Sugarloaf and Black Mountain

On 13 March 2010, eleven Skyliners (Jim Manning, Fran Lind, Marvin Alt, Bob Wakefield, Janet Wakefield, Daisy Williams, Donna Goodman, Lila Wright, Ellis Price and two others) set out to hike on Sugarloaf and Black Mountain. W took Hwy 89A north from Cottonwood and turned off on Bill Gray Road (FR 761) at the Catholic Church. We followed Bill Gray road for about 9.3 miles and then continued straight ahead on Black Mountain Road (FR 9525). Bill Gray Road turns to the right at this intersection. We followed Black Mountain Road for about 1 mile before parking to start our hike.

NOTE 1: Alternate Route -- Instead of turning off Bill Gray Road (FR 761) directly onto Black Mountain Road (FR 9525) where we did, one could continue on Bill Gray Road for about another two-thirds of a mile and turn left onto FR 761A.   FR 761A connects with Black Mountain Road, which itself becomes FR 761A at this point, where Black Mountain Road crosses under the power line, about three- tenths of a mile beyond where we parked.

NOTE 2: Turnoff to Indian Cave – At the point where Black Mountain Road crosses under the power line (at 34°52'56.20"N; 111°59'55.97"W), FR 9524 leads off to the northeast, generally following the power line. The Indian cave described later in this report is located in a red bluff on the right a bit under a quarter mile along this road.

We hiked along Black Mountain Road, heading generally northeast along the slope of Black Mountain toward Sugarloaf Mountain. Along the way (about half a mile after crossing under the power line) we noted a jeep trail, an old quarry road (FR 9526) that branches off and switchbacks up to the top of Black Mountain. We continued on past the jeep trail turnoff on our way to Sugarloaf Mountain. We found that we were climbing pretty rapidly and paused a few times to rest and take in the views.

Black Mountain Road runs along the slope of Black Mountain until it reaches Sugarloaf Mountain, which is joined to Black Mountain by a connecting saddle. The road then continues around Sugarloaf Mountain and leads to several quarries located on the northeast slope of Black Mountain. Some of the quarries are still active and the road is pretty well maintained. Any truck type vehicle can easily navigate it.

We would leave Black Mountain Road at the saddle between Sugarloaf and Black Mountain because the climb to the top of Sugarloaf is not too steep from there. Accordingly, when we reached the saddle we turned off and made our way up the slope.

We found no discernible trail leading between the road and the top of the saddle. However, from there on to the peak, we did find a faint trail, marked along the way with cairns. As we ascended, we had a good view back along the way we had come; the road along the slope of Black Mountain was clearly visible and, in the distance, we could see the snow-covered heights of Mingus Mountain above the shoulder of Black Mountain.

Mingus visible in the distance above the slope of Black Mountain – road visible at bottom of picture

And because I do like Mingus, here is a zoomed in view.

Magnified view of Mingus over the shoulder of Black Mountain

The climb up Sugarloaf from the saddle is not very difficult, although there are a couple of spots where one must climb over rock ledges.

We ate lunch while admiring the views from the top of the mountain. We searched for and found a memorial someone had patiently carved into a stone at the top of the mountain. We then spent the rest of our time enjoying the views all around us. Looking to the west, we could see Black Mountain Road zigzagging its way up to the quarries located on the northeast slope of the mountain. One vehicle made its way along the road around Sugarloaf and on up to the quarries while we watched. We saw the same vehicle again later as we were making our way back down to the road and the vehicle was leaving the area. Looking to the northwest we could see across Sycamore Pass into Sycamore Canyon Wilderness beyond. We identified the Trailhead for the Dogie Trail, a trail we plan to hike on April 10. To the northeast we could see the red mound that identifies Robbers Roost and beyond that Secret Mountain Wilderness. Moving to the southeast, we were looking down on Sugarloaf Tank #1 just below us and beyond that the Mago Retreat. The tank is located in the bottom of and not too far from the upper head of a canyon. The canyon bottom drops steeply again just below the tank. The canyon descends from west to east and we could see that a road climbs up the canyon on the south side, crosses at the tank and then descends back down the canyon on the north side. I determined later that this road turns around the shoulder of Sugarloaf and continues north to Sugarloaf Tank #2, which is located north of Sugarloaf Mountain. It can be accessed from Black Mountain Road by turning north on FR 9524 where Black Mountain Road crosses under the power line near the start of our hike.

