Album Guide to Cave Creek Topo Home
| Distance: | 2.75 mi one way for the turnaround but continue on 9.25 miles for the loop |
| Difficulty: | Easy to the turnaround, Moderate reported in parts of the loop |
| Hike Time: | 2-3 hours for the turnaround - 5 hours reported for the loop |
| Elevation: | 3355 to 3186 feet for the turnaround - 4040 feet for the high point of the loop |
| Season: | Year round - high summer temperatures |
| USGS Maps: | Humboldt Mountain - New River Mesa |
| Directions: From: Phoenix |
Take Scottsdale Rd north to the town of Carefree. Drive 6 miles East on the Carefree Highway to the Tonto National Forest boundary, where the road becomes Forest Road 24. A good but rough gravel road. Continue on 12 miles to the Seven Springs picnic and campground. Drive past the picnic and campgrounds to park on the right at the marked trailhead lot. |
The Seven Springs picnic and campground is a fee-use area. This hike is a work in progress for me, as I have not yet made the loop and only went about 2.75 mi (one way) along the creek bottom to gather photos of the wildflower covered hills. The Cave Creek trail receives high traffic from the throngs of people who can easily reach the popular area from Phoenix. The trial is easy to find and follow with the portion that I hiked offering a fair amount of shade.
A loop can be made up over the desert foothills by combining the Cave Creek trail, the Skunk Tank trail, an old mining road and finally following the Cottonwood Creek Trail back to the picnic ground. This loop is approximately 9.25 mile long and has a Moderate climb of approximately 1000 feet in just 1.5 mi. a little ways after turning onto the Skunk Tank Trail. At the trailhead there is a map showing all of the local trails and their mileages. My TOPO map indicates the portion of the hike I traveled in Red while the rest of the loop is indicated in Blue. I indicated the road into the area in Green, just to be different.
Water is available along the Cave Creek trail, but it probably is not advisable to drink from the creek since it flows through the picnic and camp grounds. Plan on bringing enough water to meet your needs for the day.
The Seven Springs area and the Cave Creek trail provide a quick and easy- to- reach day hike from Phoenix. It is a popular area, offering a unique riparian community which provided me with one of my better photo-ops of the spring - in the spring, the surrounding hills were literally covered with wildflowers.
Trekker