Black Cross Butte 3351 • Hike • Arizona • All Triplogs • HikeArizona.COM

Phoenix, AZ

Hiking		Mar 15 2025
		ddgrunning • Triplogs 604

Hiking	7.61 Miles	1,818 AEG

Hiking	7.61 Miles	5 Hrs 40 Mns	1.60 mph
	1,818 ft AEG	55 Mns Break

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

I totally underestimated how cool this hike is. It’s been on the periphery of my to do list for some time, but I anticipated that it would be a hike with a cool destination, but just a mediocre grind to get there. Boy, was I wrong.

The entirety of this hike is filled with gorgeous panoramic vistas of all of the coolest parts of the superstition wilderness. It is definitely going on my list of favorite winter time hikes.

On the way out, we followed the route from HAZ; on the way back, we made a loop, following the all trails route. Definitely recommend doing this loop. After the first couple of miles, having a GPS route downloaded is very handy.

The recent rains had the desert popping, and also made for some lovely clouds to highlight the photos, as well as offering snow-covered views of the four peaks.

The road to the trailhead is fine for sedans. We started a little bit later in the morning, and found five or six cars at the trailhead.

A five star hike!

_____________________

Feb 05 2025

DixieFlyer

Guides 99
Routes 1,484
Photos 16,072
Triplogs 1,374

male

Joined Jan 07 2017
Fountain Hills,

Superstition Reds, AZ

Hiking		Feb 05 2025
		DixieFlyer • Triplogs 1,374

Hiking	7.96 Miles	2,430 AEG

Hiking	7.96 Miles	7 Hrs 2 Mns	1.37 mph
	2,430 ft AEG	1 Hour 13 Mns Break

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Peak 3402 - Mormon Flat Dam Quad

[ checklist ] Black Cross Butte 3351 Browns Peak Sister - Peak 7642 Chalcedony Cave - Horse Mesa Dam 7.5 East End Four Peaks Geronimo Head Malapais Mountain Sheep Mountain 3567 - Salt River Superstition Mountain 5057 Superstition Mountains - Ridgeline Superstition Peak 5024 The Flatiron Weavers Needle

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SecretMtnLover

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

This was a hike to a couple of "red" peaks in the Supes:
1) Black Cross Butte 3351
2) Peak 3042

In the @azhiker456 vernacular, a "red" peak is one with 300+ feet of prominence.

I had never hiked either one of these peaks before.

Black Cross Butte 3351
I enjoyed this short hike which was on a pretty good trail. There were great views at the summit and on he north edge of the mesa looking down at the Salt River. We passed by the medicine wheel on the way to the north overlook.

Peak 3042
After leaving Black Cross Butte, we made our way over to Peak 3042. Along the way we stopped at Chalcedony Cave. The cave is easy enough to get to but it isn't terribly exciting, and I saw none of the namesake chalcedony. We were on a decent use trail much of the way over to Peak 3042. Rather than making a direct assualt of the peak from the south, which looked fairly steep and possibly cliffy, we looped around to the west and went up that way. There are some awesome views from the summit, especially from some overlooks on the north end, so this one was worth the effort to get there.

On the way back I made the not-so-brilliant decision to drop down into Crucifix Canyon. I imagine that the off-trail descent into the canyon was about 450 feet or so. It was steep in a few places and fairly brushy, but it wasn't all that bad. My motivation for going down there was to check out the Double Arches on the way back.

It was a very sunny warm day, and I was a bit tired going back through the canyon so we did not climb up to see the Double Arches. In fact, I could only see one arch from the bottom of the canyon (the sun was shining right in my eyes when looking up at the arches). The climb would not have been too bad, and it was probably 200 feet above the canyon floor. On a cooler day I would have gone up there, but as it was we were ready to be back at the TH.

Geology

Geology [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Natural Arch

Culture

Culture [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Boat / Ship Medicine Wheel

Named place

Named place [ checklist ]

_____________________

Civilization is a nice place to visit but I wouldn't want to live there

Jan 29 2025

mistaben

Routes 2
Photos 6
Triplogs 9

45 male

Joined Mar 18 2012
Mesa, AZ

Black Chalcedony 3042 Crucifix Arches Loop, AZ

Hiking		Jan 29 2025
		mistaben • Triplogs 9

Hiking	7.98 Miles	2,477 AEG

Hiking	7.98 Miles	7 Hrs 53 Mns		1.35 mph
	2,477 ft AEG	1 Hour 58 Mns Break	25 LBS Pack

no photosets

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Peak 3402 - Mormon Flat Dam Quad

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tcrowder

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

I had planned out a route with a core loop and 4 different spurs to bag:

the peak of Black Cross Butte
Chalcedony Cave
Peak 3042 3402
lower Crucifix Canyon

figuring that we could take or leave what we wished. I also had us going up the south side of the canyon to see the two big arches. The flexible plan worked out great but we did leave some unfinished business.

