Story by Blake Herzog
Prescott National Forest is a 1.25 million-acre outdoor wonderland that attracts more than 800,000 visitors each year. Its lakes, trails and recreation areas are vital resources for residents and visitors to Greater Prescott and all of Yavapai County.
Some adventurers who aren’t fond of crowds may think 800,000 others competing for space and fresh air is too high of a number, but they aren’t evenly distributed over these vast stretches of forest, chaparral and high desert. Other return visitors are simply looking for someplace new to visit.
Word from Forest Service personnel is these hidden gems really will let you get away from it all!
Lynx Creek Ruins
Lynx Creek Ruins Trail No. 301 is a half-mile pathway near the Highland Center for Natural History. It leads to an observation platform overlooking the remnants of a structure that once housed around 30 people, 800 years ago.
They hunted on the lush creek bank and grew crops on “checkdams,” or terraced levels of rich soil. A self-guiding brochure about the ruins and surrounding piňion, oak and juniper woodlands is available.
Walker Charcoal Kiln
Not far south from the ruins is this 25-foot tall beehive-shaped tower of local granite, which has been on the National Register of Historic Places for 50 years. Standing in the middle of the forest, it was built around 1880 to fire oak logs from the surrounding area into charcoal to fuel the smelting of gold and silver from nearby mines.
Take Walker Road to Big Bug Mesa Road to Charcoal Kiln Road.
Hyde Mountain Lookout
It’s a difficult climb to reach this 7,272-foot peak, the highest in the Santa Maria mountain range, from the Hyde Mountain Trail No. 6 west of Chino Valley, but the reward is a 360-degree panorama of Northern Arizona from Sawmill Flat in the west across the full Chino Valley to the east. A lookout trail built in 1936 is also on the National Register and boosts your signal that much further across the boundless terrain.
Copper Canyon Trailhead
The product of a collaboration between the National Forest and the Town of Camp Verde, this multiuse trailhead gives access to trails for hiking, biking, OHV riding and horseback riding.
Amenities include two ramadas with four picnic tables, four grills, a loading ramp and a waterless toilet, and ample parking and room for trailer turnarounds. It has no potable water, but is a gateway to adventure.
Horsethief Basin Recreation Area
This isolated, forested “sky island” is accessible via Spring Valley Access Road and Antelope Creek Road and through the small but iconic burg of Crown King. You’ll find several campgrounds and cabins.
Recreational options include Horsethief Lake, where fishing from nonmotorized boats is allowed, and eight trails, many of which travel into the less-developed and equally spectacular Castle Creek Wilderness.
Castle Creek Wilderness
The lightly managed wilderness area surrounds Horsethief Basin on the eastern slope of the Bradshaw Mountains and spans saguaro-studded desert up to mountain mahogany, juniper and scattered ponderosa stands. Wildlife is abundant and includes javelina, mule deer and some mountain lions, bobcats and skunks.
You can hike 30 miles of trails here, but summer temperatures can be as brutal as the terrain. Visit www.wilderness.net for more info.
Mount Union
This is another superlative peak, the highest in the Bradshaws and all of Yavapai County at just short of 8,000 feet, with its own lookout tower on the National Register. It’s a 4-mile round trip to the top on Dandrea Trail No. 285 and Yankee Doodle Trail No. 284.
You’ll want to take your time; the path is well-shaded. You can enjoy a picnic on top of the helicopter landing pad to look across the landscape and imbibe the fresh mountain air.
Spruce Mountain Lookout
Another expansive view awaits you at this forested peak near Groom Creek, which includes a picnic area and can be reached from Groom Creek Loop Trail No. 307 and by vehicle from Forest Road 52A when it isn’t raining or snowing.
The picnic site is behind a gate that is closed when the nearby lookout tower is not staffed, so you can call 928.443.8000 to make sure the gate is open.
Mingus Rim Trails
This short series of trails around the apex of the mountain takes you past some incredible Verde Valley vistas in between the pinon, juniper and ponderosa living side by side. There’s a water tank that helps sustain the local wildlife, among them deer, raccoons, elk, bears and colorful butterflies.
Butterfly Trail No. 536 uses a series of primitive roads carved by miners in the late 1800s, while formidable alligator junipers shade its junction with trails No. 537 and No. 538.
