PDA

View Full Version : Vulture Mountain Trail 10/8 Completed


Brian McVickers
10-10-2005, 11:18 PM
Our Saturday morning ride up the Vulture Mountain Trail turned into a great trail ride with some good hiking mixed in. :luxhello:
The Vulture Mountain Trial is about 13 miles long and runs between Morristown on Hwy 60 and Vulture Mine Road in Wickenburg. It crosses the Hassayampa river and then BLM Land. Note that the river was dry in this area when we went. The main trail is easy/moderate and some of the side tracks are fun to explore with some more challenging obstacles. There was however a lot of brush and the occasional nial-on-a-chalk-board sound that we all love! The main trial follows several washes running in and out of them so it turned out to be a nice mix of terrain to keep you on your toes with some larger rocks to get over, soft washouts to get through and steep climbs to get up.

Since in was just my brother-in-law and I in one vehicle we decided to explore a bit more and try our hand at Geocaching, www.geocaching.com. It's kind of like looking for buried treasure except the treasure is usually worthless but the hunt is the fun part. Out of 3 caches we looked for we could only find 1, it's a lot harder than I thought it would be! :archaeolo

A few cool highlights, pictured:
A big owl that came flying out of a mine shaft and flew about two feet over my head!
The Geocache treasure
A big cave
And the amazing views! :D :victory:
Scenic WonderRunner
10-10-2005, 11:40 PM
The OWL pic is Outstanding!

Looks like a Fun Trip!

Thanks for sharing! :arabia:
flyingwil
10-11-2005, 01:43 AM
Looks like you had some fun! Thanks for the input on your run!
flyingwil
10-11-2005, 02:54 AM
Hey I forgot to add that if you are going out there again, let me know, I would love to go check this place out!

Thanks!
Wil
Brian McVickers
10-11-2005, 04:26 AM
I will let you know Wil,
We are definitely going back out at some time
There was a chach at Morristown Arch that we were unable to find
It stumped us so we have to go back out and find it!
The climb up to the arch and cave is steep and full of loose rock - you get about 1/2 way up and think to yourself, man I better make this!

We also want to go back into the area for a cache at the top of Vulture Peak.
You can go so far by 4x4 but then its about a 2 hour hike to the top, from what I am told.

Brian
flyingwil
10-11-2005, 04:38 AM
I will let you know Wil,
We are definitely going back out at some time
There was a chach at Morristown Arch that we were unable to find
It stumped us so we have to go back out and find it!
The climb up to the arch and cave is steep and full of loose rock - you get about 1/2 way up and think to yourself, man I better make this!

We also want to go back into the area for a cache at the top of Vulture Peak.
You can go so far by 4x4 but then its about a 2 hour hike to the top, from what I am told.

Brian

Brian-

Sounds like so much fun! MIght just be because I am work now, and have the itch to go out and play, but even if I wasn't at work, it looks like a blast.

If you start to plan to go back out there let me know. I need to get out soon... its been almost 2 weeks since i put her in 4low! YIKES!

Wil
Scott Brady
10-11-2005, 05:55 AM
Brian,

Very nice. That owl picture is fantastic. I just yelled "wow" when I saw it, and then Stephanie yelled "what"... That is a great picture.

Your Discovery is very nice too, and brings back some great memories of my 2001 (though yours is nicer). We really enjoyed that vehicle.

I would recommend the next time you are in that area, go to Harquahala Peak, and check out the War Eagle mine. Incredibly well preserved with excellent timber and multiple shafts. The ground around it is blue from all of the discarded turquoise :ylsmoke:
Brian McVickers
10-11-2005, 03:27 PM
That owl shot was pure luck!
As I was walking up to a series of mine shafts that sort of went back into a cave the owl came flying up out of a shaft. He turned to go into the cave and did a quick 180 heading right for me. I didnt even have the camera up to my eye, I just started pressing the button while pointing it in the general direction.

I was surprised at how quiet the owl was, amazing! :sunflower
The BN Guy
10-11-2005, 07:01 PM
Cool owl! Nice scenery. High temps?
Brian McVickers
10-11-2005, 07:55 PM
The temps were not too bad, we rode comfortably with the windows and sunroof open all day. Did not check the actual temp number though.
What a great time of the season!
The BN Guy
10-11-2005, 09:08 PM
...we rode comfortably with the windows and sunroof open all day.

Love that feeling!
riverguide
11-05-2005, 05:41 AM
I also said 'wow' when i saw the owl pic. Looked very pretty, how amazing. I love the rover but can't see much of it. I need more. :)