It had rained in the East Valley the night before. As we drove east on US-60 into Apache Junction we could see a little snow on the tops of the Superstitions and a lot of snow on Montana Mountain in the distance. FS 80 was in very good shape. Just after tcrowder, Phillip and I started out it began to drizzle.

It had stopped by the time we got to the first saddle. We left our packs there to summit Black Cross Butte and had great views all around, except that the entire Mazatzal range was above the cloud ceiling. We kept hoping for a view of Four Peaks covered in snow, but we never saw any of the Mazatzals. We never met anyone up there, but someone had left some distinctive gear next to the medicine wheel.

The geology started getting weirder as we approached Chalcedony Cave. Later, heading west around the peak containing the cave, we started seeing absurdly beautiful bits of chalcedony sticking out of rocks. A little further to the west they were everywhere loose on the ground. Bizarre and amazing.

I had prepared a rough route beforehand but it was imprecise enough where the trail was faint on satellite view that we wandered a little in a couple of places. I've left that in the route as an exercise for the reader.

On top of Peak 3402 we found a pile of rocks hiding a logbook inside. Nice work, @John10s! Ours was only the 3rd entry since your initial entry almost 2 years ago.

We were coming up against some time constraints so we did not see the lower part of Crucifix Canyon. Next time! The arches were fantastic. I had thought that from there we might loop behind the nearby spire and rejoin the canyon floor trail, but that was a long way down just to go back up to the car, so we opted to stay on that ridgeline as it curved back towards the FS-80.

We never met anyone but two or three times we saw a couple from a mile or more away. It was a great hike in a fantastic area.

_____________________

3 archives

Feb 02 2024

chumley

Guides 94
Routes 840
Photos 22,055
Triplogs 1,993

52 male

Joined Sep 18 2002
Tempe, AZ

Phoenix, AZ

Hiking		Feb 02 2024
		chumley • Triplogs 1,993

Hiking	3.84 Miles	1,263 AEG

Hiking	3.84 Miles	2 Hrs 22 Mns	1.79 mph
	1,263 ft AEG	13 Mns Break

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I'd never done this one and it's a little short for the drive so without linking it up with some other stuff it never made sense. But I was able to get out of work with a few hours of afternoon daylight remaining and this seemed to be a good option to take advantage of the clearing storm.

I did the peak as a loop, going up the east ridge. This is a fun scramble adventure and the definition of joy. On the way down I took the west descent and long traverse across the south face. This route must be on allfails or something because it's 100% a real trail and gets waaaaaay more use than the fun east ridge route. Meh. The other side was more fun with better views with mind-stimulating adventure.

The top was muddy and some thunder rumbled as a couple of light hail showers pelted me. Long and Alder must have been running good off the 4peaks into Apache and SRP had to have the dam open because the turbid water was coming down from above Fish Creek and heading downstream(lake). Fun day!

Culture

Culture [ checklist ]

_____________________

I'm not sure what my spirit animal is, but I'm confident it has rabies.

Mar 11 2023

John10s

Guides 25
Routes 376
Photos 5,897
Triplogs 346

40 male

Joined Mar 01 2018
Chandler, AZ

Black Cross Butte-Chalcedony Cave-Peak 3042, AZ

Hiking		Mar 11 2023
		John10s • Triplogs 346

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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Peak 3402 - Mormon Flat Dam Quad

[ checklist ] Black Cross Butte 3351 Blue Tank Canyon Chalcedony Cave - Horse Mesa Dam 7.5 Golden Dome- 3185ft Sheep Mountain 3567 - Salt River Superstition Mountain 5057

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TboneKathy

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

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.

