Denton Trail #69 • Hike • Arizona • All Triplogs • HikeArizona.COM

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Apr 20 2019

CannondaleKid

Guides 44
Routes 162
Photos 24,784
Triplogs 2,417

75 male

Joined May 04 2004
Mesa, AZ

Denton Trail #69

Payson, AZ

Denton Trail #69

Payson, AZ

Hiking		Apr 20 2019
		CannondaleKid • Triplogs 2,417

Hiking	2.50 Miles	946 AEG

Hiking	2.50 Miles	1 Hour 30 Mns		1.67 mph
	946 ft AEG		12 LBS Pack

no routes

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trixiec

On our way back from a camping trip to Edwards Park in 2014 we had hiked the top half of Denton so we figured this might be a good time to knock out the full hike from the bottom.

But with barely a glance at the solid fox-tails along the trail as far as the eye could see, Tracey was already giving me the evil-eye...

But wait! We can't give up that fast. And after digging around in the back of the 4Runner I came up with a dirty old pair of lower-shin canvas gaiters which had only been worn off-trail through cholla country. Yep, heavy and a bit large for Tracey, but it's better than nothing.
Not really... within the first few hundred yards Tracey stopped a few times. The first to remove the first fox-tails and make an adjustment, and the second to remove more fox-tails and adjust them as tight as possible.

That drama over, neither of us was eager to deal with any other issues. Which is of course when we are faced with more issues... in this case it was the atrocious condition of the trail along the edge of the ravine. Between erosion and the loose pea-gravel almost every step became an effort to keep a boot from sliding sideways.

So, just over a mile up the trail it was unanimous... no more, we're done. Descending now will be bad enough, but better than later when we'd be tired. Besides, any of the slips and I could be dealing with more back issues.

Now it's just a matter of where do we hike now? Let's just head home and see what catches our fancy.

_____________________

CannondaleKid

Nov 02 2014

CannondaleKid

Guides 44
Routes 162
Photos 24,784
Triplogs 2,417

75 male

Joined May 04 2004
Mesa, AZ

Denton Trail #69

Payson, AZ

Denton Trail #69

Payson, AZ

Hiking		Nov 02 2014
		CannondaleKid • Triplogs 2,417

Hiking	5.40 Miles	2,097 AEG

Hiking	5.40 Miles	3 Hrs 58 Mns		1.56 mph
	2,097 ft AEG	30 Mns Break	20 LBS Pack

no routes

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partners

trixiec

After our hike yesterday seeking the non-existent Sycamore Trail it was time to hit a known trail, but first a short jaunt to the Circle M Spring. The concrete tank was dry and the spring nothing but a small algae-choked puddle so back to the Jeep for our drive to the end of FR 422A just past Big Pine Spring where we would pick up the Denton Trail.

Some two-plus years ago we had driven out FR422 and rebuilt the cairn where the Arizona Trail #21 leaves FR422 for Bushnell Tanks. After the cairns were complete we checked out the Jolene Mine and El Oso mines area and had a little time to wander so we had hiked part of the Denton Trail.

So for our last hike of the weekend we figured we'd take Denton Trail a bit farther than before. Not all the way down, just a bit since Tracey was having some heel issues. Just about time Tracey was ready to turn back she manages to call my attention to what appeared to be a ruin site some distance below and south of the trail. Zooming in on it that's exactly what it looked like... only it was down the steepest slope encountered thus far so I left it up to her whether she felt it was worth the extra effort.

Thankfully it WAS worth the effort... it was an old ruin site after all. :y:

At first we thought it may have been a temporary shelter built by cowboys in the late 1800's but once Tracey found some potsherds we knew it was more than a cowboy shelter and began looking closer. Tracey came up with a small arrowhead and what may have been a cutting tool. Or... I suppose it could be some wishful thinking. Whatever, it was a nice find.

Time to head back uphill again, but we took our time, taking in the scenery and for the first time in two days we saw Four Peaks out from under the clouds that had been visiting all weekend. Even when there was plenty of blue skies earlier it was always in a shroud.

Since Tracey had never been on FR 143 El Oso Road down to Tonto Basin and it had been almost 10 years since I had we initially thought of going back that way, but tacking on an extra 40-some miles meant another $10 in gas for the Cherokee... so since my budget likes saving as much as possible, we opted for a fast drive back down to AZ 87.

