Triple Arch Trail - Goldfield Mountains - Tonto National Forest

Описание: Triple Arch Trail - Goldfield Mountains - Tonto National Forest

I've driven past the Goldfields many, many times. I've looked out the window of the truck and thought "That looks cool out there. Wonder what it's like?" A long time ago I saw a post online about "Black Glass Canyon". During my research, I found out it was another name for a box canyon on the trail to Triple Arch. It looked interesting and it got put onto my ever growing list. Fast forward a few years and Tina was telling me how a friend of hers said the Triple Arch trail was a great hike. It rang a bell and I went back into my hike list and there it was. I'd marked it on GPS several months ago and was surprised to see that Black Glass Canyon, the Goldfield Mountains and the Triple Arch trail were all basically the same hike.

So we made plans to backpack it. And mother nature made plans for it to snow in the Superstitions. So we changed to day hiking.

How are the Goldfield Mountains? They're beautiful. And rugged. And not nearly as popular as the Superstitions across the street. They also apparently don't believe in trail markers in the Goldfield Mountains. This was no problem because we had the trail marked on GPS and I had scouted it on Google Earth and a few maps. So off we went.

The Triple Arch trail is straightforward at first. Well, there are several trails that branch off and you need to know which to follow, but otherwise it's straightforward. At least it is until it is not. When we got toward the end, there was only one obstacle left; a mountain between us and the arch. The canyon went to the right which is the route I had marked. Tina had a wash/canyon to the left marked. So we decided that she was probably right as usual, and we headed up the steep, faint trail to the left. Lots of aggressive climbing, some off road navigation and a couple sketchy sections and we were at the top of the saddle and ready to head down into the next canyon. Here we picked up a trail and soon saw the arch.

Triple Arch is very interesting. You can climb right up to it, although there is some exposure so it isn't for everyone.

After spending a while at the arch, we decided it was time to get back to the truck. Honestly, the hike up the saddle was no fun, so we decided to go out the route that I had marked. This was flatter, for sure. But it was also filled with boulder obstacles. There were a few tricky downclimbs and puzzles to work out to progress. Personally, I love this sort of thing, but I understand it's not for everyone.

Which way is better? That depends on you. I recommend you watch the video and decide what way looks best for you. The high route has a few tricky spots to climb on and the wayfinding is more difficult. The low route has some boulder fields to navigate, but you just have to follow the canyon.

Anyway, on our way back, we discovered a random cave system. It's one of the cooler ones I have seen and I was surprised I hadn't heard anything about it before. Definitely worth a stop over. Someone had even camped there. But please note it was filled with flood debris. So if there is a chance of rain, this is not a safe place to be.

So that's about it. If you have not checked out the Goldfield Mountains, I recommend you do. And Triple Arch Trail is a solid option.

#hiking #Arizona #goldfields #backpacking

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