Memorial carved in a stone on top of Sugarloaf Mountain

To the west we could see Black Mountain Road winding up the slope to the quarries.

Black Mountain Road zigzagging up the northeast slope of Black Mountain to the quarries

Looking northwest, we had a view across Sycamore Pass into Sycamore Canyon Wilderness.

Looking across Sycamore Pass and into Sycamore Wilderness from Sugarloaf Peak

To the northeast we could see across Robbers Roost into Secret Mountain Wilderness.

Robbers Roost (red mound in center) and Secret Mountain Wilderness beyond

To the southeast we could see Sugarloaf Tank #1 far below and the Mago Retreat beyond that.

Sugarloaf Tank #1 (lower right) and Mago Retreat (above and left of center)

Making our way back down to Black Mountain Road, we came out about 50 yards from where we had left the road on the way up.

On rejoining the road, we decided to make a side trip to the cliffs overlooking Sugarloaf Tank #1. Accordingly, we continued along the road for about two-tenth of a mile as though we were going to circle around Sugarloaf Mountain before turning off to the cliff above the tank. After arriving at the top of the cliff, we decided that a better view was to be had at another location and moved along the cliff edge toward the head of the canyon in which the tank is located. Below is a view of the tank from our second viewpoint. The tank is visible to the left; you can see the Mago Retreat near the upper right.

Sugarloaf Tank #1 (left); Mago Retreat (upper right)

While we were wandering around atop the cliff, we observed a small manzanita in full bloom (a bit early?), a small juniper growing on the very edge of the cliff, a stubborn prickly pear cactus that just refuses to give up and some strange mushrooms. George, who is traveling and was unable to be with us on this hike, is our mushroom person and I will ask him to identify them for us when he returns from his trip.

A Manzanita in bloom                                        A little juniper on the cliff’s edge

A very stubborn prickly pear cactus             Small black mushrooms

Jim Manning had indicated that he knew of some Indian ruins located near our route back and we left to explore those. To do this, we returned to Black Mountain Road, hiked back past where we had turned off to climb Sugarloaf Mountain, continued on past the jeep trail (FR 9526) that switchbacks up to the top of Black Mountain and turned off when we could see the red bluff that the Indian Ruins are located in. We noted later that the most direct route should one wish to go directly to the ruins would be to turn off Black Mountain Road onto FR 9524 where Black Mountain Road crosses under the power line and follows the power line to the northeast. The ruins are in a red bluff to the right a bit under ¼ mile from Black Mountain Road. However, because we were on our way back and approaching from the other direction, we shortened the trip a bit by cutting off before we reached FR 9524 and taking a diagonal route to the ruins. We traveled through pastureland that was pretty easy walking.

We found the ruins (located at 34°53'4.43"N; 111°59'42.51"W) to be basically a cave-like opening in the bluff under a rock overhang. The overhang was deep enough to provide shelter in just about any weather. The site is easily accessed, lying only about a tenth of a mile off FR 9524. Because it is so easily accessed, the site has undoubtedly been much visited over the years. Despite this, we did find a few pottery shards, which we photographed and left behind. We also noted some very interesting erosion formations on the back wall of the overhang.

The space sheltered by the overhang is about 10 feet deep and at least 30 feet long, providing ample space to shelter a small group.

Indian Ruins. See the opening at the bottom of the red bluff, visible over the top of a bush (right of center)

Indian Ruins. See the opening at the bottom of the red bluff, visible over the top of a bush (right of center)

Pottery shards                                                         Erosion formations on the       
                                                                           Back wall of the overhang

We intended to return to Black Mountain Road by way of FR 9524 back to finish our hike. I sat under the overhang and took a photograph of the group as they assembled outside to resume the hike.

Assembling hikers framed in the opening with Mingus in the background

This hike was about 6.75 miles round trip (My GPS said 6.74 while the file I downloaded to my computer said 6.5). This includes the side trips to the cliffs above Sugarloaf Tank #1 and the Indian Ruins. The elevation change was just over 900 feet.

The included map (below) shows our GPS track for this hike.