| Summary: |
A nice 200 foot waterfall
that you can visit right from your car. I
suspect the best time to visit would be after
heavy rains. Those more adventurous types can
rappel the falls. For this stunt you'll need a
200 ft rope plus another 100 ft or so to back up
the anchor, harness, descender and helmet. Be
prepared to get a little bit wet, but that's
part of the fun. |
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| 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 is paved at first and
after a short distance crosses the Salt River on
a single lane bridge. After 12.2 miles you will
come to an intersection with left branching A
Cross Road. Continue straight on Highway 288 for
approximately 12 more miles to just past mile
marker 284 and a brown sign indicating a right
branching road for the Workman Creek Recreation
Area, Sierra Ancha Wilderness. Turn right and
drive 3.2 miles up past several established
camping areas to the head of the falls and
several small pull offs. |
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| Road Conditions: |
Passenger Car |
|
| Navigation: |
Easy |
|
| Length: |
It's up to you |
|
| Date Hiked: |
May 2004 |
|
| Weather Conditions: |
Cool and
sunny |
|
|
Required Skills: |
None
to view the falls
To rappel the falls |
| Hike Description: |
From the pull off at the head
of the falls there is a good view point back
down the road a short distance at an obvious
rock outcropping which looks down into the large
bowl that the falls plunges into. Be very
careful when climbing on the rocks in the area
though, they are smooth and slick, particularly
if they get wet. You can also walk down the road
a little further to a scree slope where the road
makes a bend. From there it is possible to climb
down the slope and walk around the base of the
falls.
There are likely several options for those
wishing to rappel the falls. The author rigged 2
ropes (one on either side of the falls for
photos). Tow clips on my vehicle were used as
the anchor point. The best rappel is to bring
the rope from the clips of your car, across the
stream bed, wind it around the base of the
juniper tree at the head of the falls 3 times
and rappel from there (note: its best to walk up
stream a short distance when crossing the stream
since the bank is less steep). The rappel is
approximately 180 feet with 120 feet being free
hanging. |
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| Rating (1-5 stars): |
  If
the falls are flowing.
The author his wife and one other person
spent 3 hours rigging and rappelling the falls
and taking photos. |
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| Books: |
None |
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| 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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