Apache Canyon - October 14, 2005 - Member Trip Report
| Hike Name: | Apache Canyon |
|---|---|
| Country: | United States |
| State: | Arizona |
| Trip Rating: |  |
| Trip Date: | October 14, 2005 |
| Duration: | 17 hours |
| Trail Conditions: | Good |
| Trail Traffic: | None |
| Trip Weather: | Sunny |
| Trip Winds: | Light |
| Trip Precipitation: | None |
| Trip Temperature: | High: 71-80, Low: 41-50 degrees Fahrenheit |
| Trip Report: | Louis and I headed up to Apache Canyon early in the morning to get a full day out of it. I'd been looking at the canyon on Google Earth, and I could see lots of mines and structure, so we were both excited. On the drive in, a large abandoned mining complex sits on the right side of the road, unfortuantely on private property. The Gold Prince came up on our left, and we parked the truck and started walking. The road is covered with old ore chunks, and rabbits, lizards and hawks abound. This country is brutal in the summer, but in October, we were very comfortable. Before long, the house I'd seen on Google popped up, and we spent a few minutes looking through it. I love abandoned buildings! From the house we could see a large tailing pile, so we worked our way over to it. This turned out to be the flooded shaft, and we filled out water back up while we had the chance. Heading East up the canyon is a nice walk, although you gain over 1,000 feet in only a couple of miles. There are hand laid stone walls supporting old trails to the mines, and we stopped and looked at a bunch of them. A small group of Whitetail deer surprised us just as we headed South to go up the ridge. We broke for lunch around 12:15, and sat in a cool mine tunnel enjoying the view. Finally we headed down the ridgeline, marveling at the view from that elevation. Cochise's Stronghold is about 30 miles South, and can be seen with a large set of binoculars. We encountered several large scale mining remains, ans a few more rabbits before arriving back at the car. All in all, a great day hike with lots of historical value. |
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