Prescottstyle Trails

Who knows these Hoo Doos?

2009-04-16T07:01:00.004-07:00

Anybody want to take a crack at the location of these 30' Tee Pee shaped Hoo Doos. Its my favorite day hike thats 1 hours drive from Prescott.
Clue: You can see two local wildernesses from here.

Wandering Skull Valley Ravines

2008-12-02T12:24:00.003-07:00

A plethora of crystals like this Hexagonal Di Pyramidal Quartz Sceptor where found while hiking a side ravine next to a major wash in Skull Valley. More pictures at http://prescottstyle.blogspot.com/2008/12/skull-valley-crystal.html

Towers Mnt.

2008-10-01T11:24:00.003-07:00

Cattle chute on the Senator Hwy. by Towers Mountain.

Forest Road 97B to Jersey Lily Mine

2008-09-15T10:07:00.012-07:00

97B is a great connector route to the backside of Maverick Mt. and beyond. Starting up at the Zero Mine turn off past Ponderosa Park, cross the Hassayampa at the low water crossing and proceed through till the 97b turn off on the right. This route flanks the western side of Maverick Mt. with awesome views of the Valleys that fold off this portion of the Bradshaws. Independent Springs has a good stand of Spruce trees. Once you get to the saddle turning left brings you up the south side of Maverick which we call the "Eiger Sanction" and on to Mnt.Tritle. Turning right brings you south to the Jersey Lily Mine, about a mile, and onto the Kirkland Junction on 89. Additional Information about the Jersey.

On one occasion we were riding through the Saddle when we realized that it was too icy to return on 97b and pressed onward to the south to lower warmer ground. We took a break at the Jersey Lily mine, this was way back, when it was still standing. The walls were blown out and it was listing seriously. Inside was a rusted pot belly stove, bed springs and misc. kitchen junk. Not much is there now, but is still worth a visit.

Watershed Trail

2008-09-02T14:47:00.011-07:00

Thick Ladybugs on some interesting cactus, and on the shady side of this Juniper

West Clear Creek Wilderness

2008-08-25T09:06:00.003-07:00

Bull Pen Valley

Williams Peak or Porter Mt. You go figure!

2008-08-06T08:20:00.012-07:00

We hiked up what I have always called Williams Peak in the Sierra Prietas Sunday. The summit is covered up in burnt up blow downs making the headway difficult. There was a controlled burn there 2-3 years ago, it crowned and got away from them, subsequently it burnt the whole peak up.

Once on top, and after 10 minutes the original cache (soup can) was found. In another 10 minutes I located the more contemporary cache (glass jar.) No one has been there since 2006 judging by the entries in the caches.
Because the terrain is so dramaticly changed up there, I relocated the two separate caches to a common crack in the rocks by the Williams Peak Brass Cap. Its covered with a big rock now.

There are some very interesting logs in the cache dating to 1998. Some discuss the Prietas themselves, others are on the spiritual plane. You can leave a key fob or something inside. I left the fake 100 dollar bill back in 2006.

Now here is the grand dichotomy, There is a second brass cap a few feet away, and it is named Porter MT. The question of the day is.. When did the mountain change names?
Did a surveyor for the county/state place the wrong brass cap on Williams Peak?

Geocache Description of a third cache in a ammo box on Williams Peak.

Clear Creek

2008-07-30T11:17:00.002-07:00

Clear Creek , originally uploaded by prescottstyle.

Rapids in Clear Creek, near Bull Pen.

Liam > out on a limb

2008-07-30T11:16:00.003-07:00

Liam, originally uploaded by prescottstyle.

Giant cottonwoods in Bull Pen Canyon

V and Goldenrod

2008-07-21T11:05:00.002-07:00

V and Goldenrod, originally uploaded by prescottstyle.

A stroll along the Goldenrod patch by Kendall Camp.

The Monsoons sure helped the growth this year.

Lookout Mountain Fir Trees

2008-06-04T07:28:00.004-07:00

New White Fir Tree plantings on Lookout Mountain.

