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Deep Creek Trail to Moody Point - Sierra
Ancha Wilderness, Tonto National Forest
| Summary: |
The Deep Creek Trail is
located in the Cherry Creek area of the Sierra
Ancha Wilderness. The hike heads cross country
through a rarely visited area with a destination
of Moody Point, a summit with good views of the
Sierra Ancha Wilderness. |
| Directions: |
From Phoenix
drive east on Highway 60 almost to Globe. Turn
left (north) on Highway 188 (also listed as 88
on maps) and drive 14.4 miles to Highway 288.
Turn right on 288 which soon crosses the Salt
River on a single lane bridge. After 6.7 miles,
turn right onto the well graded, dirt Cherry
Creek Road (which is also Forest Road 203).
After 8.8 miles at the sign for Coon Creek FR
#203 bends right and crosses the creek (straight
will take you onto private ranch property). At
the 13.3 mile point you reach a sign for the
left branching Bull Canyon Road (FR #203A). Turn
left and follow this road 6 miles to the signed
Bull Canyon Trailhead at the end. |
| Road Conditions: |
Passenger
Car? Maybe if you take it slow. Better to bring
a High
Clearance Vehicle. |
| Navigation: |
Difficult |
| Length: |
~13
miles |
| Date Hiked: |
November
2003 |
| Weather Conditions: |
Cool and
sunny - perfect hiking conditions |
|
Required Skills: |
 |
| Hike Description: |
From the signed Bull Canyon
Trailhead, walk around the wooden post fence and
walk down the trail (0 miles, 5030 ft). Just beyond is a sign
indicating that you are on the Deep Creek Trail
#128 with Coon Spring Trail (#124) ¼ mile, Moody
Point Trail (#140) 5 miles. Continue down the
wide and rocky trail (which obviously sees
occasional horse traffic) and in 5 minutes you
reach a signed junction with the left branching
Coon Spring Trail #124 (2.5 miles to Coon
Spring, 3.5 miles to Coon Creek Trail #254),
stay straight on the Deep Creek Trail which
continues through an area consisting mainly of:
scrub oak, manzanita, sotol, small juniper, bear
grass, rabbit brush and prickly pear. The path
drops down and crosses a shallow wash before
traveling beside a barbed wire fence for a
distance. The trail winds its way up and down a
few shallow hills before dropping down into a
dry wash with some large oak trees and some nice
camp sites. This is obviously the turn around
point for most people because the trail becomes
considerably more faint on the other side of the
wash. To stay on the trail, walk across the
wash, then turn 90 degrees left and walk along
the edge of the drainage for a short distance.
The path then becomes more distinct as it begins
to climb somewhat steeply up and away from the
wash to the right. As you continue to climb, the
trail enters a grassy area and becomes quite
faint until it reaches a somewhat more distinct
path near some stock ponds (which will be down a
short side trail to the left). Stay right at the
spur trail to the stock pond and continue north
as the trail winds its way beneath several
prominent cliff faces (the second one, or the
one on the right, is Moody Point). The trail is
fairly level as it crosses a few washes. It then
drops down into a wash, which it follows a short
distance before climbing out on the right hand
side and begins ascending a hill to the east. As
you climb, there is a tricky spot marked by a
cairn. The path appears to go straight past the
cairn, but quickly fades away into the scrub. In
fact the trail makes a sharp left at the cairn
and heads directly up the hillside. Near the top
of the hill you'll reach a signed junction with
the Moody Point Trail #140 (5 miles, 5500 ft)
which heads left and right. Turn left and climb
the rest of the way up the hill to a ridge with
good views overlooking Cherry Creek far below on
the right. Follow the ridge along a mostly
non-existent path keeping an eye out for cairns
which mark the way. The 'trail' (using the term
very loosely) crosses the ridge, then bends left
and begins climbing steeply up the slope
following a deep un-named drainage (just south
of Devils Chasm) which will be on your right.
The path in this section is very difficult to
follow, basically you are walking from cairn to
cairn trying to find the next one to indicate
you're on the right route. The path in this
section is very difficult to follow, basically
you have to route find from cairn to cairn
trying to find the next one to indicate you're
on the right route. An old fire in the area
appears to have damaged many of the trees and
obliterated much of the path. It's a steep climb
of about 1000 ft to the summit of Moody Point
where the path levels out. You'll have to route
find through several wide sections of scrub to
pick up occasional sections of decent trail,
which becomes more defined as you enter a more
forested section of pines. The summit of Moody Point
is not marked, so the turn around point is up to
you (6.5 miles, 6600 ft). When ready,
return the way you came. |
| Rating (1-5 stars): |
 
The author and his wife completed this hike
in 7.5 hours at a moderate pace. Route finding
along the Moody Point Trail was difficult and definitely slowed us
down. |
| Books: |
None |
| Maps: |
Tonto
National Forest, USFS (not a very good map) |
| Photos: |
Click picture for larger view, click your browser's 'Back' button to return to this page. |
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Much of the hike looks
just like this. |
View on the way to Moody Point. |
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