Camp Verde Cliff Dwellings

We had trouble determining just what to call this hike. Some of us had done it before; the hike leader then had referred to it variously as Clear Creek Mesa or Clear Creek Caves. After some searching, I managed to find a map that lists the Indian Ruins we were to visit as “Camp Verde Cliff Dwellings” and decided to use that name for the report. Just be aware that you may find records of previous Skyliner hikes to the area that refer to it by other names.

Fifteen of us (Jim Manning, Debbie Dobson, Colleen Maktenieks, Kwi Johnson, Connie Woolard, Gordon Bice, Miriam Sterling, Bill Woolard, Daisy Williams, Marvin Alt, Jan PreFontaine, Donna Goodman, the author and two others) left Cottonwood, drove through Camp Verde on Hwy 260 and parked on the left side of the road at mile marker 225.4. The trail leaves the road through a small, permanently closed iron gate, constructed so as to permit easy access for hikers. There is ample parking for five or six cars.

Although well defined, the trail is apparently not official, and the attendant at the Ranger Station in Camp Verde had no information about it. From Hwy 260 the trail quickly starts a sharp 300-foot climb to the first of the Indian ruins, built into an overhang in the cliff, about 0.4 miles along the trail from Hwy 260.

Camp Verde Cliff Dwellings – 300 ft above Hwy 260 on the unnamed 

but well-defined trail.

Camp Verde Cliff Dwellings – 300 ft above Hwy 260 on the unnamed 

but well-defined trail.

The photograph below was taken while standing just in front of the cliff dwellings shown in the two preceding photographs. Note, in the above photographs, the still-solid stone and mortar walls constructed to enclose the area under the overhang for dwellings.

Hikers struggling up the slope just below the cliff dwellings shown above

From here making our way on up to the top of the mesa was just a matter of finding the most convenient way to ascend another 100 feet. When we did so we found ourselves at a narrow rock connector that separates the mesa above into two parts of unequal size. We turned to the southwest onto the smaller part of the mesa and immediately found ourselves surrounded by ancient ruins. This entire area is literally covered with ruins.

Old Indian Ruins above Camp Verde Cliff Dwellings 

Old Indian Ruins above Camp Verde Cliff Dwellings

A snack amidst the ruins – Miriam, Donna and Jim

Looking across the stone connecting bridge from the ruins to the 

larger section of the mesa

We spent some time wandering around amid the ruins, pausing for a snack and looking across the rock connector to the larger section of the mesa. In the photograph above right the connector is just out of sight to the right. This larger northeast part of the mesa visible here is about 70 feet higher than the smaller portion that contains all the Indian Ruins.

We decided to cross over to the other section of mesa and walk around its rim before climbing to the topmost point for lunch.

Meanwhile some among our party wondered how the Indians ever managed to get the water necessary to mix mortar for all the construction we had seen. Being a foolhardy person, I ventured the opinion that the answer was, “Squaw power.” One of our female hikers pointed out that there were loose rocks, just the right size for throwing, scattered all about. Not being a complete idiot, I quickly led the group across the connecting bridge to the larger section of the mesa, taking care to stay farther than a stone’s throw ahead.

Other than the spectacular 360-degree view, we didn’t find much to interest us on our exploration of this section of the mesa. I was a bit disappointed because I thought I remembered finding a nice cave just under the rim on the northwest side of the mesa. Although I climbed down to look at a couple of interesting spots this time, I was not able to find it again. In retrospect it must have been located just below the ruins we looked at on the smaller section of the mesa. In any case, I took a photograph from near the cave on that previous hike (November 2006) that I like very much. It is included below.

Photograph taken atop the mesa above Camp Verde Cliff Dwellings

– November 25, 2006

We ate lunch at the highest point on the mesa, about 3630 feet.

After lunch we made our way back down to the cars by two different routes. We all descended about 200 feet to the top of but about 300 yards northeast of, the cliff containing the dwellings shown on the first page of this report. A few of us then climbed down the steep cliff face to visit a couple of small peaks visible below while the rest of the group continued northeast along the top of the cliff in search of a less precipitate descent.

The photograph below shows the two small peaks visible from the mesa; one shows vegetation and one is completely bare. I saw no indication of anything, such as a rock layer, that would have caused the peaks to form naturally, and there was no sign of a road that might have been used by heavy equipment. I have no idea what produced them.

