Reverse Flatiron

 

The Flatiron is a notable mountainous formation in the Superstition Mountains east of Phoenix. It towers over the popular Lost Dutchman State Park. The most popular way to the top, Siphon Draw, is noted for being a tough, but fun, hike. Going up the backside of the mountain, however, adds a whole new dimension. You start in Tonto National Forest and end in Lost Dutchman Park. It's a vertical bushwhack up the side of the mountain and over a couple really treacherous scree shoots. It's a blast and the views of Four Peaks and the surrounding wilderness are breathtaking. Click on these panoramic shots for full views.

Black Mesa to Dutchman Trail

Last week my wife and I went for a quick backpacking trip. She hadn't seen Weaver's Needle up close, so we did the Black Mesa/Dutchman Trail loop in the Superstition Mountains east of Phoenix. We didn't take many pictures, but here are a couple of night photos. The lens glare is all natural aftermarket funkiness. I need a new lens!

Canyon Lake/Boulder Canyon Trail

Canyon Lake is a man-made lake contained in what used to be a canyon west of Phoenix. It's not hard to get there. Just follow the Apache Trail (or AZ Route 88) past Apache Junction and past Lost Dutchman State Park. It's a windy road that snakes through some of the most beautiful country in the Phoenix area.

Across the street from Canyon Lake is the trailhead for the Boulder Canyon trail. The trail leads you into the Superstition Wilderness and all the amazing things those mountains have to offer. Here are some photos from the Boulder Canyon Trail.



The large, tan rock formation that dominates the photograph is called Battleship Mountain. The formation that looks like a mountain split in two behind and to the left of Battleship Mountain is The Narrows. It's at the end of LeBarge Canyon and the subject of my previous blog post!

Ever wonder why you see these colors and patterns on Southwestern pottery or art? Wait until sundown and look at the horizon.

The Narrows

The Superstition Mountains east of Phoenix are incredible. From the spectacular views awarded to those who climb up Siphon Draw to the Flatiron, to the ubiquitous Weaver's Needle, to the many petroglyphs near Hieroglyphics Spring, the Superstitions are full of amazing natural wonders that in other states would make National Park status in a second. In fact, the Supes are part of Tonto National Forest and the much of the mountains are contained in the Superstition National Wilderness.

Last week me and a friend went for a quick overnight trip into the Superstitions. We originally intended to go to Reavis Falls, but the road was closed so we opted for the Boulder Canyon Trail. Our plans were pretty tentative - just hike in and find a good spot to camp - but we ran into a couple of helpful older gentlemen who steered us to a place called "The Narrows." The Narrows is really an amazing canyon cut through a mountain in an "S" shape. To get there, you need to slog up a wash for a couple miles. Jumping from boulder to boulder with a heavy pack puts your thighs muscles and balance to the test, but it would be a realistic, if ambitious, day hike. Difficulty aside, the reward is amazing. There's a big pool with a little beach in a beautiful canyon. We pitched our tents in a corner of the canyon under the shelter of a tree. Here are some photos I took around the The Narrows. More here on Flickr.

The color contrasts are caused by algae and leaf debris in the water.

You can see the scale of the canyon walls here. Look the lower left-hand third of the photo. That really little looking fellow is my buddy Chris. Those walls are really high.

Campfire Photography

I almost always lug a digital SLR camera with me when I go backpacking. I'll sacrifice other items, like a pillow, extra clothes, or a backpacking chair, to have my camera with me. I'm not a terrific photographer and my camera isn't anything to write home about; it's an older Nikon D50 with an aftermarket Tamron lens, best a grad student stipend can buy. There's probably a credit-card-thin point and shoot camera out there capable of producing great results in the right hands, but I like the control I get with the SLR.

I spent a couple of days out in the desert this week and I'll share some more photos from that hike later, but first I thought I'd put up some campfire shots. I love the light you get from a campfire and I've taken night photos by campfire light before, but the other night I decided to turn the camera on the fire itself. I thought some of the results were worth sharing, so here they are...





P.S. - If you click on the photos it will take you to Flickr. Click on the little magnifying glass icon on the upper right between the "Newer" and "Older" arrows. That will take you to the lightbox. Kind of a lot of work, I know, but these look better viewed there!

Monarchs of the Superstitions

As the weather gets colder, millions of monarch butterflies begin a southward migration. You may have heard of it; it's one of North America's most famous animal migrations. Throughout October, monarchs east of the Rocky Mountains head south into Mexico, eventually gathering in huge numbers in the high elevation pine forests in Michoacán. Monarchs west of the Rockies head south and overwinter in various warm locations. I was happy, though not surprised, to see many monarchs hanging out in the turpentine bushes along the trails of the Superstition Mountains. They weren't alone, either. Many bushes and wildflowers were in bloom and alive with bees, butterflies, beetles and moths. I spent most of time photographing the transient monarchs, but of course I had to take a couple shots of Weaver's Needle and a curious hawk.





I think I attracted this hawk when I scared up a dozen or so Gambel's Quail along the trail. It watched me from atop a saguaro for a bit, then hovered around me for a while, possibly hoping I'd scare up a quick meal.

Weaver's Needle is in the upper right.

I ran across a few petroglyphs too. Always a neat find.

Wildflower Desert

It's been a very rainy winter so far in Arizona and they're predicting more rain for this coming weekend. Winter rain means great wild flower blooms in the spring. This issue of Arizona Highways from February 1963 has a photograph by Chuck Abbott on the cover showing spring blooms near Wilcox, AZ.

I'm looking forward to a great wildflower spring this year. Here are some photos I took at Lost Dutchman State Park (R.I.P.) a couple of years ago during another great spring bloom.

