Butterfly Spring Trail

Nine Skyliners hiked on Butterfly Spring Trail 536 to the Glider Port on Mingus and returned. Actually we hiked on Trail 536, several old logging roads, Trail 105 and Trail 537. We drove through Jerome and on to the top of Mingus on Hwy 89A, turned left on FR 104 and parked 0.9 miles ahead at the Butterfly Spring Trailhead (Trail 536) located at a concrete dam in a hairpin turn of FR 104.

We clambered over the dam, which had no water behind it but did show a seep at the bottom of the dam, and followed the trail up the canyon. The trail is well developed and leads up the canyon at a gentle slope, crossing the streambed four times and passing a second dam (this one retaining a nice pool of water) with a beautiful grassy slope leading between it and the trail before coming to a junction with Trail 537, just above Butterfly Spring and about 0.2 miles from the trailhead. We made a sharp turn to the right and followed 536 along an old logging road, traveling south parallel to FR 104. After about 0.5 miles, when we were within a few yards of FR 104, the trail turned to the northeast. We hiked a short distance further and then stopped for a group photograph.

Left to right: Anita Jackson, Daisy Williams, Miriam Sterling, Colleen 

Maktenieks, Lila Wright, Betty Wolters, Name Withheld and 

Becky Fowski – photograph by the author

Continuing on up the trail we came to a junction with Trails 537 and 538 about 0.5 miles from where we had turned and started northeast (or 1.2 miles from the trailhead). We had changed course and were traveling east at this point. From this junction, Trail 536 headed to the southeast, Trail 538 led to the northeast and Trail 537 headed northwest. A sign was posted alongside 536 warning that it dead-ended ahead. We nevertheless continued for another 500 feet until the trail stopped at an old logging road (right).

The way to the right was marked as private land, so we turned and followed the old road to the left (northeast). About 0.1 miles from the end of Trail 536 the road forked, one path continuing almost straight ahead and then heading east, the other branching off and heading northwest. We continued straight ahead because we wanted to reach the glider port, which lay in that direction before turning back.

After another 0.5 miles (0.1 miles from the end of Trail 536) we came to another fork in the road. The right fork headed southeast and one hiker, having placed a GPS waypoint to mark the glider port on a previous hike, pointed out that that must the way. However, the left fork which led to the northeast, was marked by two cairns and a hiking pole leaning against a tree. We had plenty of time and anyway I wanted to see whether we could connect with Trail 105 near where it dips over the rim to start its zigzag course down the face of Mingus, so we went left. We did connect with Trail 105 and followed it a short distance to the rim before turning back and following it to the glider port. That added about 0.6 miles to our hike, but it was a nice trip through the woods.

We found several people camped out near the glider port although the wind was too high to permit flying. Some were apparently just camping out; others were waiting for more favorable weather, expected tomorrow.

I am always asked about something I left out of the report when we hike to the glider port, so I decided to protect myself this time by providing a picture showing all posted information.

Information posted at the Mingus glider Port

When we had looked up at Mingus earlier, it appeared to be enveloped by a dust/smoke-laden cloud. However on reaching the top we found that the air was now clear and the sun was shining, the haze we had observed earlier having moved down into Verde Valley. In the following photograph, note the clear view of the trees behind the hikers as compared to the hazy view out over Verde Valley visible in the upper right portion of the picture.

Left to right (front): Daisy Williams, Colleen Maktenieks; (middle): Betty 

Wolters, Lila Wright, Anita Jackson; (rear): Becky Fowski, Miriam Sterling, 

Name Withheld

We stopped for a few minutes to chat with the campers, several of our hikers availed themselves of the public toilets located nearby and then we headed back, hiking along an old very faint road that runs northwest from the work center at the radio facilities to connect with our track where we had chosen the left form marked by two cairns and a hiking pole. We then retraced our steps until we came to the next fork; just 0.1 miles from where of Trail 536 had ended. We had intended to return by way of Trail 537, and we thought that if we followed the old logging road running to the northwest, we would surely intersect with it. A very short distance ahead we came to another old road that we (I think correctly) assumed to be Trail 538. We crossed it and continued on our way, but eventually decided by reference to our GPSs that we were traveling parallel to 537. We thereupon turned left (slightly southwest) and crossed a wash, finding Trail 537 on the other side and followed it about 0.4 miles before intersecting with Trail 536, which we followed back to our cars at the trailhead.

We hiked a total of about five miles and the elevation gain was around 600 feet.

The GPS track for this hike is shown on the included map (below).