Taken from about half way back down on our return - this is a magnified 

view of two small, interesting peaks, one with vegetation, 

the other looking as though it had been scalped.

A somewhat closer look at the “scalped” peak is shown in the following photograph with Gordon, Connie and Donna posed on top.

Gordon, Connie and Donna posed on top of the scalped peak

By the time we had climbed and descended from the two small peaks on our way back, the rest of the party had appeared below. We all arrived back at the parking area at essentially the same time. The hike was only two miles long with a little less than a 700-foot elevation change. However, the initial climb was pretty steep and the trip back down, at least the way we returned, required some care to avoid falls.

The total hike distance was 1.9 miles, the maximum elevation was 3634 feet and the total ascent was 977 feet.

Referring to the map provided with this report (below), the part of the trail marked in red is pretty well defined. The part marked in green is not a trail at all, rather just the path I took while wandering around and descending.

Dry Beaver Creek Hike

Nineteen Skyliners (Lila Wright, Daisy Williams, John MacInerney, Linda Tovar, Miriam Sterling, Anita Jackson, Dolly Yapp, Kwi Johnson, Connie Woolard, Marvin Alt, George Everman, Bill Woolard, Colleen Maktenieks, Donna Goodman, Jim Manning, the author and three others) hiked near Dry Beaver Creek on 05 February 2011. Leaving the assembly area at the Cottonwood Safeway, we drove north on Hwy 89A, turned right on Cornville Road, proceeded through Cornville and turned left at the borrow pit just 2.3 miles past the Beaverhead Flat Road intersection. We had some discussion about the meaning of the term “borrow pit” and I looked it up:

A borrow pit, also known as a sand box, is a term used in construction and civil engineering. It describes an area where material (usually soil, gravel or sand) has been dug for use at another location. Borrow pits can be found close to many major construction projects. For example, soil might be excavated to fill an embankment for a highway, clay might be excavated for use in brick-making, gravel to be used for making concrete, etc.¹

Parking our car at the pit, we struck out on FR 9203T, a road that runs along Dry Beaver Creek. About eighty yards ahead we crossed a dry wash that appeared to also serve as a road. Looking at a map later, it appears that it indeed does serve as a road and that we could have turned up the wash and reconnected with the road we were following after about three tenths of a mile. After another two tenths of a mile (about a half mile from the parking area) we came to a fork in the road and continued straight ahead to cross Dry Beaver Creek and hike up the other side. Ignoring other possible turnoffs from the road we were on, we continued straight ahead and reached the dry creek bed after another two tenths of a mile (around seven tenths of a mile from our starting point).

Uncaring people have created a mini-dump alongside the creek where we were to cross over. We found several discarded monitors and other assorted trash that irresponsible persons had abandoned and then apparently used for target practice.

As we crossed the otherwise dry creek, we did see a shimmering pool of water several yards upstream, indicating that water had been flowing in the recent past. And then further upstream, we came to a larger pool of water near a bend in the streambed. Upstream from there, water was flowing; downstream the creek was dry.

Glimmering pool of water at a creek bend – below here the streambed is dry

We were now heading north on the east side of the creek, which at this point flows almost directly south, but soon turns so that we would be traveling upstream in an easterly direction. After traveling about three-tenths of a mile along the east bank of the mostly dry streambed we came to an almost ninety degree bend, so that the upstream direction was now to the east. From the bend as far as we went upstream there was water in the stream. We crossed over here to continue upstream along the north side of the generally west flowing stream.

As we continued in a generally east (slightly north) direction, the creek, now at times some two tenths of a mile to the south of our track, turned again so that it was now flowing from the north for a short distance, and we crossed it again about 1.1 miles from the bend where we had first crossed at the bend.

Below the bend – the streambed is dry

Water covers the bed upstream

After crossing the creek again we traveled generally north parallel to the creek and then climbed sharply to the top of a hill. From there we could see that Dry Beaver Creek curved back around the promontory we were standing on and once again was flowing from east to west. We followed the spine of the ridge diverging slightly from the path of the stream and climbed higher until we were almost two hundred feet above the point where we had last crossed the creek.

Our track from the borrow point to this point is shown on the attached map in red. Since we returned by a slightly different path, I have shown the return in yellow. The view from the ridge was quite good; we could see the Red Rock Country to the north, House Mountain to the northwest and Mingus Mountain almost directly west.