Arizona Plans to Close State Parks

I really, really don't want to get political on this blog, but I just read an article that has me really steaming. According to AZ Central, the Arizona government is proposing the closure of 13 state parks, including Lost Dutchman (pictured above), Red Rock, and Picacho Peak. This is outrageous. From what I've read, the state parks don't take much tax money, if any. They rely on entrance fees and other fees to support them, but the state earns revenue from the parks.

Here's what the article states on AZ Central:

       "Roper Lake, Tombstone Courthouse, Tubac Presidio and Yuma Territorial Prison would follow on March 29.
       The closures would conclude on June 3 with the shuttering of Alamo Lake, Lost Dutchman, Picacho Peak, Red Rock and Tonto Natural Bridge state parks.
       The state parks selected to remain open are the ones that generate revenue: Buckskin Mountain, Catalina, Cattail Cove, Dead Horse Ranch, Fool Hollow Lake, Kartchner Caverns, Lake Havasu, Patagonia Lake, and Slide Rock.
       But even those will close unless the parks system gets a $3 million infusion of cash before the end of the fiscal year, said Renee Bahl, the parks director."

Many residents of Arizona view living in our state as a tax haven from California, the northeast, or other parts of the country where citizens are willing to fund their state. Many more view Arizona as their own personal retirement community. In this economic downturn, Arizonans are suddenly finding out that they need to chip in and contribute to the state community, but they don't want to. Educate children? Fund parks? No way! They left California/Massachusetts/Illinois/etc. to get out of doing just those sorts of things! For example, Mesa, Arizona has half a million people and their median state property tax contribution is only about a thousand bucks and they have no city property taxes. Yet, when the governor proposed a 1 cent temporary sales tax increase, it was voted down.

If you want to read something really asinine, read the comments on the AZ Central article. I'm sure there's probably some thoughtful comments in there, but the majority are stupid at best, racist at worst. Mexican immigrants are the ultimate Arizonan scapegoat (or red herring); people just love to harp on "illegals" and blame them for everything, even though immigration is just one small part in a great, big, complicated socioeconomic system. Not very thoughtful, but probably easier than actually knowing things. It's so stupid that if it wasn't so sad it would be hilarious.

For more information or to find out what we can try to do to stop this, check out the Arizona Parks Foundation website. I'd also like to end by pointing out that there are many, many great people in Arizona who care about our community and value our natural resources. It is by no means an intellectual void. Unfortunately, the dumbest voices are often the loudest voices, and the loudest voices get heard.

Tourists + Superstition Mountains = Newspaper Articles

A tourist from Michigan spent a lonely night in the Superstition Mountains the other day. The local Arizona newspaper reports:

"According to the Pinal County Sheriff's Office, Ian Sredersas went on a hike in the Lost Dutchman State Park and after getting in area beyond his skill level he became stranded.


He was able to get a cell signal and call 911 before his phone died Tuesday evening around 6 p.m.


PCSO activated a search and rescue posse to locate Sredersas, 20, from Michigan.


Crews located him around 10 p.m and assisted additional personnel for a rescue. Around 3 a.m. Sredersas was safely rescued."

One of the trickiest things about Arizona is how quickly you can get from the urban areas to pretty remote wilderness. It's not like other parts of the country with contiguous towns. Think of the populated areas more like islands. The Arizona Archipelago. Flagstaff, Sedona/Camp Verde, Payson, Phoenix & Maricopa, Casa Grande, Tucson, Yuma and a bunch of really little towns. What's in between? Desert, mountains, forests, canyons.

So I guess what I'm saying is that out-of-towners don't really understand that just because the Superstition Mountains are near Phoenix and featured in their travel guide, doesn't mean they're a friendly afternoon hike. The trail this poor Michigan fellow got lost on seems benign. Actually, the recognized Siphon Draw Trail in Lost Dutchman State park is benign; it's when you cross over into Tonto National Forest and the wilderness area and start the ascent up to the top of Flatiron Mountain that things get intense.

However, it's not so intense that a reasonably strong, prepared hiker can't get to the top . However, if you're not familiar with this area, it's best to stay on the trail.

Anyways, here's my daily moment of schadenfreude - here's what poor Ian would have enjoyed if he hadn't gotten lost.


This is where you start and the top of Flatiron is where you end up. It's an intense hike. Here's the Hike Arizona description.You gain 2780 feet total over 2.7 miles, but most of the gain is in about the last mile and a half. It's not technical climbing, but it's not exactly hiking either.


That's Flatiron looming in the background there.



When you finish your scramble up, you can go to the top or stroll over to Flatiron. The way to the top is actually not that clear and I wandered about a bit before making it up there. The views are amazing.

Flatiron's profile.

And here's couple from the top...


Rock formations on the top.

The Superstition Mountains

Superstition Mountain on the Apache Trail, Arizona, originally uploaded by Oregon State University Archives.

The Superstition Mountain range is primarily part of Tonto National Forest east of Phoenix, AZ. The northernmost section makes up Lost Dutchman State Park.



Weaver's Needle is a volcanic plug. A volcanic plug is a volcanic landform created when magma hardens within a vent on an active volcano. Formations like Weaver's Needle occur when the outer layers of rock erode at a different rate than the magma column in the vent, leaving the magma column exposed.



Weaver's Needle from the Black Mesa Trail.



From Jacob's Crosscut Trail, Lost Dutchman State Park. The entire park is a sea of flowers.



Siphon Draw is a scramble/hike up onto Flatiron Mountain to some amazing views of Phoenix.

Check out more of my photographs of the Superstitions here on our Flickr page.

Read about the legend of the Lost Dutchman Mine.