Weather: 55ยบ, sun
About this Hike: Hellsgate Wilderness area has been our latest area of interest. Today we explored the 'main street' of this wilderness area, Hellsgate Trail 37. I was surprised at how much water was in the creeks and standing on the trails. We originally thought about returning to Bear Flat today, but I'm glad we didn't. There are several unbridged water crossings on the road in.
We had no intentions of hiking down to the trail's end in Tonto Creek. While I'm certain this would be an amazing experience, it involves ~1,600 feet of elevation drop on what I've read is a steep, rough, scree-filled trail. We don't enjoy treacherous trails like this, as they have led to falls and injuries on several occasions.
We opted to hike to the Hellsgate Wilderness boundary and just take in the views of the surrounding hills and canyons. The views certainly did not disappoint.
For as remote as it feels, Hellsgate is still fairly developed. Rooftops of cabins and ranch buildings dot the distant hills. Most of the so-called hiking trails are ATV roads, and while their condition is atrocious in places, fresh tire tracks indicate ATV drivers frequent these paths. When the winds were just right, I could hear the faint sound of traffic on AZ-260.
The only wildlife we saw today was cattle (along with trying to sidestep all their 'evidence'). In particular was a cow and her yearling calf. She seemed to realize humans were no threat, but her calf was scared and hid behind her. It was kind of cute. Regardless, we gave plenty of space.
We'll be back as there's still so much to explore in Hellsgate.
