Superstition Wilderness

Superstition Wilderness, Arizona

February 25-28, 2022

Afternoon

Laura and I have been talking about doing another short backpacking trip with Hazel, but wintertime in Colorado with a 1 year old would be tough! I recommended heading south and with a bit of research found a 25 mile loop that I thought would work well for us in late February. It just so happened that Laura's dad would be in the area at the same time so we invited him along while grandma Carole visited with a friend. Since I carry Hazel, there is not a lot of extra room for gear on my back and packing for 3 in a single pack is a challenge.  While I carry milk and bottles along with a few other items, Laura carries the 50L pack with all of our gear. We just barely fit gear for all 3 of us plus food for 4 this time. Packs ended up around 40 pounds each, 30 of that is Hazel and her 8 pound pack! 

Morning

Friday we were set to fly out of Colorado Springs around noon so I took the opportunity to run up the manitou incline early in the morning. It was 5 degrees outside and I was happy to be headed for warmer temps in a few hours. We arrived in Phoenix and had dinner with Stan, Carole and Maureen before heading back to Maureen's home and crashing on the living room floor for the evening. 

Saturday morning we woke up around 6 and drove the short distance, maybe 30 minutes, to the Peralta trailhead. Hazel had an upset stomach and vomited milk everywhere while we were driving, so we changed her clothes and did our best to clean off her dog stuffed animal that would make the trip into the backcountry with us. At the trailhead I chatted with the ranger for a few minutes about water and our route to see if he had any last minute suggestions for us. He recommended not going over Bull Pass because it was 400' of elevation gain. I chuckled and told him that I had done over 2000' on the incline in about 30 minutes the day before. He looked at me like I was either crazy or flat out lying to him! Anyways, water wasn't much of a concern since it had rained just a few days prior and we set off on the trail around 9 am. 

We would hike to LaBarge Spring on our first day and set camp there. Roughly 8 miles. The Peralta and Dutchman trails were very nice and the desert scenery is always a treat. The Superstition Wilderness is a beautiful area with a unique landscape. We enjoyed hiking along, chatting and talking to Hazel who seems to really enjoy riding in the backpack. She and I have some of our best conversations while we hike together so I always look forward to the time with her on my back. 

The trail lead us out and around Miners Needle and over a pass before descending toward LaBarge Spring where we would find a very nice camp site for the evening. We picked out a great site and unpacked the pack to find the tent poles we thought we had left behind. Relieved that we didn't forget the poles, I set up the tent while Laura filtered water from the spring. We had dinner and relaxed before falling asleep early. The night was windy but when Laura went out to make sure our packs were secure, she said it was the best starry sky she had seen in a while and was happy to have gotten up and looked around. 

We decided to move camp on our second day and do some additional hiking up toward Weavers Needle so we got on the trail around 8 am. Looking at the map, we decided to head toward what appeared on the map to be a green area with a stream. Since the rain was just a few days ago, we were hopeful we could find good water. Talking to other hikers on the trail, nobody was sure about water, but as we continued on there were a few flowing streams and eventually a nice spot to camp. We were less than a mile below Terrapin Pass so after setting up camp we hiked up there and caught the great up close views of Weavers Needle. We relaxed for an hour or so while Laura and Hazel played in the dirt and tossed rocks. I considered climbing Weavers Needle since there is a easy 5.2 route, easily within my ability to solo, but chose not to since the volcanic rock quality is probably mostly choss, similar to Lizard Head here in Colorado, which is the neck of a volcano just like weavers is. I decided to run over to Bluff Saddle and take a look at what was over that way. An hours hike over and back and the views were very different from where we had already been. I recommended that Laura and Stan head over while I took Hazel back to camp. They agreed and started toward Bluff Saddle around 4 pm. Hazel and I hiked back to camp and played and relaxed until Stan and Laura arrived in camp at 6 pm. We cooked dinner, relaxed and enjoyed the evening before retiring to our tents for the night. 

Monday would be our last day on the trail and we were set to be picked up at the First Water Trailhead at 11 am. We got a 8 am start and made the 8 mile hike out, enjoying the views and chatting with the many people we passed as we came closer to the trailhead. The topo maps for this area are not super accurate and there are spurs shown that don't exist any longer. We figure that trails have been overgrown or rerouted since the wilderness burned several years back. We arrived at First Water Trailhead around 11:15 am and met up with grandma Carole. 

The temperatures on this trip were almost perfect for backpacking. About 70 during the day and low 40's at night. The water was plentiful for the desert due to the heavy rains that fell just two days before our trip and we really enjoyed our time in the Superstition Wilderness. We tracked right at 25 miles total for the 3 days and all agreed that this was an excellent trip. We headed back to Maureen's home for a quick shower and some lunch before getting to the airport for our 5 pm flight home.