Looking toward Red Rock Country to the north

House Mountain to the northwest

Mingus Mountain in the distance to the west

On our way to the top of the ridge we had noted a trail snaking up the slope of the next hill south of us, and then saw a group of riders following it. This trail appeared to lead back toward our last crossing of the creek and we decided to take it back to there. It turned out to be an excellent trail, a much easier route back down to the creek. We stopped for lunch at the crossing before continuing our journey

After lunch we continued back down the creek, retracing the route we had followed on the way up until we arrived at the bend where the creek turned to flow directly south and where we had taken the group picture. From that point we followed a road paralleling the creek on the west side of the creek rather than crossing back over to go back down the east side.

Somewhere along the way Colleen had collected a piece of driftwood and stuck it in her pack for the trip home. Seeing a great opportunity one of the other hikers sneaked up behind her and suspended a beer can from her prize.

Colleen brought an extra ration of beer in case of extreme thirst 

- see it hanging on her left antler.

The total distance of the hike was 5.5 miles, according to my GPS track, and the difference in elevation was around 365 feet.

This was a most pleasant hike with very little climbing, good trails, great views and no bushwhacking; such as we experienced on our recent Mingus slope hike.

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

1 From: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Borrow_pit

Mingus Slope Loop Hike

On Saturday 22 January 2011 fourteen Skyliners hiked the Mingus Slope Loop. This is an eight and six-tenths mile hike and can be described as follows: Park at the intersection of FR 493 and an off-road vehicle trail (I call it Oak Wash Cutoff) two and eight-tenths miles up FR 493 from the junction of Hwy 89A and Mingus Ave. Just follow Mingus and it will turn into FR 493. From the parking area, follow the off-road vehicle trail southeast across Oak Wash. Shortly after crossing Oak Wash the off-road vehicle trail ends at a road that runs from FR 493 past Ox Bow Spring to Chuckwalla Road. Turn left on this road and follow it (going east) for about two-tenths of a mile to intersect with Chuckwalla Road.

The distance from FR 493 to Chuckwalla Road is about six-tenths of a mile. Turn right on Chuckwalla Road and follow it up the mountain for one half mile to where the road passes through a gate in a wire fence and then forks. The right fork, continuing on up the mountain, is Chuckwalla.

The left fork, actually straight ahead, is old FR 355 and it ends just past the green water tank visible ahead. We made a short side trip here to follow old FR 355 past the old green water tank to where the road ends at the edge of the ridge and looked down on the housing project at the present end of Quail Springs Ranch Road. Old FR 355 at one time continued on down the hill and apparently joined Quail Springs Ranch Road. However, the part of the old road running down the hill in that direction is now so badly rutted that it is not suitable even for four-wheel drive or off-road vehicles. I have hiked it in the past and found that it ended at a gate with a sign saying “No Trespassing - Private Property.”

Returning to Chuckwalla, we continued up the mountain for another one and four-tenths miles, to the second of two sharp left turns Here one slides under a barbed wire fence on the right, ending up on a faint, largely overgrown trail. Follow this trail for approximately one mile. It mostly follows an old aboveground waterline that was used to bring water down the mountain for stock and wildlife. I call it Waterline Trail.

Waterline Trail ends at an old mining site from which a road leads rather steeply uphill for about one-half mile to connect with another old road, referred to only as “Jeep Trail” on all the maps I have found. This road runs south of and parallel to Allen Spring Road. Turn right (north) on the road and follow it for one and four-tenths miles to connect with FR 493 on top of a ridge.

Note that before you reach FR 493, there are two roads leading to the right. Don’t take either of them. The first leads down the mountain to end at a stock watering area; the second ends at an old mine. The Jeep Trail itself ends at FR 493 near Copper Chief Mine. From there follow FR 493 back down the mountain, going between Copper Chief and Iron King Mines, for three and two-tenths miles to return to the junction of FR 493 and Oak Wash Cutoff where the hike began.