Fauna

Fauna [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Western Diamondback Rattlesnake

Geology

Geology [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Chalcedony Natural Arch

Culture

Culture [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Boat / Ship Medicine Wheel

Named place

Named place [ checklist ]

1 archive

Nov 13 2022

John10s

Guides 25
Routes 376
Photos 5,897
Triplogs 346

40 male

Joined Mar 01 2018
Chandler, AZ

Crucifix Canyon Bat Cave and Black Cross Butte, AZ

Hiking		Nov 13 2022
		John10s • Triplogs 346

Hiking	10.98 Miles	2,553 AEG

Hiking	10.98 Miles	9 Hrs 59 Mns	1.40 mph
	2,553 ft AEG	2 Hrs 10 Mns Break

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[ checklist ] Black Cross Butte 3351 Chalcedony Cave - Horse Mesa Dam 7.5 Four Peaks Salt River

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ishamod

It had been a little over four years since my last visit to Crucifix Canyon, and I still hadn't seen the bat cave, so that was our first destination today. We were the only people around when we started a little after sunrise and headed west down into the creek bed. I always forget just how rugged and scenic this area is, with spires, arches, recessions, and formations all around.

There were quite a few pools in the creek bed, and as we approached the section of the canyon that curves slightly to to the southeast, rifle shots echoed loudly down the canyon. It was hard to tell which direction they were coming from, but the shots continued periodically for a few hours. We had some fun scrambling though the massive boulders before the canyon opened up again, and the bat cave and the ladder eventually came into view up in the canyon wall.

The slope getting up to the cave didn't have many thorns to deal with, fortunately, but the grasses and brush made it tough to see exactly what we were stepping on. We could see the Salt River off to the west, but didn't try making our way over there. I expected the guano smell to hit us a lot sooner than it did...I guess the cave is big enough and open enough that the smell isn't as concentrated as I expected, because even when we were in the cave, it could've been a lot worse.

But the layer of guano on the ground was plenty thick, and the constant chirping of bats from the dark void above was an added reminder to keep our mouths closed when looking up

. I let ishamod trek ankle-deep through the guano to check out the ladder while I hung back and stood on rocks to avoid sinking in. The ladder has a lower metal section attached by rope to the bottom rung of the wooden section, and the whole thing is very rickety and shakes from top to bottom with any movement on the metal section...ishamod only went up a few steps despite my encouragement to retrieve the gold at the top

.

Guano must be a lot more valuable than I thought, because it's hard to understand the economics of removing it from such a remote location. (If it's that valuable, ishamod had a fortune in his boots when he left the cave

). And what was the purpose of the ladder? Regardless, it was interesting to see it in person, though it's not a place I feel an urgent need to visit again--the cave it impressive but not a particularly pleasant place to spend any extended length of time, between the smell, the guano, and the fact that you'd never want to set stuff down or sit anywhere near it.

Ishamod paused to empty his boots, and we headed back down the slope and took a break in the shade of the creek bed to eat something before starting back, with rifle shots still echoing occasionally. On the hike out, we passed two hikers and eventually ventured out of the creek bed again to check out the double arches. Getting up there wasn't as brushy as I remembered from years ago, and it's a beautiful area.

Back near the trailhead, we stopped by the crucifix (does anyone know the story behind it?). There was a surprising amount of traffic near the FR80 gate--three or four vehicles came and went in the ~20 minutes we were there, including a vehicle that drove up the "government only" road and through the gate. After leaving the crucifix, we checked out the early part of the route up to Black Cross Butte...ishamod climbed up the narrow chute and explored up there a little, but we ended up taking the longer, clockwise route up to the saddle, where we could see Chalcedony Cave, then continued up to the butte. It was windy up there, but the views were great with the late the afternoon shadows.

[ youtube video ]

We ended up fitting a lot into a 10-hour day, though the pace was pretty leisurely with the rough terrain. But it was nice to finally see the bat cave and get back to the Superstitions for the first time this fall...a very enjoyable "Sunday service" in Crucifix Canyon

.

Flora

Flora [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Teddy-bear Cholla

Geology

Geology [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Natural Arch

Culture

Culture [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Horseshoe

Named place

Named place [ checklist ]

Meteorology

Meteorology [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Moon

3 archives

Mar 06 2022

LindaAnn

Guides 110
Routes 2,246
Photos 8,982
Triplogs 2,600

45 female

Joined Dec 24 2007
Ahwatukee, AZ

Phoenix, AZ

Hiking		Mar 06 2022
		LindaAnn • Triplogs 2,600

Hiking	3.75 Miles	1,120 AEG

Hiking	3.75 Miles	3 Hrs 15 Mns	1.31 mph
	1,120 ft AEG	23 Mns Break

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realm09

watermelonW

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

Short hike with the kids to take advantage of the cooler temps. There were a few other cars at the trailhead, but they seemed to be camping, not hiking. Headed uphill, making our way up the south and west slopes of Black Cross Butte. The trail is generally easy to follow, but loose and rocky in a few places. No issues for the kids though.

