HS Canyon from Long Canyon Road

As our first hike for the 2015/2016 season, ten Skyliners hiked HS Canyon on 3 October 2015. We parked on Long Canyon Road at the Chuckwagon Trail crossing, followed Chuckwagon and the Brins Mesa Connector to Forest Road 152, continued north on FR 152 to the Secret Canyon Trailhead and followed Secret Canyon to the HS Trailhead.

The main group left Cottonwood Safeway parking lot and drove north on Hwy 89A to Dry Creek Road in Sedona, took Dry Creek Road to the stop sign, turned right on Long Canyon Road (FR 152B) and continued 0.6 miles to the Chuckwagon Trail sign on the right. Having left a few minutes early to pick George up at his house, I arrived at the trailhead early and found a Sedona member already waiting there.

Before starting our hike, we gathered for a group photograph at the parking area. The photograph is by the author and one hiker, represented below only by the extra hiking pole seen between Jim Manning and Terry Johnson, chose to remain unidentified

Left to right: Jim Manning, Terry Johnson, Joyce Arregui, Daisy Williams, Frank Lombardo, Floyd Gardner, George Everman and Karl Sink

The first part of our hike, on a section of the tadpole-shaped Chuckwagon Trail, led us southeast from Long Canyon Road across the wash that drains Long Canyon. Then, about 0.1 miles after crossing the wash, it turned to the northeast to pass along the slopes of Grassy Knolls. These two grass-covered hills are lined up so that the second, less prominent knoll, is northeast of the first, in a line running approximately parallel to and just west of Dry Creek. Ascending the slope of the knolls and climbing in and out of washes along the slope turned out to be the most difficult part of the hike.

We had crossed the Long Canyon wash in a stand of Arizona cypress trees. However, that quickly gave way to grass, cactus and scattered junipers.

Grass, cactus and scattered junipers along the slopes of Grassy Knolls

Looking ahead as we moved along the slope parallel to Dry Creek we had a panoramic view stretching from the Grassy Knolls, across the mountain range directly ahead to the mountains on the eastern side of the creek.

Panoramic view looking north from Chuckwagon Trail along Grassy Knolls

We were about a hundred feet above our starting point and could now look over our shoulders to Capitol Butte (Thunder Mountain). Although not discernible in the photograph below, the southwestern slope of the mountain is marked by the distinctive Lizard Head Rock.

Capitol Butte from Chuckwagon Trail on Grassy Knolls

We descended into and climbed out of washes following along a well-constructed and heavily-used trail. Chuckwagon was completed in 2012 and is apparently intended to provide access to such backcountry trails as Devil's Bridge and Brins Mesa. These destinations, along with others (such as Vultee Arch, Secret Canyon Trail and Bear Sign Trail), were previously accessed by way of FR 152. However, since the Forest Service quit maintaining that road it is no longer usable by the general public. It is, however, still traveled by the commercial tour companies from Sedona as well as by other individuals with 4-wheel drive, high-clearance vehicles. For all others, Chuckwagon Trail now provides access.

We descended from the Grassy Knolls and crossed Dry Creek, leaving the junipers behind and entering another area dotted with Arizona Cypress trees. Shortly after crossing the creek we came to the junction of Chuckwagon Trail with Brins Mesa Connector Trail.

Junction of Chuckwagon Trail with Brins Mesa Connector Trail

Although the sign shown above makes it appear that Brins Mesa Connector leads off at an angle and Chuckwagon continues straight ahead, the reality is that Chuckwagon makes a sharp turn to the right . In any case the sign does accurately point out the correct path to Brins Mesa Trail. As an aside, it was 1.4 miles along Chuckwagon Trail from Long Canyon Road to this intersection.

About 75 yards along the Brins Mesa Connector Trail we crossed an old, but still used, road that apparently leads to the Van Deren Cabin (built by homesteader Earl Van Deren and later used in Blood on the Moon, a film staring Robert Mitchum)¹.