We had some discussion during the hike about Oak Wash and just where (and how many times) we crossed it, so I looked it up using the National Geographic Topographic Overlay in Google Earth. As it turns out we crossed Oak Wash on the first section of the hike (Oak Wash Cutoff) and did not cross it again until we were on the Jeep Trail. The wash we crossed on Waterline Trail that I thought was Oak Wash is just a side wash draining into Oak Wash. For clarification I have sketched Oak Wash on the accompanying map in yellow where it runs through our hike path. It originates near the top of Mingus just north of the Mingus Recreation Area.

I took a photograph of the sign at the old green water tank, which discloses the tank’s origin. The sign indicates that it was installed by “Quail Unlimited” and the Prescott National Forest.

The sign says: BLACK HILLS WATER SYSTEM. This water distribution system is

a cooperative project for the benefit of wildlife and livestock by the Quail 

Unlimited, Verde Valley Chapter, Laurel Leaf Branch, and the Prescott

National Forest. This is the only reliable source in the area.

At one point, as it makes its way up the mountain, Chuckwalla Road passes very close to the rim above the private housing development at Quail Spring. When we reached that point, we followed a social trail made by the residents from the road over to the rim for another view of the houses and building sites below. Finally, about one and nine-tenths miles from where we first entered Chuckwalla Road we came to the start of Waterline Trail and stopped for a snack and a short rest before beginning the next, the most arduous, section of the hike.

Waterline Trail at first follows a fairly open path along the old waterline, then leaves it at the bottom of a small wash only to reconnect with it again after leaving the wash. The trail then follows the pipeline up the ridge through some pretty nasty stands of Catclaw before leaving it to drop rather steeply down into another, larger, wash. I had always mistakenly thought this to be Oak Wash and so told the other hikers; however, I have since discovered that it is only a side wash that drains into Oak Wash below. Oak Wash itself runs on up the mountain roughly parallel and just to the north of our path along Waterline Trail.

On reaching the old mine site at the end of Waterline Trail, we stopped for lunch, a well-deserved rest and, for me, a short nap. We then continued on our way following the old road that led up the mountain from the mine, climbing about 400 feet in half a mile.

On reaching the Jeep Trail at the end of the old mine road we turned right, northeast at first then generally north, and followed it until it ended at FR 493 near Copper Chief Mine. The Jeep Trail runs parallel to and just down the slope from Allen Spring Road (FR 413). Along the way we passed a road that runs back down the mountain and ends at a stock watering area near Oak Wash. We paused at the fork for a group photograph.

Left to right (standing): Gordon Bice, Bill Woolard, Connie Woolard, Linda 

Tovar, Debbie Dobson, John MacInerney, Lila Wright, Miriam Sterling, 

Name Withheld, Colleen Maktenieks; Kneeling: Donna Goodman, 

Daisy Williams, Jan PreFontaine – Photograph by the author

Continuing along the Jeep Trail we passed Grand Island Mine. This is where the second road leads off from the Jeep Trail; it runs into this mining area described as “A former underground Cu-Au mine on 14 claims.”¹ Just about two tenths of a mile beyond this mine, the jeep Trail ended at FR 493. At this point, Copper Chief Mine was to our right and Iron King was visible straight ahead on the next slope. Our trail down the mountain on FR 493 would lead us down the gulch between these two mines.

When we arrived back at the starting point for our hike, my GPS disclosed that we had hiked nine and two-tenths miles and that the elevation gain had been almost 1800 feet. We had actually climbed 2030 feet counting miscellaneous ascents and descents along the way. My total recorded hiking distance was nine and two-tenths miles because of several side trips, which I snipped from the hike path shown in the accompanying map (below) so as to obtain a more accurate measurement for the trail. Old FR 355 still shows clearly.

The individual sections of this hike are displayed as follows:

1. Oak Wash Cutoff – Green
2. Chuckwalla Road – Blue
3. Waterline Trail – Dark Green
4. Old Mine Road – Dark Cyan
5. Jeep Trail – Red
6. FR 493 – Dark Blue

The Yellow track is Oak Wash and the short Black section is Old FR 355.

1 From: http://www.mindat.org/loc-48598.html

Hike to Conger and Monarch Mines

We hiked to Conger and Monarch Mines on January 15, 2011. There were seventeen of us and we traveled in five vehicles. Going toward Camp Verde on Hwy 260, we turned right onto FR 361 directly across Hwy 260 from the Thousand Trails Road exit. We followed FR 361 for 4.3 miles (GPS mileage) before parking where FR 361 turns to follow along the foothills of the Black Hills and connects eventually with Cherry Road to the south.