Fast it was... Tracey, hang on! Just under 49 minutes to go from the FR143/FR422/FR648 junction back to the Beeline. It would have been less but for a number of ATV's and other vehicles we had to follow until they either tired of holding us up and pulled over to let us pass, or for one who had no clue we were behind him, a blast of the air-horn and we zipped by anyway. Speed up, stop or get-out-of-the-way!
:whistle:

As fast as Tracey could handle it without barfing it still doesn't approach my best time back in 2004 when I had an old beater Toyota Tacoma 2WD pickup... 29 minutes. It helped there were no other vehicles but it still meant plenty of four-wheel drifts along with at least one head-bump on the roof. Ah, those were the days... I can't afford to break things now. (the vehicle or my bones)

No video and another small photoset so they're all here..

Fauna

Fauna [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Tarantula

Named place

Named place [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Big Pine Spring Buck Basin Buck Basin Spring Circle M Spring Four Peaks Theodore Roosevelt Lake

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CannondaleKid

May 24 2014

topohiker

Guides 14
Routes 115
Photos 4,830
Triplogs 3,540

male

Joined Oct 29 2005
Scottsdale, AZ

El Oso Mine / AZT 21 / Denton loop, AZ

Hiking		May 24 2014
		topohiker • Triplogs 3,540

Hiking	31.92 Miles	6,094 AEG

Hiking	31.92 Miles	12 Hrs 30 Mns	3.04 mph
	6,094 ft AEG	2 Hrs Break

no routes

no photosets

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Denton Trail #69

Sycamore Trail #68

Pine Mountain - AZT #21

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This hike was an exploration of the El Oso mine road and the FR422. A certain hiking website admin told that the El Oso mine road had some great views and it. I parked at a camp site off of FR422 and headed to FR422A to the El Oso mine road. I headed down to the Big Pine Flat camp ground and headed down the Denton trail. I went along the Denton until it started to drop down and the overgrowth started to obscure the trail. The view from the Denton is awesome. You get views of Roosevelt Lake and the Tonto Basin area. Along the way I checked out the mines and offshoot roads. There wasn’t anything of interest at the mines.

I then headed down FR422 and checked out the various offshoots along the way. The Circle M spring had a pool of green water. The loop at the end of FR422 was pretty neat, it climbed up high and provided a 360 degree view of the area. On the way back I saw a cairn and a red ribbon at N33 49.876 W111 22.541. It was north of the Park trail and south of where the Sycamore (68) should be. I followed the cairn and found 3 more 2-foot cairns. Then the cairns got smaller and harder to find. I then wandered looking for the next cairn before giving up. Edwards peak was close by and looked doable. So I’m guessing the ‘trail’ goes to Edwards peak.

Then I found an un-marked (and not on any maps) a road that may be the start of the Sycamore (68) trail. The road dead ended where my GPS showed where the Sycamore crossed it. I saw no evidence of a trail past this point.

It was a fun day exploring around the area.

:SB:

My only gripe is that 2 guys on ATV’s flagged me down to ask for directions. They didn’t have any idea where they were. They only had a book of ATV trails, which had a 4 x 8 map of the 4 peaks area. I told them where they were at and they asked how to get to the parking lot. I was like ‘which parking lot?” They replied the one off of the 4-peaks road. We just drove in and saw a parking lot. I told them how to get back to FR143 and hoped that they would remember which way to go. If you’re going out ATVing you should at least have a good map / GPS. :SB:

	Circle M Spring	Dripping	Dripping
	There was a big pool of green slimy water.

_____________________

"Everywhere is walking distance...If you have the time"
-Stephen Wright

Apr 30 2012

CannondaleKid

Guides 44
Routes 162
Photos 24,784
Triplogs 2,417

75 male

Joined May 04 2004
Mesa, AZ

Denton Trail #69

Payson, AZ

Denton Trail #69

Payson, AZ

Hiking		Apr 30 2012
		CannondaleKid • Triplogs 2,417

Hiking	2.20 Miles	520 AEG

Hiking	2.20 Miles	2 Hrs 6 Mns		1.38 mph
	520 ft AEG	30 Mns Break	4 LBS Pack

no routes

Linked

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partners

trixiec

After spending the morning driving out FR422 to where the AZT turns off to the west, rebuilding the cairn marking that turn as well as taking a short hike out on AZT#21 and taking in the views west, we decided on a hike in the other direction to compare them with the views over Tonto Basin and Roosevelt Lake.

