track that seems to head off in a southeast direction. I followed for maybe .3 miles before losing it. I wasn’t sure if the trail I had been following was Walker Basin trail or just game trail. It certainly wasn’t my Garmin route which was running further east. I decided to follow the Garmin route. That was a mistake. 1) I followed the same faint trail on the way back, and I think with a little effort I would have picked it up, if I had just looked for it. This trail, though faint, was going in the right direction and was fairly straight and brush free. 2) The Garmin route, which I ended up trying to follow for most of the plateau, had no trail whatsoever and I spent more time making course corrections trying to stay with the blue line than I did making headway on the trail. I felt like one of those idiot phone users walking blithely down the street with their face glued to their phone. This section of the hike was pretty much all off trail, and it need not have been. I came across use tracks a couple of time and ended up leaving them because the blue line (on Garmin) told me so. My recommendation for this section is don’t worry about following route, just use it to make sure you are going in the general direction. If not on the faint trail, your route selection will be just as good as was the Garmin is telling you.
The mileage for the plateau will probably vary for each hiker depending on route selection. For me, my cross country trek was about 2.5 miles. At around 4.10 I hit the road. I was ecstatic…not that I like hiking on roads, but finally the trail (a road in this case) and the route on my Garmin lined up. And not only that, I came across a carsonite marker indicating a trail  The road does some steep climbing before topping out abruptly at 4.65 Almost immediately (4.80), the trail passes through a gate. Mea culpa. I was so sure that the road was going to be the trail (it was, for the climb up) that I stopped looking at my Garmin as I hiked the road. I made it worse, by somehow missing a side road (214b) as I followed the road I was on. When I did look at my Garmin I found I was once again way of course. Sigh. Luckily, it is open range land with little to impede your choice of direction. Going cross country, I basically hit 214b right when I hit Brockett Tank. I still wasn’t on trail though, the route on my Garmin was in the brush on the other side of the tank.  I was getting near the end of the trail so I figured I would stay on the road and see how the blue line played into it. It didn’t. I actually followed the road past where the route on my Garmin ended, but there was nothing out there, except the road I was on. Why the Walker Basin route ends where it does, have no idea. I walked out to where the blue line terminated to see if there was a marker or cairn. Nothing. Weird. My suggestion is to use Brockett Tank as your terminus. Side note for the road portion. Once you pass through the gate the gps route has you making a hard left and hiking cross country. Doable. Or, you can go 100 yards up the road and take 214b and do the same thing. (It is about 1 mile on 214b, which would get you at Brockett Tank at around 6 miles). They both get to the same place.
Interesting hike. There are some nice views along the way, though they are distant and brief. Good work out getting to the plateau. Cross country trek would be more enjoyable if there was a solid trail or if you are not worried about chasing a blue line across a screen I shaved almost 45 minutes on my return trip having a known route in mind. Very little wildlife. A couple of deer on the road section and cows at Brockett Tank. Saw one Hunter on a quad near Brockett Tank and that was it.
NOTE: Reading the previous descriptions, I noticed that the two previous entries are for a Walker Basin in south Arizona and have nothing to do with Walker Basin of Camp Verde. |
| _____________________
| | |
|
|
|
Route Editor
Route Scout
