Written: May 11, 2023

Trip report, Walker Basin and Temporal Canyon Road, May 10, 2023

View south from near mile 11

Background

I am often surprised when I finally get around to doing something that I have thinking about for a long time, just how easy, even pleasant, and sometimes simple it turns out to be. For months (years perhaps) I have been talking about heading up the Temporal Canyon road to investigate trail access. A particular interest is hiking via Temporal Canyon to Josephine Saddle.

Many roads in the Santa Ritas, especially on the east side, have been closed by the Forest Service, and not just in the area around the proposed Rosemont Mine. So I would read old guidebooks and online information and be left wondering what the state of things really was in Temporal Canyon.

The truth

You can drive as far as your vehicle will take you. In our case this was all the way to Walker Basin. We were driving my stock 2000 Tacoma 4x4 pickup and we most definitely needed 4 wheel drive, details below on when and where the road gets bad. You can get to the first trailhead (at 6.5 miles) for the AZT in virtually any vehicle.

The trailheads

There are three, as follows: The first trailhead exists simply because beyond this point the road gets bad and requires 4 wheel drive. So, anybody with any car can drive here and begin hiking the AZT. They will hike right on the road for the next 6 miles, but that is just how it is.

The second trailhead is for the single track trail up Temporal Canyon. This trail branches left (northwest) from the road, heading up Temporal Canyon and on to Josephine Saddle after 6.5 miles. The road to here is rough in places, definitely requiring four wheel drive.

The third trailhead is not quite the end of the road at what the USGS topo labels as "Upper Walker Tank". Something that looks like a road continues past here, but we did not investigate. From here, the AZT is a nice well defined single track trail. Only people with a 4x4 vehicle and some skill with it will be able to drive to here.

Road to Walker Basin from near mile 11

Our trip

We left my house in Tucson at 9:00 AM. I have no interest in crack of dawn starts. We drove I-10 to Highway 83, South to Sonoita, then west to Patagonia.

Just as you get to Patagonia there is a 35 mph sign and a big school on the right. Just past the school is First Avenue where you turn right. I begin the following "mileage log" at this turn. First Avenue becomes "72" at the forest boundary.

We encountered water in the stream at mile 6.5 and for perhaps a mile or so beyond -- but our bet is that it will probably dry up before the end of June.

The road is decent to the AZT trailhead at 6.5. Someone is maintaining it, perhaps the person living behindt he gate at mile 7.4.

We took a look at the Amada Mine. It is a big vertical slot like stope with cool air coming out, so there must be deeper workings, but we did not investigate.

Beyond the Temporal Gulch trailhead at mile 10.3, the road climbs a steep rocky challenging section that we thought twice about. Once you get to Walker Basin you get into Apache pines. The whole journey is pleasant and interesting.

I note the road junction at 11.0 miles. We actually did not observe this, but the map shows it and the guidebook calls is FS 4090.

The hike

We didn't want to just spend the day driving, so we parked a bit short of the end of the road (at mile 12.0) and hiked up the road to Upper Walker Tank. There is a dam here, and before it got entirely silted in, in might have been a nice lake. There is also a big metal tank here that doubtless was once fed with water from the dam, but those days are long past. (I'll note that the guidebook by Leavengood and Liebert (1994) has a picture of the lake.) It looks like the road continues beyond here, but it must end almost immediately, so don't bother.

Along the trail above Walker Basin (photo by Alan K)
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