Camp 84 & Horse Canyon Spring Loop - 7/1/26

Camp 84

Horse Canyon Spring

Sawmill Trail with the ridge in the Background

Macks Canyon / Horse Canyon Junction

I don't know, but, maybe, this trail has been here a while. At any rate, I was so excited to find it! For several years, I have been trying to connect the dots, so to speak, between Horse Canyon Road, Camp 84, and Horse Canyon Spring. It just made sense that the trails had to be there. I just couldn't find them on my once or twice a year forays into the canyon woods. On this hike, I set out to make yet another try. So, I parked at Sawmill TH and hiked over to Macks Canyon Road and on to a left turn onto Horse Canyon Road. Approximately one mile into the hike, there is an open place to the left. (Looks like it might be used now as a campsite.) I had never turned this soon but, it looked like a popular place to turn by the worn soil.

Reaching the ridge on the Trail

View to left when reaching the Ridge

Two cairns mark the continuation of the Trail

The trail makes it way up to a rocky peak.

I followed the worn trail and veered to the right. Lo and behold, an actual trail appeared before my eyes. I followed the steep trail up and soon found myself on the ridge. I knew it was still not Camp 84 territory. But, I was so thrilled that I had arrived here on a trail! After a couple of photos of the beautiful views, I turned to find a double cairned trail leading up along the ridge to the right. This trail stayed well-cairned and I arrived on the first peak of the ridge. It was marked by a tall pointy cairn rock. Finding the continuation of the trail from the peak was slightly challenging but I found it dropping down the other side. Here, I really lost the trail and decided to try to return to the ridge. Still, the route was convoluted. Long story short. My GPS told me where Camp 84 was so I headed in that direction ... which turned out to be a climb. Maybe if I had stayed more on the ridge, I would have had an easier time.

Climbing up to the first Peak

Pointy rock cairn on first Peak

First Peak with Lee Canyon Road in Background

Mummy's Nose from first Peak

Anyway, I reached Camp 84 for a short break with photos. The camp appeared cared for. My next goal was to find the trail from there to Horse Canyon Spring. It always made sense to me that that trail existed. Fortunately, I found it quickly and it appeared that someone had only recently travelled it. Therefore, the trail was clear ... not worn, ... but clear. I followed it only having difficulties at the gulley crossings. Usually, the trail was found slightly above on the other side. When I got down to the spring area, I had to guess how the trail reached the road and spring. But, with a little experience, it wasn't much of a problem.

Traversing over and up to Camp 84

Fire pit at Camp 84 (gas stoves only, please)

Starting down the long traverse trail to Horse Canyon Spring

Traverse trail Down

Feeling great about my little 4 mile loop adventure, I started back down Horse Canyon Road. To extend the hike to four miles, I chose to crossover to the Sawmill Trail straight from the bottom of Horse Canyon Road and take the Sawmill Trail back to the trailhead. A great morning. Finally! And, thanks to whoever made that trail!

Stats: 4 miles; 960' gain; 3 hours of discovery

Another view of Horse Canyon Spring

Starting down Horse Canyon Road

Trail sign near the turnoff to crossover to Macks Canyon Road from Sawmill

5 Mile Workout from Robbers Roost Trailhead - 6/25/26

Fletcher Peak from below North Loop Trailhead

Mummy's Toe from Equestrian Switchbacks

Sample of Bridges Trail

Another sample of Bridges Trail

This particular route is quite good for a simple workout. It begins with a steep uphill and continues with a long rolling challenge. In the end, save a little energy for a long gradual uphill and top it off with a short steep climb back to the trailhead. In 2.5 to 3.5 hours you get back in the car feeling like you did something! However, I suggest that this route is done on a weekend when the bikers are not about. They like the same trails! 

     The hike begins from Robbers Roost Trailhead on Deer Creek Road in the Spring Mountains. After crossing the road, climb up to a junction trail and turn right onto an old part of the Old Deer Creek Road. Just when the old road veers to the right, the Bridges Trail takes off to the left. The bikers have built several bridges to cross the washes and there is even a huge dangerous bike jump in the middle of the climb that they have built. The climb is very steep and sometimes slippery. This climb will guarantee to get your heart rate up! You arrive at the top at the North Loop Trailhead parking. Next, the long downhill begins by turning right onto Deer Creek Road. When it's safe, cross the road and hike down to the next road to the left. This is Angel Peak Place. Cross the road junction there and find a good place to drop down to the small gulley below. I've named this wash "Trash Gulley" because every winter, it is trashed by families doing snow play! We usually come by every summer and clean up a little to the tune of 3-5 large trash bags full!

