GHOTM February 22 (Sunday), Hells Canyon Wilderness

UPDATE 1/4/09

The desert is looking great with the recent rains-green abounds! The mountains along the route are quite impressive.

Where we need to leave the cars is in the Regional Park, and they want $5 / car. The first park entrance is said to be open by 7 so we can decide who's going to leave cars in the park and they will have to get a sticker, or risk the ticket.

The GPS software I've been playing with changes its mind on distance. If a couple miles more or less matters, I'd plan on as much as 12 miles. We'll only know for sure after we walk and track the actual hike, rather than scribing the line on the computer map.

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The polls are closed, sorry if your date didn't prevail; there is no greater tyanny than democracy. Maybe some of the Saturday workers can make this one!

Those coming from the east, let's meet at Denny's parking lot on the SW corner of Bell and I-17. I'm open to suggestions for those of you living in East LA; if there is a better meet-up spot speak up, no sense in you driving east to get west.

The Hells Canyon Wilderness is located northwest of Lake Pleasant. If you've driven past Castle Hot Springs, the Wilderness is the pile of mountains to the west. This hike celebrates the BLM acquisition of the last private land in-holding in this designated Wilderness Area. We may have some of the BLM people who made this happen with us.

This will be a through-hike so we'll need car tricks. We'll leave a car or two on the east end where Garfias Wash flows into Lake Pleasant, then pile into others and drive around to the west end. Regular street cars are OK for the east end, the west end takes high clearance.

We need a recommendation for Mexican food place in the northwest end of town for afterwards. I'm fine with Te-Wa's recommendation but open to local preference.

http://www.arizonahikers.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=7609

The route is down Garfias Wash from North Castle Hot Srings Road almost to Lake Pleasant. If you go to Google Maps , click "Terrain," and search for "Garfias Mountain" the wash is just north (up) from there and this will start to make sense. Scroll around and you'll see the route down the wash.

And thanks to Todd, a TOPO map is in the gallery:
http://www.arizonahikers.com/forum/modules.php?set_albumName=albwb11&id=Hell_s_Canyon_Hike_001&op=modload&name=gallery&file=index&include=view_photo.php

Come on everybody, this is not quite an amble but it's not a butt kicker either, and it's on the west side!

Suz · Joined: 27 Nov 2005 Posts: 3186

Suz · Joined: 27 Nov 2005 Posts: 3186

It works, it works! Beer

Reader's Digest version of the accident.....I was hopping and skipping over rocks and water to quickly set up my camera on the tripod for a group shot when my camera slipped out of my hand and landed with a thump on the rocks and in a pool of water. I quickly grabbed it, tried to shake off the water and take a picture. I got a zap and an error code. I pulled the card and battery and passed it to Ambika. Al had an emergency towel (?) in his pack and handed it to Ambika. She started drying everything. I'm sure it was their quick action that made a major difference.

Thank you to my camera rescue team (Ambika and Al) and all the advice of everyone to wait a few days before trying it out. It works!! Oh my heck, who would have thought!!!??!!!

Now I can focus on that gold again.

wanderingsoul · Joined: 19 Jul 2004 Posts: 2285 Location: Gilbert AZ

We were all looking at the rocks, they were so pretty. Didn't know Dave was a geology expert ?? So that is why he didn't come back with us.... hmmm Dave since you've been lost in Hell's Canyon for a few days Laughing

do you know what those beautiful turquoise green rocks were ... they were just so beautiful. Thought the rocks had copper in them but I don't know. And the purple color caught me totally off guard. I've never seen such a color rock. Brings to mind the song America with the Purple Mountains majesty reference.

Haven't worked on the few pics I took but will get to them in next day or so. Just from my point and click so nothing marvelous. Haven't had time to look at any since Suz first posting.
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Wanderingsoul (Michelle)

Positive Thinking Is the Spark that Makes Dreams Happen~~~Unknown

joelh · Joined: 01 Aug 2007 Posts: 7 Location: phoenix

Suz- Sorry about my disappearing... On my way to Valley Luna I got a call from my mom reminding me of some prior commitments to my parents that evening that I had forgotten about, so I had to high-tail over there. Of course, I had not bothered to get anybody's phone number, thus I had no way to call. Sad

I'm sure I'll be out hiking with ya'll somertime in the future. It was a blast!
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"Arizona is the land of contrast. You can go from Minnesota to California in a matter of minutes, then have Mexican food that night." -Jack Dykinga

azhiker96 · Joined: 05 Jan 2003 Posts: 1419

My pictures are up in a nested album. The colors in the rocks were amazing and I don't think I did them justice. They are more vibrant in my memory than my pictures. Suz, I'm glad you're camera is alright. That was quite a scare!
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It is far better to grasp the Universe as it really is than to persist in delusion, however satisfying and reassuring. -- Carl Sagan

Suz · Joined: 27 Nov 2005 Posts: 3186

George you got some great snake shots!

Shawn · Posted: 2/25/2009, 10:29 am Post subject:

Great news on the camera! Hallelejah, the prodigal walkie talkie and camera have returned. Don't we need to kill a fat calf and change some water to wine now?
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The bear went over the mountain to see what he could see.

Al_HikesAZ · Joined: 21 Jun 2005 Posts: 263 Location: Scottsdale, AZ

windymesa · Joined: 06 Jan 2004 Posts: 76 Location: Peoria, Arizona

A sad day for Burro lovers: 11 dead burros found Monday just south of the Hells Canyon Wilderness area, just north of Morgan City Wash, and just to the west of the Park road we all took north of 74 to get to Garfias Wash. Probably shot last week.

http://www.abc15.com/content/news/phoenixmetro/story/11-wild-burros-shot-to-death-northeast-of-Phoenix/YNF0Qp4BekGVHBLBdVC06w.cspx

Suz · Joined: 27 Nov 2005 Posts: 3186

Suz · Joined: 27 Nov 2005 Posts: 3186

Al_HikesAZ · Joined: 21 Jun 2005 Posts: 263 Location: Scottsdale, AZ

wanderingsoul · Joined: 19 Jul 2004 Posts: 2285 Location: Gilbert AZ

Now I understand your PM Suz.
Very Sad about the burro's. Not a good thing Crying or Very sad

We all got so excited and stopped the cars just to get some pics of them up on the hills.
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Wanderingsoul (Michelle)

Positive Thinking Is the Spark that Makes Dreams Happen~~~Unknown

oliverr99 · Joined: 04 Jul 2006 Posts: 632 Location: Glendale

OHHH, I got your Pm Suz before I read this. Understandable. That really is sad. Poor burros.
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Anne
"Don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened" -- Dr. Seuss

windymesa · Joined: 06 Jan 2004 Posts: 76 Location: Peoria, Arizona

No burro killers found yet.... Crying or Very sad

but word on the street is that money is pouring in from all over the nation to up the reward. So if you want to collect the reward, start hanging out in bars that burro killers like to hang out in, buy everybody drinks, get'em drunk, and their lips will loosen up. I would start in the burger and beer joint near Pleasant Valley Road and 74, and the bars in Wickenburg. It's not as lucrative as picking up gold nuggets in Hells Canyon, but worth a go. Smile