At the saddle, we took a break, then headed over to Chalcedony Cave. The kids liked the small cave and the geology of the area. After that, we headed back to the saddle, then up to BCB. Once up top, we headed over to the medicine wheel, then to the north edge of the butte. We meandered back south to the high point, where we took another break before retracing our steps back down.

Saw two people as we were heading down, but that was it for the day. Slow descent in some of the rockier places, but overall, it was an easy walk back to the trailhead. Nice, easy day with the kids.

Culture

Culture [ checklist ]

Wildflowers Observation Isolated

_____________________

Stop crying and just go do the hike.

1 archive

Jan 27 2022

BobP

Guides 2
Routes 251
Photos 4,593
Triplogs 3,212

63 male

Joined Feb 26 2008
Scottsdale, AZ

Phoenix, AZ

Hiking		Jan 27 2022
		BobP • Triplogs 3,212

Hiking	1.81 Miles	816 AEG

Hiking	1.81 Miles
	816 ft AEG

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Fun hike trying to figure out the way. Not far from the bottom, I knew I needed to break thru an area. Do I go up left or continue further then go up or do I go down in the same area? I went back and forth a few times and decided to go up the second spot. Lo an behold, there was a cairn on the other side. One more decision, go down and around or go up? Up it was and it worked out. Lots of cairns where not needed. I did add a baroque cairn at a critical place. Nice views up top. On the way down, I wandered at times but ended up pretty much taking a similar route back.

_____________________

https://www.seeitourway.org
Always pronounce Egeszsegedre properly......
If you like this triplog you must be a friend of BrunoP

2 archives

Jan 02 2022

The_Eagle

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

69 male

Joined Jan 20 2009
Far NE Phoenix,

Phoenix, AZ

Hiking		Jan 02 2022
		The_Eagle • Triplogs 2,760

Hiking	8.35 Miles	2,308 AEG

Hiking	8.35 Miles	5 Hrs 48 Mns		1.82 mph
	2,308 ft AEG	1 Hour 13 Mns Break	14 LBS Pack

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	Bobzilla	joebartels
	johnlp	JuanJaimeiii
	LindaAnn	PrestonSands
	Tortoise_Hiker	wallyfrack

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

Year 11 in the NYE hikes Denny and I started on 12/31/2010. We were both a bit younger back then [ photo ]

Over the years we've added a cast of characters. This year we had 9 degenerates, including my son Rob who was in from NC.

We started out with both temps and winds in the 30's. The plan was to do a CCW track and hit up Black Cross Butte first. Luckily we missed the turn and were rewarded with a nice windbreak. This is the easiest way to make your way to the top, or points west. Once to the saddle the trail gets a bit thinner in spots. With 18 feet on the ground twice, it should be easier now.

The climb to the top of 3402 gets a tad steep, but not too bad. We took the obligatory group shot and took in the incredible views before starting back down.

Back at the saddle, we split up with some taking the way in, back.

BCB 3351 was easy to gain and after a short hike across the butte, we headed down. It was slow going, but a blast finding our way down.

Thanks all for joining us. Happy 2022!

_____________________

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

Jan 02 2022

johnlp

Guides 1
Routes 14
Photos 7,202
Triplogs 5,208

68 male

Joined Mar 16 2008
chandler,az

Phoenix, AZ

Hiking		Jan 02 2022
		johnlp • Triplogs 5,208

Hiking	7.72 Miles	2,343 AEG

Hiking	7.72 Miles
	2,343 ft AEG

no routes

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	Bobzilla	joebartels
	JuanJaimeiii	LindaAnn
	PrestonSands	The_Eagle
	Tortoise_Hiker	wallyfrack

Bruce & Denny's annual new years hike. Good turn out this year. Fun group. Wind, ice, water, and mud could not deter us from this beautiful hike. Good times as always. Thanks all.