At this point, the right fork of the road leads up the mountain to Conger Mine. Still another road, now blocked off by the Forest Service, once led northwest from here toward Monarch Mine. Donning our packs we continued straight ahead following the road that leads southwest to Conger Mine. (NOTE: On various maps, I have found all of these roads to be marked as FR 361. However, the most logical assumption is that the road running south, presently marked with a sign to identify it as such, is the real FR 361). About 0.2 miles from where we parked, another old mining road forks off to the northwest. This road after about 0.2 miles connects with the road to Monarch Mine beyond the closed off section, thus providing access to the mine.

Having decided to visit Conger first, we continued straight ahead and passed another fork in the road about 0.6 miles from where we parked. This road leads northeast from the Conger Mine Road, but then turns around the shoulder of the mountain and leads southwest to Etta Mine, which we visited in March of last year. Again we continued straight ahead on the road to Conger.

The first sign of the mine to come into view as one approaches, is a metal scaffolding of some sort, barely visible on the right opposite the hikers shown in the road ahead (photograph below). It appears to have been some sort of observation tower; however all the planking has long since been removed leaving only a bare steel skeleton. Other photographs, some taken during a January 6, 2011 visit are shown following.

First view of Conger Mine

General view of Conger Mine

Old ore hopper

Another view of  ore hopper

After everyone had thoroughly inspected the sight to make sure the miners had left no gold behind, we continued on up the old mine road for a short distance and then turned left on another road that follows the wash up a canyon. This branch road (shown below) leads up the canyon for something over a hundred yards to the mouth of a tunnel that contains a spring.

Side road leading up a canyon to a tunnel containing a spring

The tunnel runs about thirty feet straight into the mountainside.

Mine tunnel with spring inside at Conger Mine

Near the mouth of the tunnel when we visited on January 6^th, we found ice stalagmites formed by water dipping from the roof. Rather than being sharp on top they had grown with rounded heads, almost in the shape of incandescent light bulbs.

Ice stalagmites

Ice stalagmites

A spring located at the rear end of the tunnel provides water that was probably used in the gold mining process. This assumption is supported by a graded flat area several yards downhill from the tunnel where some pieces of an old installed piping system can still be seen along with scraps of other miscellaneous pieces of equipment (parts of old heaters, etc) that must have been used in the process.

Now, however, the water is captured within the old tunnel and carried by a plastic pipe down the canyon for use by cattle being grazed in the area.

To the right of the tunnel mouth and about forty yards further up the canyon, is located another spring, again we thought previously used for processing but now supplying water that is piped downhill for grazing cattle.

The following information about Conger Mine is from mindat.org - the mineral and locality database:¹

The site showed “A surface and underground Cu-Au occurrence” with “Mineralization (in) a vein deposit with ore in lenses and pods” and the “Ore concentration was oxidation at near surface.” The minerals listed by the source quoted are “Gold” and “Pyrite.”

After exploring the tunnel and the up canyon spring we returned to the main Conger Mine Road and proceeded on up the mountain until it ended at an excellent viewpoint. We paused here for lunch and a group photograph (below).

Left to right: Daisy Williams (sitting), Miriam Sterling, the author, Gordon 

Bice, Donna Goodman, Anita Jackson, Dolly Yapp (crouching), Name 

Withheld (blurry blue spot), Lila Wright (hand extending over the 

San Francisco Peaks), Marvin Alt, Connie Woolard (kneeling), Bill Woolard 

(only his nose is visible at Connie’s left shoulder), Linda Tovar, John 

McInerney, Colleen Maktenieks, George Everman (squatting), Jim Manning

George had us carefully grouped in the above photograph to show the San Francisco Peaks, visible under Lila’s outstretched arm. Despite George’s best efforts Bill Woolard, managed to hide in the shade with only the very tip of his nose showing.

Below is a zoom shot of the peaks taken from the same spot during the January 6^th scouting hike.

The San Francisco Peaks - photograph taken 6 January 2011

We had climbed about a thousand feet to reach the end of the road above Conger Mine. This distance, of course, included the short hike to the mine tunnel and the spring on up canyon from there.