After following the connector trail for about 0.3 miles from its start at Chuckwagon, we found ourselves at FR 152. A sign (shown at right in the following photograph) directed us to the Brins Mesa Trailhead which is located on a loop just off the main road. The photograph was stitched together to show the trail junction at the forest road. The small sign (shown at left in the following photograph) shows the end of Brins mesa Connector. Following the sign on the right will take you about 75 yards along the short loop road to the actual Brins Mesa Trailhead. The loop then returns you to the forest road.

The small sign mounted atop a cairn at the left marks the end of Brins Mesa connector; the somewhat larger sign at the right points the way to Brins Mesa Trailhead

The following map, posted at the Brins Mesa Trailhead, shows the Devil's Bridge Trailhead about 1.1 miles to the south, the Secret Canyon Trailhead about a mile north and the Vultee Arch/Sterling Pass Trailhead about 1.9 miles north. Also shown is the turnoff from Secret Canyon Trail to HS Canyon Trail about 0.7 miles north of the Secret Canyon Trailhead.

Excerpt from a Forest Service map posted at the Brins Mesa Trailhead on FR 152

We continued north on FR 152 for about a mile to the Secret Canyon Trailhead where we stopped for a midmorning snack. The actual trailhead where all the normal trail information signs are posted is located about a 100 yards down a dirt road from FR 152.

The following photographs show the sign pointing to the trailhead (below left) and the actual road leading to it (below right).

After our snack we proceeded down the short dirt road, crossed Dry Creek and headed north on Secret Canyon Trail. The trail was clearly marked, first by one of the rusty old metal signs (below left) found in the area and then a few yards farther on by a newer wooden sign (below right).

The trail up Secret Canyon was wide and well-worn, showing a lot of usage. It was actually ground down by passing feet so that we were walking on a thick layer of powdery sand. We were surrounded by junipers and manzanitas and occasionally, as we wound our way back and forth across across the wash, even found a few puddles of water. These puddles would be gone in another day or so if it didn't rain.

About the only flowers we had seen to this point had been a lot of broom snakeweed on Grassy Knolls. But we now started to see a few more along the way. A sample of the broom snakeweed along with other flowers seen later in the hike are shown below.

Just 0.7 miles from FR 152, we came to the HS Canyon Trailhead. The trailhead was marked by another of those attractive, rusty old metal signs (below left) that just seem to belong wherever they are found. Occasionally, through a break in the tree cover we could look ahead and see a half-moon (below right) lurking above the mountains.

One mile from the Secret Canyon/HS Canyon Trail junction, is a very faint trail that leads to the left, passing along the foot of a large protruding rock cliff and climbing sharply uphill for about 50 yards to a flat viewpoint surrounded by low-growing manzanita.

Turnoff to viewpoint

This is a great place to look out over the surrounding terrain and I have included a panoramic view stitched together from photographs made during last April's scouting hike.

Panorama from viewpoint – stitched from photographs made in April 2015

The trail follows close along the wash in the bottom of HS Canyon, passing through junipers near the mouth of the canyon and then entering a forest composed of oaks, a few ponderosa pines and manzanita. Below are shown a collection of acorns (left) gathered along the way and a manzanita (right) displaying its distinctive brownish purple bark among a profusion of green leaves.

Our total hiking distance, as measured from my GPS track, was 9.8 miles in and out. Only 3 miles of this was actually on HS Trail. Approximately 2.8 miles was along what used to be Gunslinger Trail but is now a section of Chuckwagon Trail, about 0.6 miles was on Brins Mesa Connector, two miles were along FR 152 and 1.4 miles was on Secret Canyon Trail. Luckily we only met one vehicle, an ATV on the forest service road, so were not bothered by dust.

Our in-and-out track is shown in red on the map below. The section of track between Long Canyon Road and the junction of Chuckwagon Trail and Brins Mesa Connector Trail, although shown in red because it was part of this hike, is in reality a section of Chuckwagon Trail. It also was previously known as Gunslinger Trail. The dark blue section of trail is the rest of Chuckwagon Trail.

1http://thehikehouse.com/tag/van-deren-cabin