_____________________

“Good people drink good beer.” Hunter S Thompson

Jan 02 2022

LindaAnn

Guides 110
Routes 2,246
Photos 8,982
Triplogs 2,600

45 female

Joined Dec 24 2007
Ahwatukee, AZ

Phoenix, AZ

Hiking		Jan 02 2022
		LindaAnn • Triplogs 2,600

Hiking	7.63 Miles	2,301 AEG

Hiking	7.63 Miles	5 Hrs 49 Mns	1.67 mph
	2,301 ft AEG	1 Hour 15 Mns Break

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	Bobzilla	joebartels
	johnlp	JuanJaimeiii
	PrestonSands	The_Eagle
	Tortoise_Hiker	wallyfrack

Some new territory for me. Got started before 0900 and headed uphill, where we were quickly shielded from the worst of the wind. The first mile up to the saddle is fairly easy, although there were some icy spots, which continued throughout the day. If someone were to want to get to the summit of Black Cross Butte the easy way, this is the way to go.

From the saddle, we headed west. At times there was a distinct route, other times, not so much. A good amount of tall grass in places, and more ice in a lot of places. A gps track was helpful through here. It’s a short, but steep, final climb up to 3042, but the views are excellent. After a break and group pics, we headed back down to get out of the wind. On the way down, some of us veered farther west to the edge of the dropoff overlooking the river. It was slightly easier (for me, at least) to route find on the way back out.

Once back at the original saddle, we took another break and decided who wanted to continue up to Black Cross and who didn’t. A third of the group decided that they’d already had enough of us for the year and headed back down the original trail, while the remaining half dozen continued up to Black Cross.

The route from the saddle up to the summit was generally distinct and easy to follow and really not too steep for the quick 300’ or so that it gained. Up top, we took a look at the medicine wheel, then meandered over to the obvious high point. From there, we immediately dropped down off the summit and played “pick a route” from none of the obvious options, occasionally spotting a cairn. The route finding and debating was fun, with three spots that required a little bit of work. The descent was quite fun for me, but it was nice to be hiking with a few who knew the route, which eliminated a lot of trial and error. Again a gps track was helpful.

Definitely not a hike I would do in warmer months, and I loved the cooler weather we had for this one. Fun day with a great group of people. Nice to see some faces I hadn’t seen in a year, and good to meet Bruce’s son. Thank you, Bruce and Denny, for the invitation.

Culture

Culture [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Memorial

_____________________

Stop crying and just go do the hike.

Jan 02 2022

JuanJaimeiii

Routes 596
Photos 9,604
Triplogs 2,400

58 male

Joined Jan 30 2011
Chandler, AZ

Phoenix, AZ

Hiking		Jan 02 2022
		JuanJaimeiii • Triplogs 2,400

Hiking	7.72 Miles	2,343 AEG

Hiking	7.72 Miles	5 Hrs 49 Mns	1.68 mph
	2,343 ft AEG	1 Hour 14 Mns Break

no routes

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	Bobzilla	joebartels
	johnlp	LindaAnn
	PrestonSands	The_Eagle
	Tortoise_Hiker	wallyfrack

Great hike with some of the best views in Arizona. This annual hike was put together by the Eagle and the Turtle and it didn't disappoint. The only issue I had was that I nearly turned into a popsicle. The cold and I don't get along very well. Otherwise we had a great group and I truly enjoyed the hike. Thank you for putting together another great one Bruce and Denny and thanks to the rest of the group for a fun day. Happy New Year!

_____________________

Jan 02 2022

joebartels

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

55 male

Joined Nov 20 1996

Phoenix, AZ

Hiking		Jan 02 2022
		joebartels • Triplogs 5,894

Hiking	7.72 Miles	2,343 AEG

Hiking	7.72 Miles	5 Hrs 49 Mns	1.68 mph
	2,343 ft AEG	1 Hour 14 Mns Break

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	Bobzilla	johnlp
	JuanJaimeiii	LindaAnn
	PrestonSands	The_Eagle
	Tortoise_Hiker	wallyfrack

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

Someone knitted a sweater while the group patiently shivered and cracked jokes for ten minutes before starting. Karma struck with a swift gust sending my hat sailing away minutes into the hike, buh bye.

The game plan was to hit BCB first because it's easier to decipher going up, then tackle 3042. We lucked out missing the turn up to BCB. Heading to 3042 first, took us out of the wind and made for a better group split option.