Following lunch we hiked back the way we had come past Conger mine to the road, located just 0.2 miles above our parking area, which leads to Monarch Mine. This short road runs along the face of the mountain for just 0.2 miles before connecting with the road blocked off at the parking area. At the point where the roads run together a tank has been dug into the old roadbed to prevent vehicular traffic on the closed off section leading back to the parking area. Additionally, a wire gate with no easy way to open it provided, is strung across the road.

From here we headed on up the old road to Monarch Mine, which lies about 0.4 miles ahead. Along the way we investigated mining claim stakes that seem to indicate that the claim is divided into Monarch Mine 1 and Monarch Mine 2. Specifically we found a location that was marked as being the northeast corner of Monarch Mine 1 and the southeast corner of Monarch Mine 2.

The boundary line between Monarch Mine #1 and Monarch Mine #2 

is just to the right of this sign

Mining activity seems to have been spread out over a fairly extensive area and we found no remaining signs of any tunnels or shafts. However, as indicated later in this report, the mindat.org site identifies Monarch as an “underground” mine. Any shafts or tunnels must have been filled in. Below are a few miscellaneous photographs taken at Monarch.

Gordon checking survey markers 

Monarch Mine #1 - Gordon, Jim, Anita

And just in case the survey markers do not adequately identify the mine, someone had helpfully posted a Monarch Mine sign at the dividing line between the two mines.

The following information about Monarch Mine can be found at mindat.org - the mineral and locality database:²

The minedat.org site says that Monarch was an underground mine and that mineralization consisted “of coarsely crystalline, white quartz in lenses several feet in maximum width and carrying bright yellow gold in wholly irregular pockets and small shoots” and that “The mine was developed to 200 feet.” The minerals listed by minedat.org are “Chalcopyrite, Epidote, Galena, Gold, Hematite, Limonite, Quartz (var: Milky Quartz).” After rambling around the site for a while and not finding anything else of significance we headed back down the road to our vehicles.

On arriving at the place where the tank had been dug into the road to prevent vehicular traffic, we doffed our packs, slithered under the wire and proceeded along the old closed off section of road to return to our cars.

The entire hike was about 4.3 miles long and the elevation gain was a little over a thousand feet. The route we took is shown on the included map (below). The green track shows the path to Conger Mine from the parking lot, the blue track shows the short cut we took to intersect with the road to Monarch Mine, and the red track shows the way directly from the parking area to Monarch Mine. The dark gray track shows the route to Etta Mine, not visited during this hike.

1 http://www.mindat.org/loc-31142.html

2 http://www.mindat.org/loc-31142.html

Hike to Verde Combination Shaft Mine

This report describes a January 8, 2011 hike by the Skyliners up Mescal Gulch from Yavapai College to Verde Combination Copper Company’s Verde Combination Shaft Mine.

We parked just off Black Hills Drive at the eastern entrance to the Yavapai College campus. We then hiked east on W Black Hills Drive until the road makes a sharp turn to the left and becomes Haskell Springs Road. We continued on Haskell Springs Road, going first south and then north for about one half (¹/₂) mile before turning right onto Abbey Road S. After jogging right for a few yards, Abbey Road S leads generally northeast, first with a paved road and then becoming a privately maintained gravel road for about one half (¹/₂) mile to an Architect’s office. (NOTE: The structure housing the Architect’s office also appears to house a massage business and to be utilized as a private dwelling). Going on past the Architect’s office for a few yards one comes to a driveway leading off to the left and providing access to utilities (water tank, scrap storage, etc). The driveway ends just short of a fence with a ladder stile¹ installed for pedestrian use.

Just as one approaches the Architect’s office, there is a small wire gate in the fence to allow pedestrian access and we took this route on our way in. That turned out to be a mistake, because we crossed a corner of private property and then had to cross another fence to get back to public property.

About seventy yards straight ahead from the stile lies a well-trodden cow path that leads to the northeast, straight up Mescal Gulch. The photograph here (right) shows hikers crossing the stile on our way back. The end of the driveway into the utility/scrap area is shown just ahead of the hiker in front; a bit of the water tank is visible in the left edge of the photograph.