Bridges Trail (I advise ascent only!)

Trash Gulley

I was pleased to see that on this hike, the gulley was still clean from a hike the Lady Hikers did on March 21st this year. I might have to change the name if this keeps up! Following the small wash takes a hiker down to the bottom first corner of the Upper Showgirl Trail. Turning to the right, the Original Showgirl Trail is well travelled and very clear. Follow the trail around the hills to the right winding in and out below Deer Creek Road and on to a signed junction. The sign will show a left turn onto the Original Showgirl. (This trail, if followed to the end, will take you all the way down to the Lower Showgirl Trailhead on Kyle Canyon Road just above the Harris Springs Road turnoff. The entire one way trail is 8.6 miles with an elevation loss of 2627'. The Lady Hikers did this hike in 5 hours or so. The interesting thing about this hike is that it takes you through 3-4 different Life Zones. (From Ponderosa pine and manzanita, to Pinon-juniper and sagebrush, to blackbrush and creosote, and finally, to Joshua trees and Yucca.) 

    For this hike, go only to the next trail sign. About 50' past the sign, there is a clearing to the right, descend through this clearing to a trail and turn right. This is a connector trail to the Trough Trail. Follow this trail, and turn left on a steep section of the Trough Trail. A sharp turn onto the Equestrian Switchback (no sign) is next. If you don't turn here, you will pass by the trough that is used by several species of wildlife especially during the night hours. (Ask me how I know!) Follow the long Equestrian Switchback back to the Trough Trail and cross to the switchback continuation. 

Upper Original Showgirl Trail

Junction of Original Showgirl and Hike a Bike

This trail finishes at Telephone Canyon Road. There is another trail sign here. Your choice is to turn right and climb all the way up the dirt road back to the trailhead, or, follow Atomic Duck down to where it junctions with Tin Can Alley then climb up to Robbers Roost. There is a third choice! Start up Telephone Canyon Road and watch to your left. The Tin Can Alley trail parallels and comes near the dirt road. It is a much more pleasant way to climb back up the hill. Study the maps below. I hope it helps.

Stats: ~5 miles; ~1350' gain; 3.25 hours

Connector to Trough Trail and Equestrian Switchbacks

Telephone Canyon Road

Junction with Robbers Roost Trailhead Connector

Walla Walla Wash Photo Essay (Staying outside the closed areas of Mt. Charleston Wilderness & SMRA) - 6/15/26

                                                                       View up the mouth of Big Falls Canyon

In August of 2023, the remnants of a storm named Hurricane Hilary made their way to the Spring Mountains National Recreation Area in Kyle and Lee Canyons. This is the first hike I have made up into the Walla Walla Wash area near Big Falls Canyon and within sight of the cliffs above Mary Jane Falls since the storm. The Mary Jane Falls and Trail Canyon Trails are both still closed at this writing. Therefore, three Lady Hikers made their way from the Echo Trailhead, up and over Hidden Falls wash and down through the old ski area, to reach Walla Walla Wash that flows down from the base of Charleston Peak on the left side of Kyle Canyon as you ascend. We made sure we were not crossing any boundaries with the closed trails and closed forested burn areas. We just wanted to see what was going on. It has been three years since the storm. And, it appears that some hikers have already climbed up to Big Falls on a regular basis. There are cairns and trails in the rocks. We stopped our climb when Big Falls Canyon made its decided curve to the left about 150' after the "island area" and Avalanche Canyon junction at its mouth.

Joining the mouth of Big Falls Canyon

 The information in this blog about Hilary is taken verbatim from Wikipedia. There was much more information there that I chose not to include. My purpose of this blog is simply to give people a peek into the huge amount of damage done in this area and to relive that day when Hurricane Hilary hit town. (Or, more specifically, hit Kyle Canyon.) It was interesting to see what the flooding uncovered in the wash but, more interesting how thorough the flood damage inundated the area. It was a lesson in the power of water, to be sure!

Joining the mouth of Big Falls Canyon

The origins of Hurricane Hilary were from a tropical wave that exited the western coast of Africa around August 3. The wave moved westward across the Atlantic Ocean, reaching the Lesser Antilles by August 9. On that day, the National Hurricane Center (NHC) first identified the potential for the eventual development, 156 hours before Hilary's formation. The tropical wave crossed Central America into the far eastern Pacific Ocean on August 12, producing a large area of disorganized convection, or thunderstorms. As early as August 13, hurricane prediction models anticipated a tropical cyclone would affect Mexico and the southwestern United States. A low-pressure area developed on August 14 south of the Gulf of Tehuantepec, as the thunderstorms gradually organized. After a low-level circulation formed early on August 16, the system developed into a tropical depression by 06:00 UTC, located about 345 mi (555 km) south of  Acapulco. Six hours later, the depression intensified into a tropical storm, and the NHC named it Hilary.

