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| Backpack | 35.00 Miles |
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| | Backpack | 35.00 Miles | 4 Days | | |
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| no partners | | I am an experienced backpacker with over 300 backcountry nights in the past half-decade all across the country from the Southern Appalachians to the Northern Rockies to the Desert Southwest. The Galiuro Mountains may be the toughest place I've ever hiked. They weren't made any easier by 2 days of snow before my trip began and 2 more days of snow while I was out there.
On a related note, 3 of the most recent trip reports in the Galiuros are from the same guy. Does anyone know this dude, jacobemerick? Is he ok? Must be an absolute madman. The Galiuros left me feeling like an abused spouse - beaten up, knocked down, battered & bruised - but head-over-heels in love - but feeling like I shouldn't go back for my own good.
The maps I used had inaccurate trails, no topography, and not many place names. I will do my best to describe things but I don't know the name of many of the canyons, features, etc. along the way.
Tortilla
From Deer Creek TH the route nominally starts along the East Divide Tr before connecting with the Tortilla Tr. Snow started falling in the open beginning stretches of Tortilla. I had trouble following Tortilla after it dropped down by Sycamore Cr, there was a lot of overgrowth and snow covering the ground. I began to wonder what I was getting myself into. Tortilla eventually, mercifully, finally left Sycamore Cr and began climbing around the mouth of a couple cyns before dropping into Rattlesnake Cyn & Powers Garden Tr. I made camp just south of the ranch area, not a great place really but the sun was setting & temp dropping into the 30s.
Powers Garden
I had trouble following the trail directly out of Powers Garden for the first mile or so, finding it easier to just walk down the streambed once it dried up. After that the rest of Powers Garden was very nice (for a trail in the Galiuros, it would be considered mildly rough elsewhere). A bit of overgrowth but much better compared to other cyn trails in the Wilderness. So much interesting history along here - from the Powers Garden meadow to the cabins, structure on a hill, & tons of old equipment further down.
West Divide
I hiked a short out-and-back stretch of this trail from Powers Garden Tr to Shootout Cabin & Powers Mine. Worst catclaw portion of the trip. But what incredible history around the cabin - of the 8 men involved in the shootout in 1918, 4 died there that day and 3 later received life sentences after Arizona's biggest ever manhunt.
Rattlesnake before Holdout
Things got rough(er) for me. As I was finishing up West Divide back to the Powers Garden-West Divide-Rattlesnake intersection a thick wet snow started falling. The beginning of Rattlesnake was among the worst trail stretches of the trip, I had trouble. Horrifically overgrown and snow covering everything made navigation difficult. Often I could identify the "trail" only by finding the thickest patches of vegetation in the woods. The wet snow covered the vegetation and soaked me from navel to feet.
Holdout Spur
As the temp dropped into the 30s I made it to Holdout Spring. Holdout Cave was an absolute miracle that I didn't expect. I slept on the shelf in the cave - not sure if that is recommended because I did see rodent droppings so hantavirus may be a concern. I was so cold and wet that I was desperate for shelter.
Rattlesnake after Holdout
Back on Rattlesnake the next day, the section directly east of Holdout Spur was in much better shape than the section directly west. After ascending out of Rattlesnake Cyn the trail gets a bit sketchy climbing to the ridge, and the entire thing was covered in 6+ inches of snow, but I was able to maintain course pretty well to the East Divide Tr intersection.
East Divide before Paddy's River
The first few miles of East Divide were the best trail of the trip. For the most part it was a nice wide highway along the ridge. A bit of overgrowth and tricky navigation in the snow from time to time but very nice for the Galiuros. I found a bald hill off the trail to cowboy camp on for the night - I named this hill Yeehaw Point.
East Divide after Paddy's River
Absolutely brutal. I wouldn't see much more than a hint of trail from the Paddy's River intersection until the Corral Cyn intersection. A mile or 2 after the Paddy's River Tr intersection the East Divide Tr dropped down into a canyon. I had trouble, lots of overgrowth and snow. After climbing out I think it dropped into and climbed out of another cyn. After that it contoured around Kennedy Peak through a lot of burn. Snow was everywhere and combined with the downfall to make navigation extremely difficult.
East Divide after Corral Cyn
Still absolutely brutal. There was some very helpful flagging tape showing the first stretch of trail from the Corral intersection switchbacking down through overgrowth. With the brush and the thick snow cover I may still be out in the Wilderness to this day if not for that flagging. After a certain point the snow stopped but the brush got worse. There started being a lot of downfall mixed with thick brush before and after Oak Creek. The final flat and open stretch of East Divide back to Deer Creek TH was no problem.
I couldn't in good faith recommend anyone backpack the Galiuros. But if you do, there is breathtaking canyon scenery (I actually think Galiuro Canyons is a more accurate representation of the area than Galiuro Mountains), unique history, and plenty of chances to build your character. Hopefully you can find better maps than the ones I used which were often inaccurate. It took every bit of route-finding experience and skill that I possess to make it through this Wilderness in the snow, brush & downfall. I, or more accurately the trail, was often lost. Do not underestimate the Galiuros. |
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