Yaeger Canyon Loop - 161112

On a sunny and crisp day in mid-fall, ten Skyliners hiked Yaeger Canyon Loop, a very enjoyable hike on the west-facing side of Mingus Mountain with breathtaking views of Prescott Valley.

The following trails combine to complete this loop: Yaeger Canyon Trail 28, Yaeger Cabin Trail 111, and Little Yaeger Canyon Trail 533. Trails 111 and 533 are connected by a short walk along Forest Road 105. FR 105 is also known as Kendall Camp Road and continues on to Mingus Springs Ranch. Trail 111 for part of the distance parallels FR 413, a.k.a. Allen Spring Road. Trail 28, on which we started our clock­wise loop, parallels Highway 89A for about half a mile and passes the remains of a bridge (right) that once served the old highway.

Will C. Barnes, in Ari­zo­na Place Names (University of Arizona, 1935), describes Yaeger Canyon as at the south end of Woodchute Mountain about 2 miles southwest of Hickey Mountain which, in turn, is about 2 miles west of Mingus Mountain. The can­­­y­­­on was named for Louis Yaeger, a young sheepman who was killed on May 9, 1911 at the lower end of this canyon. His murderer, a drunken herder, was later caught and hanged. Hickey Mountain (left) was named after Dennis Hickey, who had a potato ranch nearby in the early Eighteen Eighties.

The Skyliners had hiked this loop before, on: May 8, 2004; October 13, 2007; and November 13, 2010. The 2010 hike was described on the Skyliners 2010 Fall Hiking Schedule as "Yaeger Loop up around and down the west side of Mingus." A report of that hike is included in Ellis Price's book Hiking In and Around Verde Valley (www.createspace.com/3996907).

In the 2004 hike I had noted that I saw a red, black and white snake which I later identified, using a Peterson Field Guide, as a Mountain King Snake. I had also taken a photo of a really large Alligator Juniper (right). I believe it was the same tree that our hike leader on this 2016 hike, Lila, said was the largest one of its kind. The tree appears just after a section of trail going over jumble of red lava boulders.

We arrived at a planned snack break at the top of a rock bluff next to an old dead tree. From this location there is a great view of Prescott Valley. Soon a couple of hikers, preceded by their dog, arrived there also. When the couple said that their dog was used to them stopping there on other occasions, Lila replied that there was plenty of room and they were wel­come to join us. However, they decided to continue up the trail.

After our break, we cont­inued our hike and came to Young Seep Spring (left), which nestled in a pretty spot near the head of a side canyon about 0.3 mile from the inter­section of Trails 28 and 111. Having hiked 2.2 miles on Trail 28, we left it behind for Trail 111, which traversed a pine-oak forest. We were surrounded by fall­-colored oak leaves set off against green pine needles.

While on Trail 111, we came to a tree that was split right down the center (right), almost to the ground. A few small dead branches were clustered at the tree's base, but the tree tops were still green. One half might have fallen to the ground had it not been leaning against another tree. Since there was no evidence of scorching, the con­sensus was that the tree was probably damaged by a windstorm rather than lightning.

We had lunch sitting on scattered logs above a slope leading out of Little Yaeger Canyon at the end of Trail 111. After eating, we walked along FR105 for less than a quarter mile. Just a few feet short of the sign for Ash Creek Head­waters Improvement Pro­ject, we took a right turn and came to Trail 533.

Along the trail we spotted what looked like two giant stone paws (left). If they were part of a sphinx, what happened to the rest of it?

Hikers on Trail 533 always looked out for the old wagon and wagon tongue, an item of interest which is not visible from the trail and easily missed. We came upon it about a quarter mile along the trail.  The remains are almost completely hidden; only an alert hiker is likely to notice them.

Old Log Wagon Remains

Trail 533 took us around Little Yaeger Canyon, then down into Yaeger Canyon along­side Highway 89A. Hwy 89A passes through Yaeger Canyon above the bottom of the canyon. In several areas we saw Mountain Mahogany (right) gone to seed, with attached fuzzy, spirally twisted tails that shimmered and glowed in the sunlight. Later Betty pointed out a bare looking spot on a cliff-face across the canyon and thought that she was seeing a cemetery with crosses in it.

And quess what I see when I magnify this photo on my camera? I see crosses. The crosses are lighter areas on the front of a buff-colored cliff and also grayish areas which might be shadows or depressions or cracks in the cliff surface.

A little further down the trail, Lila pointed out the rock bluff across the canyon on Trail 28 where we had our snack break earlier.

When we completed our loop and were back at where we parked alongside Hwy 89A, the road sign  there (left) informed us that we were 10 miles beyond Jerome. Lila took our group photo (below) there on her phone.

Left to right: Betty Wolters Frank Lombardo, Jim Manning, Daisy Williams, Chris Jensen, Dolly Yapp, Karl Sink, Ellis Price and Joyce Arregui - Lila Wright not shown

This is an interesting hike, not too challenging, and with variety in terrain and vegetation along different sections of the route.

The total hike distance was 6.7 miles, the highest elevation was 7174 feet and the total ascent was 1627 feet. The included map (below) shows the Yeager Canyon Loop GPS track in red.

This hike report was written by Daisy Williams, layout by Dolly Yapp, with

 review and overview by Ellis Price and Lila wright.