Nearing the curve into Big Falls Canyon

The hurricane weakened into a tropical storm on August 20, as wind shear from the trough displaced the thunderstorms far north of the center. At around 17:00 UTC that day, Hilary made landfall in a sparsely populated part of the municipality of San Quintin, Baja California, with sustained winds estimated at 60 mph (95 km/h). This was about 215 mi (345 km) south-southeast of San Diego, California.

Walla Walla Wash & Big Falls Canyon Junction

After moving ashore, Hilary's circulation became elongated and disrupted over the mountainous terrain of Baja California. Devoid of convection, Hilary degenerated into a post-tropical cyclone, and early on August 21, it was absorbed by a new non-tropical low-pressure area, which was developing near the southern coast of California outside of Hilary's wind radius. Operationally, the NHC had tracked the two systems as the same, assessing that Hilary continued into southern California as a tropical storm, which would have had made it the first tropical storm to cross into the state since Nora in 1997. The combined system, which included the remnants of Hilary, continued moving through the western United States and eventually crossed into Canada.

Wider view of Big Falls Canyon

The remnants of Hilary moved through the western United States, producing rainfall from California to as far north as Montana. The maximum recorded precipitation was 13.07 in (332 mm) at Upper Mission Creek in southeastern California. Damage nationwide was estimated at US$900 million.

Starting return down very wide Walla Walla Wash

 The system's push toward Southern California coincided with a 5.1 magnitude earthquake that struck near Ojai, California, along with numerous aftershocks. Only minor damage and no injuries were reported from the quakes. As a result, the term "hurriquake" trended on social media. Because Hilary was already weakened by the time of the earthquake, researchers considered it unlikely that the storm triggered the event.

View back to junction Area

In Death Valley National Park, flash floods damaged all of the 1,323 mi (2,129 km) of roads, including water and sewage lines, with several miles of roads washed away entirely. The resulting damage forced the park to close for two months. 

Passing old road concrete Crossing

Near Lone Pine, floodwaters from Lone Pine Creek destroyed portions of Whitney Portal Road, which provides access to Mount Whitney. Damage in Inyo County alone was estimated at $500 million. Rainfall at Furnace Creek in Death Valley totaled 2.20 in (56 mm), setting a new single-day rainfall record; the amount was more than the annual average rainfall of 2.15 in (55 mm).

Trench washed out parallel to old Mary Jane Falls Trail

The strongest winds beyond California primarily occurred in Nevada and Utah at high-elevation locations above 9,000 ft (2,700 m). In a mountainous area near Mount Charleston, in Clark County, Nevada, wind gusts reached 82 mph (132 km/h), strong enough to knock down a few trees.

Susan takes a peek at the old and new Mary Jane Falls Trails

The new peak rainfall in Nevada was more than double the previous record, with 9.20 in (234 mm) recorded in Lee Canyon. Across Spring Mountain Recreational Area and nearby mountainous areas, the rains produced flash flooding, which washed away about 5 mi (8.0 km) worth of roads. The floods also damaged underground pipes, a school, a fire station, and trails. The damage, estimated at $35 million, closed the recreation area until October 26, when Nevada State Route 156 (Lee Canyon Road) was reopened. The community of Mount Charleston had to shelter in place after electricity and road access were cut off. The town's fire department was inundated with mud, with houses and a nearby school damaged. A landslide also damaged part of Lee Canyon Ski and Snowboard Resort. Floods closed a portion of U.S. Route 11 (aka 95) in Nye County, Nevada. The rains rose the water levels in Lake Mead by 4.1 mm (0.16 in).

View up toward Hidden Falls as we passed back through the Wash

In the Mount Charleston region of Nevada, workers spent $11 million to reopen roads to the mountainous communities. At the Lee Canyon Ski Resort, workers used dump trucks to restore damaged ski slopes, reopening the resort on November 4.

Phew! After reading that summary of Hurricane Hilary's aftermath in damage, I don't know about you but I realize now why it is taking so long to rebuild the trails. We are only a flea on the map. Still, we miss our trails and hope that the rebuilding will be worth the wait! Btw, as we were returning, we saw workers on Mary Jane Falls Trail hiking up to their day's worksite. Most of the workers were the boys from SMYC. They are very good workers! YOU ROCK, boys! We love you!

< 4 miles of rocks!; ~700' gain; 3.5 hours