The first mile along the south route around BCB sports a lot of geology for minimal effort. Unfortunately, we had to leave the calm zone to summit 3042. Creeks were trickling and everything was seeping. Ice filled the grooves of the skip-troweled rock surfaces hopscotched between soft-to-muddy ground.

While the upper views of the hike are among my favorites, the wind took the joy out of it. A high perched break was simply undesirable.

We group hiked in knocker ball fashion back to the BCB saddle to decide who wanted to tackle BCB and who wanted to skip it. The nice guys retraced the hike in and the balance of the group hit the 320 ft BCB ascent.

The west route up BCB is quick. We strolled over to the medicine wheel then tackled the descent. Thanks to all for helping get me down the sketch spots. Luckily we skipped my original route. Yet there was a moment I was uncertain if they genuinely thought I'd be okay or they were just starving... lol

Great to see everyone, the bonus was resetting an 11-year gap of hiking with Preston. Thanks to Bobzilla for fetching my hat at the end, the casual merge back in wearing it was classic!

After butchering the pronunciation of chalcedony for a couple of decades it might be pronounced cal ced oh knee... =)

Culture

Culture [ checklist ]

_____________________

- joe

Nov 21 2020

jtouchine

Photos 5
Triplogs 1

49 female

Joined May 27 2019
Mesa, AZ

Black Cross Butte hike, AZ

Hiking		Nov 21 2020
		jtouchine • Triplogs 1

Hiking	3.98 Miles	1,233 AEG

Hiking	3.98 Miles	3 Hrs 3 Mns	1.61 mph
	1,233 ft AEG	35 Mns Break

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Limited parking where trail starts and not marked at all. Hike to a butte and a cave. Awesome views from the butte of salt river.

Nov 08 2020

adilling

Guides 2
Routes 267
Photos 9,816
Triplogs 402

62 male

Joined Dec 02 2014
Mesa, AZ

Phoenix, AZ

Hiking		Nov 08 2020
		adilling • Triplogs 402

Hiking	2.10 Miles	910 AEG

Hiking	2.10 Miles
	910 ft AEG

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Been a while since I have climbed up to Black Cross Butte and the weather abided. Wow, 60 degrees. I will take it. The clouds and haze made the normal stunning scenery only awesome scenery. I will take that too.

Lot of people camping out near the little turn off for Crucifix Canyon and a couple of jeep folks at the parking area when I arrived. They took off and I started up. My plan was to hike up the southern side of the butte along the trail that takes you to the saddle west of the butte, explore the area and then head up to BCB and hit the views up there. Then, come down the normal trail down.

The clouds were nice when I started, but I could see the hazy over cast blob moving my way when I got to the saddle. Came across lots and lots of sheep droppings and then saw a few off in cliffs above. I got a view zoomed in shots with the phone, and let them be. Once I got up top, I hiked a little ways towards the edge to see the canyon and then decided to hike up to the butte.

The views at the edge up on the butte are really nice. This entire area above the lake is so scenic for sure. Lot of sheep poops up here too, but I did not see any. I found some other scat that might have been cat? Coyote looks more like a dogs. Who knows? The only ferocious critters I saw were some ground squirrels and a few lizards.

I started down after skirting the edge of the butte. I forgot there's not much a trail going down. I was able to navigate my way down. I had trouble finding the little chute that takes you down to the spire/needle area, and ended up taking a few wrong ways, but I eventually saw the giant cairn (visible from space) that marks it. Once I got down from there it was a short hike back to the truck.

Other than the people camping and the few folks I saw at the parking area when I arrived, I saw no other humans. Just the way I prefer this cool area. I will have to get over to Horse Mesa, east of the Butte, one of these days. That looks amazing.

Culture

Culture [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Ghost?

_____________________

"Jobs fill your pockets, adventures fill your soul."

instagram: @andydilling

Apr 06 2020

fdv75

Routes 255
Photos 1,071
Triplogs 245

68 male

Joined Feb 10 2008
Kent,wa

Phoenix, AZ

Hiking		Apr 06 2020
		fdv75 • Triplogs 245

Hiking	3.55 Miles	1,182 AEG

Hiking	3.55 Miles	2 Hrs 38 Mns	1.45 mph
	1,182 ft AEG	11 Mns Break

no photosets

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

One rattlesnake near trail.