By the time we had all navigated the two fence crossings that we did on the way in, some hikers needed a potty break and headed off in differing directions looking for suitable spots. After that it proved difficult to get our sixteen hikers all sorted out and make sure they all headed in the same direction. Lila was bringing up the rear and we were trying to make sure that we knew how many hikers were ahead and that no one had headed up the wrong gulch. Finally, Jim went back as far as the fence to make sure no one was left along the way and Lila and I spaced ourselves out, keeping in sight to make sure we had accounted for everyone. We have found that the trick is not to try and keep everyone together, but to just know where they are at any one time. This time, that effort was proving to be quite difficult.

We did, however, finally manage to assure ourselves that we were all headed up Mescal Gulch.

Hikers heading up Mescal Gulch

After following the cow path up Mescal Gulch for about one-third of a mile from the stile, we came upon what appeared to be a shrine of some sort. It is a carefully built circular edifice with stone walls about two feet high. The floor is formed of stones laid out in a circular pattern. There are two openings in the circular wall, about 70 degrees apart, with an indentation in the wall, possible meant for an Alter, between them. Trees overhang the area and a variety of objects (feathers, a plastic sphere, etc) were hanging from the branches at the time of this visit.

Shrine (?) located in Mescal Gulch about a third of a mile above the 

end of Abbey Road S

The trip up the gulch is a matter of following existing cow trails on either side of the wash and sometimes rock hopping along the bottom of the wash itself. Most of the way, at least one side of the wash will present a relatively flat area along which cows have made trails. However, such good luck often comes to an end when a sheer canyon wall ahead blocks the way. Then one descends into the wash and looks for the next open space ahead. During this hike, we often found ourselves trudging through snowdrifts still lingering in shaded areas. We made no attempt to keep the group close together, just making sure that we did not inadvertently leave anyone behind.

I was the only member of the group who had hiked this way before and my memory proved to be somewhat spotty. One place I particularly wanted to show the rest of the group was Little Ranch Spring and I never did find the exact location this time. When I came this way before, it was in the middle of a dry summer and the fresh water springing forth and cascading down the dry canyon bed for a distance was hard to miss. This time, on the other hand, just after a particularly wet month, water was flowing from numerous wet-weather sources in the canyon above Little Ranch Spring. I could only approximate the location.

To make matters even worse, I did not at first recognize the area when we arrived at the road leading to Verde Combination Shaft. However, arrive we did, and just in time for lunch. A few hardy souls traveled on up the Gulch for a short distance and admired a waterfall.

After eating, twelve of the group decided to take an old road up the south side of the Gulch to look at Verde Combination Shaft Mine.

We knew little about this site, only that it is a big, deep, dangerous hole in the ground that should have been closed long ago. I did a quick online search and discovered that, according to mindat.org, the site had “a 1,300 foot deep shaft and older shafts at the South end at 640 feet and 500 feet deep” and the minerals list included “'Chlorite Group', Muscovite (var: Sericite), Pyrite.”²

Unprotected open shaft at Verde Combination Shaft Mine in Mescal Gulch

After exploring the old mine, we gathered back where we had eaten lunch for a group photograph. The dog shown in the photograph does not mean that we are now taking dogs on hikes. This particular mutt is from Candlewood Retreat Bed and Breakfast, located across the wash behind the Architect’s office at the end of Abbey Road S. Apparently deciding that it was his duty to insure our safety, he volunteered to lead us on our hike, and would not be dissuaded. As a matter of fact he seemed to think we needed to be escorted all the way back to our cars and was cheerfully leading the way down Abbey Road S when his owners arrived to retrieve him.

Left to right - (back row): Daisy Williams, Marvin Alt, Colleen Maktenieks, 

Lila Wright, Connie Woolard, Anita Jackson, Name Withheld, Gordon Bice, 

Unable to contact, Donna Goodman, Miriam Sterling, Jim Manning; (front 

row): Dolly Yapp, Unable to contact, Jan Prefontaine. The four-legged hiker 

in front of the group was our volunteer trail guide – Photograph by the 

author

You may note on the attached map a loop in the track near the beginning/end of our hike. That is because some of us including the GPS carrier returned by a slightly different route. From the bend in Haskell Springs Road, we continued straight ahead along an old roadway and came out behind the vineyard at the college. This route is actually no longer than the way we hiked in using Black Hills Drive.

My GPS file shows that we hiked eight miles and that the elevation change was just under 1100 feet. The track is shown on the included map (below).

1 From: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stile

2 From: http://www.mindat.org/loc-40917.html