What's Up with Ellis: Sycamore Canyon Rim Trail

Saturday, August 10, 2013

Sycamore Canyon Rim Trail

The Skyliners last hiked the Sycamore Canyon Rim Trail last spring when I was unable to participate and I had since been determined to do it myself. By sending an e-mail to the rest of the hikers, I found a few others who, having never hiked the trail before, were anxious to join me.

Donna Goodman, David Beach and the author left Cottonwood and drove north on Hwy 89A to Flagstaff, took I-40 west to Exit 167 and turned south on Garland Prairie Road which soon became a well-graded dirt road (also titled Forest Road 141). We followed this road for nine miles to the signed junction with FR 56, turned onto FR 56 and followed it for 1.9 miles to the trailhead. One could, if not paying attention, miss the trailhead. Just look for the Forest Service sign at a small parking area on the left. Our track from I-40 to the trailhead is shown in green on the below map.

Showing the route from I-40 to The Sycamore Rim Trailhead

This is a loop hike and one can choose to hike it either clockwise or counterclockwise. We chose the counterclockwise option (see trail sign at right) because that would allow us to make the 530 foot climb to the top of K A Hill while we were still fresh. We had driven 100 miles to the trailhead and it was now almost 0900. We had between 11 and 12 miles to hike before driving back home, so we wasted no time before starting our hike. We crossed the road from where we were parked, picked up the trail on the other side and headed directly up K A Hill, traveling northwest. My two hiking companions are shown in the photograph below.

David Beach and Donna Goodman – photograph by the author

As the temperature was moderate and we had good cover on our hike up the hill, we arrived at the top in good condition, but were happy to now be heading downhill.

The next two miles went quickly, as the trail led us downhill through a forested slope, and we stopped alongside a forest road for a midmorning snack. We were very near the beginning of the Pomeroy Tanks. These naturally-formed tanks, not individually named, occur in the streambed, at this point the center of a broad meadow, of Isham Spring Canyon. The tanks are strung out along the canyon as it deepens and makes its way down to Sycamore Canyon. Isham Spring Canyon continues to the Sycamore Canyon Wilderness area, just above Willow Spring and Sycamore Canyon Falls, where it joins Big Spring Canyon and becomes the west fork of upper Sycamore Canyon (also still called Big Spring Canyon), the east fork being formed by Sycamore Creek.

Showing the upper part of Sycamore Canyon (east and west forks)

The trail, hiked counterclockwise, leads one down this western fork of the canyon until it joins with the eastern fork. Shown following (see next page) is one of the first of the Pomeroy Tanks we saw on our way down Isham Spring Canyon to join Big Spring Canyon.

One of the naturally-occurring Pomeroy Tanks

Near where we first entered Isham Spring Canyon, we crossed the old Overland Trail (or Road). This is only a fragment of the system of trails used for cross-country travel before the day of the railroads. The below quote from Wikipedia would seem to refer to this section of the trail.

In 1857, the United States Postal Department extended bids for mail service along what became known as the "southern route" from Memphis, Tennessee to San Francisco, California through New Mexico and Arizona. The contract was given to the Butterfield Overland Mail Company and service ran until the Civil War started in 1861. Wells Fargo was the primary lender to the company and took control when it suffered financial difficulties in 1859. After the southern route was disbanded the Overland Mail Company moved operations to the central line between Salt Lake City and Sacramento.¹

We had not seen many flowers prior to reaching the Pomeroy Tanks. Now, however, we found several gorgeous specimens along the way.

A field of sphaeralcea globemallows at tank in Islam Spring Canyon

Insofar as I can determine, this is a parry's aster

When we reached the Sycamore Canyon wilderness and came to the turnoff to Sycamore Canyon Falls, we chose to not turn off because we really couldn't expect to find water flowing there this time of year. We did pause at a convenient overlook to observe a rock climber making his way up the canyon wall.

Rock climber making his way slowly up the sheer canyon wall just below

Sycamore Canyon Falls

leaving the rock climber behind, we continued in a southeast direction along the rim of the west fork of Sycamore Canyon (Big Spring Canyon). Except for one relatively short, fairly steep section the hiking was easy. We had great views all along the way, available by just stepping a few yards from the trail to the edge of the canyon.

When we came to Sycamore Canyon Vista, where the east and west forks join, we had a particularity good view far into the wilderness area (below). Again, the west fork is really Big Spring Canyon.

Looking into the wilderness from Sycamore Canyon Vista

This viewpoint is also accessible via a short hike from the end of FR 56, the very road that we took to the trailhead.

The trail forks at the viewpoint with one branch, the left, leading back to FR 56 and the other continuing on along the rim, now heading northeast along the canyon formed by Sycamore Creek. We very nearly came to grief here, the trail sign directing travelers to the rim trail was missing. The remaining sign just provided an arrow pointing to Sycamore Canyon Vista Trailhead. At first, we had no idea whether that trailhead might be located on the rim trail. But we did have the track on our GPS and by zooming in very close we knew, after traveling just a few yards along the right fork, that we were on the correct path.

For about two miles along Sycamore Creek from the viewpoint we were still following along the rim of a deep canyon. But it became ever more shallow along the way as the streambed rose to meet the trail. Eventually, we found ourselves hiking along a shallow stream with naturally-occurring tanks along the way. The tank shown below is covered with lily pads.

Lily pad-covered tank along upper Sycamore Creek

A little further along we came to ruins of an old cabin (left). Some other similar cabin ruins were also to be seen at the location. A nearby sign said that we were at another crossing of the Overland Road Trail. Dow Spring is located nearby and this was apparently a watering stop for those traveling the Overland Trail. Dow Spring, for a brief period, even had its own post office.

We continued along our way, the naturally-occurring tanks of upper Sycamore Creek now on our left, and passed the site of an old sawmill. A Forest Service sign erected nearby indicates that the mill operated in the early 1900s. Nothing is visible now and the site would surely not be noted by passers by were it not for the sign.

As we approached the trailhead we found that we must cross a wetland, the very upper reaches of Sycamore Creek, to reach it. We got a little mud on our shoes but didn't get our feet wet.

Back at the trailhead, we used the posted sign to review our hike.