_____________________

Dec 16 2017

adilling

Guides 2
Routes 267
Photos 9,816
Triplogs 402

62 male

Joined Dec 02 2014
Mesa, AZ

Phoenix, AZ

Hiking		Dec 16 2017
		adilling • Triplogs 402

Hiking	6.88 Miles	1,990 AEG

Hiking	6.88 Miles
	1,990 ft AEG

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outdoor_lover

I have been thinking about heading to this area for a long time. I finally decided to head over to the Apache Trail and get this one off my list. I was joined by Pam Barnhart, a fellow hiker I have known only online prior to this hike.

The hike was originally planned to hit Black Cross Butte, then head over to Peak 3042 to get the views of the Salt River Canyon. We headed out right before 8am and made our way up to Black Cross Butte. The route was fairly easy to follow. The first section has a steep chute to tackle and then a small ridge to climb up. Getting to the top of the Butte was fairly easy. Great views of Four Peaks and the Salt River Canyon along the way.

We proceeded towards Peak 3042. The trail was easy to follow at first and was an actual trail. The trail started to diminish and it became the off-trail hike we both expected. We consulted the official gps track on Route Scout a few times for sure. When we got to the last saddle, before the dip down to the wash and final assault of the peak, we decided we did not have time or inclination to hit the second peak. It was at this point that we made a fateful decision.

Rather than follow our track back to the trailhead, we came up with the bright idea of taking a drainage down to the creek below. We both figured it would be a nice change of scenery and would make the trip back to the trailhead faster. We were WRONG on both counts….ha ha.

The drainage we took turned into a series of cliffs and we had to navigate, climb down and rock scramble to make our way down. We would cliff out, find another route, only to have that one cliff out as well. It took us the better part of 2 hours to make the 1/2 mile descent to the creek. A few scary exposed sections, lots of scree and steep slopes, and of course, loads of catclaw and other nastiness.

Once down the creek, we had a little lunch and explored a little down the canyon. We had thought about taking another route down as well, that would have ended up having a 100' waterfall cliff at the end….so, as bad as the route we picked, it would have been a “re-climb” back up from that one.

Pam thought the canyon we were in was Crucifix Canyon, and I believe that is where we were. The hike out was not the easy stroll we expected. The creek was dry as a bone, but it was very rough. Lots of boulder hopping and route finding. The scenery was spectacular. This is a hidden gem of a canyon. I will definitely head back in here again. There’s a double arch near the mouth of the canyon and I will head up to see in the future.

We ended up taking almost 9 hours to navigate the 7 miles of hiking. A crazy hike, but I am glad I was able to see this beautiful canyon. I will go back soon to tackle Peak 3042 as well. It was nice to meet you Pam, and I hope your knees are not too sore today from all that bushwhacking and rock climbing!

Culture

Culture [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] HAZ - Hike HAZard

_____________________

"Jobs fill your pockets, adventures fill your soul."

instagram: @andydilling

1 archive

Dec 16 2017

outdoor_lover

Guides 7
Routes 72
Photos 14,456
Triplogs 627

62 female

Joined Aug 19 2011
Scottsdale, AZ

Phoenix, AZ

Hiking		Dec 16 2017
		outdoor_lover • Triplogs 627

Hiking	6.90 Miles	2,442 AEG

Hiking	6.90 Miles
	2,442 ft AEG

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adilling

Big Plans that Changed... But it still ended up being a Big Hike albeit not Intentional...

The Original Plan was to hit BCB and then Salt River Canyon View from Peak 3042... BCB was pretty Sweet, first Time Up that one, although it's been on my List for Years.... A triple of Interesting Scrambles, two or which made me Pause for a minute or two, but with that Sticky Rock and Good Soles, I built Confidence...

After a pretty Delightful Use Trail petered out on the way to 3042, we kept thinking we were Off-Route. At one Point though, the Geology became an Overwhelming Distraction as we started running into Geodes and some Amazing Quartz in one Area.... When we finally got to above the Final Wash Crossing, before ascending 3042, we looked at our Watches and decided on Nope! Not Today....

It was almost 11:30 by then and we just didn't think we could swing it in a reasonable amount of Time... It was a very Good Decision especially since we were thinking on making this a Loop...

I had suggested we make the Loop of this Hike. as the Description subtly suggested, and take the Wash down and back to the Vehicles. We decided to follow thru with that, but after looking at the Topo, we believed that the Wash we were looking at between us and Peak 3042 would Cliff Out. We were Correct. (We Verified that from the Bottom...