Lookout Mountain from Tritle Peak
From a distance Lookout Mnt. seems like a place of solitude. In real life it's loaded with private property, and the trappings, ie.. McMansions with metal roofs, dogs, children and gunfire etc.

Enter at your own risk!

South Spruce Mnt. Ridge

2008-03-12T15:45:00.001-07:00

While bushwhacking through a forest of blowdowns on S. Spruce Ridge Saturday, We find that the old line shack has been hit. A large Ponderosa creamed the east side of the building. It stood untouched for eons it seems. It was probably built by a prospector, judging by the proximity of several mines.

Lion Laying Down

2007-04-12T10:18:00.000-07:00

Sunset on Mnt.Tritle

2007-04-12T10:09:00.000-07:00

Giant Alligator Juniper

2005-10-24T19:55:00.001-07:00

Tritle Mountain Juniper

Granite Mountain view from Thumb Butte

2005-09-12T00:01:00.003-07:00

Granite Mountain view from Thumb Butte. February 2001. Thumb Butte Park in the foreground.

Current view of Granite Mnt. from Thumb Butte

2005-09-11T11:32:00.001-07:00

What seems to be a treeless Thumb Butte Park.

Mullen Forest

2005-09-04T12:35:00.000-07:00

Less trees equal more undergrowth. What a concept!

More Mullen

2005-09-04T12:28:00.000-07:00

Mullen Stalks

Luxuriant growth along the Hassayampa River

2005-09-04T12:16:00.000-07:00

The result of our well deserved Monsoons.

Granite Mountain Aspen Grove

2005-06-15T18:16:00.001-07:00

Granite Basin Lake is quite a jem in the woods, even at casual observation. Driving in through the recently groomed forest at the park entrance gives one the sense of being in a healthy forest..
Viewing Granite Mnt. from the lake, which is surrounded by Ponderosa , Cottonwoods and Cattails, leaves you wondering, what happened to all the vegetation on the on the ever imposing, boulder strewn mountain standing in front of you? There is an indication of color in spots as well as the silhouetted trees in the high saddle on top.
Trail 261 passes through sections of Juniper and Oak on the way to Blair Pass. Once you reach the top saddle, you will observe a pretty big stand of beetle killed pines, resplendent with a good share of Blowdowns.

Ok, so the pines have a tough time surviving here, imagine your reaction when you stumble upon the Aspens.
There's no real water source up here other than the snow or rain. The 10 thousand dollar question is.. how can a variety of trees survive on a rockpile with little h2o that normally require a shady, moist, Fir forest?

A grand dichotomy this is, just don't tell me the Crows flew the seeds in.

Cattails on the Hassayampa

2005-04-28T18:28:00.000-07:00

Hassayampa River near forest rd.79.

2005-04-28T18:08:00.000-07:00

Plant life on the Hassayampa.

Old Growth Fir Forest

2005-04-28T17:02:00.000-07:00

Despite all the beetle killed ponderosa, Tritle Mountain still has some of the biggest Douglas Firs around. It seems as if the fir trees are more hardy than the softwood pines. When passing through a section like this, one can momentarily forget about the brown ponderosa ridgeline below.

2005-04-20T12:15:00.000-07:00

Northwesterly view from the saddle on trail 65, with Maverick Mountain shrouded in clouds on the left. The Sierra Prietas rise above the Prescott Basin in the last bit of daylight..

Kendall Camp

2005-04-20T11:54:00.000-07:00

Apple orchard at Kendall Camp.

Some of the best views of Yavapai County

2005-04-20T11:37:00.000-07:00

The snow is finally melting away in this oak grove on Maverick Mountain. Take FR 79 to 79a. Park at the apple orchard at Kendall Camp. Trailhead 65 is due west. Trail 65 is a delightfully steep set of switchbacks, yet it's a short run up to the saddle. When at the saddle, turn right on the jeep trail for Maverick, turn left for Tritle.

2005-04-19T19:25:00.000-07:00

Revealing obscure destinations in the Bradshaws.