So after a drive of some distance south on FR422 we turned off on FR463 and followed it to FR422A which we followed to its terminus. From there we hiked just far enough out on the Denton Trail for the views over Roosevelt Lake.

The clear skies and a nice breeze made for a pleasant hike. We encountered numerous reasonably fresh elk tracks almost wherever we wandered but none were to be seen. (I've seen them here in the past)

While wandering onto the last overlook over the lake eagle-eye Tracey found a single potsherd. Alas, it was the only one.

On the return trip we climbed up and scampered on a number of large boulders which presented some great views. Near the end of our hike we passed by a cluster of boulders that were ripe for the imagination... see the photoset.

I posted 25 photos on HAZ, the full set of 36 are here:
http://changephoenix.com/jpserver/web/public/album.php?id=87

Flora

Flora [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Dudleya Indian Paintbrush

Fauna

Fauna [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Costa's Hummingbird

Named place

Named place [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Four Peaks Mount Ord Theodore Roosevelt Lake Tonto Basin

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CannondaleKid

Apr 12 2009

DarthStiller

Guides 27
Routes 670
Photos 12,111
Triplogs 857

56 male

Joined Jul 05 2006
Mesa, AZ

Denton Trail #69

Payson, AZ

Denton Trail #69

Payson, AZ

Hiking		Apr 12 2009
		DarthStiller • Triplogs 857

Hiking	11.60 Miles	3,000 AEG

Hiking	11.60 Miles	6 Hrs 35 Mns	1.76 mph
	3,000 ft AEG

no routes

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wallyfrack

As we got out of Wally's car at the TH, we immediately heard something that sounded like a dog howling/barking from up off the mountain. It had a very "Hound of the Baskervilles" sound to it. After hiking in a half mile, the howling stopped and we never heard it again or saw what it was. Other than that odd start to the day, everything else was normal and fine.

The hike is very nice, great scenery, nice spot at the top where the trail ends in a patch of ponderosa pines and boulders by Big Pine Spring. The trail, however, is bad. Many washouts in places making for precarious footing, alot of the rail ties have been burnt, creating alot erosion and much of the trail a mini-valley of sorts. At the top of the first canyon, the trail cuts sideways into a steep hill, making it a little hairy as one side is a steep drop off.

The views of Tonto Basin, Roosevelt Lake, and 4Peaks are incredible. The north side of 4Peaks seemed covered in snow, and for most of the time it was obscured by clouds. Once we got a view of it on the Beeline Hwy, it looked almost like no snow was on it from that angle.

I think this trail is underrated, but considering the condition of parts of it and the long drive to get there, I can understand why it is as under used as it is.

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Apr 12 2009

wallyfrack

Routes 93
Photos 7,758
Triplogs 1,694

64 male

Joined Mar 11 2003
AZ

Denton Trail #69

Payson, AZ

Denton Trail #69

Payson, AZ

Hiking		Apr 12 2009
		wallyfrack • Triplogs 1,694

Hiking	11.60 Miles	3,000 AEG

Hiking	11.60 Miles	6 Hrs 25 Mns	1.81 mph
	3,000 ft AEG

no routes

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partners

DarthStiller

It was cool in the morning but the biggest obstacle was the wet vegetation. The trail is washed away in sections and the ground is loose so you needed to watch your step at times. The faint areas were navigated using Stiller's GPS. I didn't wear water shoes and my feet got wet early from the water off the leaves running down my pants and into my hiking boots. The views on the lower trail are nice (Roosevelt Lake & Four Peaks) but the most interesting sections are at the top with strange rock formations and pine trees. In summary, a nice climb on a trail in need of repair.

Flora

Flora [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Four O'Clock

Wildflowers Observation Substantial

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2 archives

WARNING! Hiking and outdoor related sports can be dangerous. Be responsible and prepare for the trip. Study the area you are entering and plan accordingly. Dress for the current and unexpected weather changes. Take plenty of water. Never go alone. Make an itinerary with your plan(s), route(s), destination(s) and expected return time. Give your itinerary to trusted family and/or friends.

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