) So we found a "Cut" in the Cliff Band on the Topo that looked "Doable" and went for it... We came very very close to Cliffing out on that one about halfway down after trying a couple of other Routes along that Section first. In fact, if I had been Solo, I would not have tried that Downclimb at all and as it was, I took my Pack off and lowered it first. But Andy did it, so I wasn't going to be the Reason we went all the way back up that Cut, and it looked to be more "Doable" the Rest of the way down after some more Route Finding.... It wasn't as bad as it looked, especially with no Pack and Camera Bag to deal with.... I just had to make sure not to kill Andy with Rockfall from above...

And the Bonus to that particular Route was the Guano Cave... I barely went in, took a couple of Photos and got out... Didn't see any Bats, they are probably gone for the Season, but there's a Part of that Cave, Up High, that goes back into utter Blackness. Hard to know, unless you sat there until Sunset....

We finally got down to the Bottom of Crucifix and took a well Deserved Break. We headed down Crucifix for just a bit to see if we were correct on the Topo Reading on Top. And then we headed back towards the Vehicles via the Bottom of Crucifix. It seemed like an Endless, Boulder Hopping, Scrambling, Route Finding Stretch with some Wonderful catclaw thrown in the Mix on Occasion. But the Views were Splendid and the Amazing Rock Formations kept our Cameras from feeling Neglected. With a Final Turn of the Creekbed, we saw a Cairn up above the Creekbed but were unsure what it was meant for... With the Creek getting way worse at that Turn, we decided to go up the Hill and ultimately climbed up to a small Saddle. On the other Side of the Saddle was the Road and the next Ridge would be where our Vehicles were... Relief and Adrenaline kicked in, and our Pace picked up. But then, it's really not over until it's over, as there was Gunfire and Andy heard a Bullet whiz over his Head.

So we had to slow down and I started yelling, so whoever was Shooting would stop. It was coming from the other side of a Rise to our Right. I heard a Ricochet at one Point and it was pretty intimidating.... I think they finally heard me and the Shooting stopped until we were almost topped out on the next Ridge where we Parked... The Cars were a Relief by then for sure... I felt bad for Andy as he was going to a Mandatory Christmas Party as soon as he got home and cleaned up....

I, on the other hand, had Partied the Night before, so I went Home and just crawled into the House for my Final Act of the Day....

Thanks for the Invite Andy, it was a Pleasure to finally Meet You! It was a Good Day! Hard, but the Good Kind of Hard, where you know you did something by the End... Or sooner....

Fauna

Fauna [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Canyon Wren

Autumn Foliage Observation Isolated

Wildflowers Observation Isolated

	Mesquite Creek	Dry	Dry
	At Highway 88

	Tortilla Creek	Dry	Dry
	At Highway 88

_____________________

Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty & well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, totally worn out & proclaiming, "Wow What a Ride!"

Apr 12 2015

TimTheHiker

Photos 7
Triplogs 1

54 male

Joined May 08 2015
Gilbert

Phoenix, AZ

Hiking		Apr 12 2015
		TimTheHiker • Triplogs 1

Hiking	1.40 Miles	760 AEG

Hiking	1.40 Miles
	760 ft AEG

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We tried the usual way up the mountain referenced in most triplogs and found it very rough and some rock climbing. The better way up at our age is the trail that breaks to the left and goes around the mountain. Great views of Canyon Lake from the top. We took pictures from our boat the day before looking up so we could contrast the two adventures.

_____________________

Jan 05 2015

jameslcox44

Photos 3,883
Triplogs 169

80 male

Joined Mar 18 2012
mesa,az

Phoenix, AZ

Hiking		Jan 05 2015
		jameslcox44 • Triplogs 169

Hiking	1.40 Miles	760 AEG

Hiking	1.40 Miles
	760 ft AEG

no routes

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After driving Apache Trail to the Horse Mesa Dam area where the gate warns you not to go further. We park to begin a hike on the south side of the canyon to find two arches. When we return from that 3 mile hike, we decide to take the back door to the top of Black Cross Butte. It was very windy, but a fun climb to the top. Jerry and John had done this one in the past, but it was a hoot for those of us doing it for the first time. I'm not sure I could have made it without going with someone who had done it before. After reaching the Cross, we return the normal route rather than trying to go back down the steep climb we made on the way up.

Culture

Culture [ checklist ]