About this Hike: On the last visit to Prescott earlier in September, we visited ever-popular Groom Creek again. We did a different part of the main loop, this time not going up to the fire lookout. It was utterly boring. But the trailhead sign intrigued me. Another trail in the area appeared to lead down to the Hassayampa River. In the interim month, I did more research...
What I discovered is Wolf Creek Trail #384. It's a loop trail that begins across the street from the main Groom Creek parking area. You actually use Trail #383 to access #384. Both are loops and the entire hike can be thought of as a rough figure-8 loop. Pro tip: Trail #383 intersects the driveway to the equestrian campground right across the street. Don't be like me and walk all over the campground looking for a trailhead...
One other pro tip: grab one of the brochure maps from the trailhead. The box was actually empty at the main Groom Creek parking area, but the boxes were stocked in the campground. I guess my wandering did have a bit of a silver lining... The brochure map is much better than the big one posted at the main trailhead.
From the map's scale Loop #384 looks to be just a few miles. Some reports say 6 miles. I'm saying 8-9 miles. It's a bit tricky to stay on this trail as a number of 4x4 roads traverse it, and in many spots the roads and trail run together. The trail signage is good though, and it goes without saying to watch for 4x4 traffic.
The whole reason I wanted to do this hike was to see the Hassayampa River. Pro tip: hike #383 clockwise from the campground. You'll get to the river MUCH faster...unless you want to do the entire loop. The section of river we found had beautiful granite formations. The river wasn't flowing, but water was pooled abundantly. The pools were remarkably clear and deep. Sitting on the granite made a great picnic spot. I imagine these same granite formations are waterfalls when the Hassayampa has flow.
In addition to the Hassayampa, you can use this trail access Wolf Creek Falls. This is a seasonal waterfall that's said to be quite impressive. In the middle of Loop #384 is the Wolf Creek campground, and the falls are located in that area. We didn't hike in there, but maybe a future hike in early spring when the falls are roaring? I feel like what we saw along the Hassayampa was a mini-Wolf Creek Falls, and it did not disappoint.
One final thought...according to the trail signage there's something a couple miles out from this trail called Payoff Spring. I couldn't find any information online. Anyone know what this is?
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| Blue butterflies everywhere! |
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