Tuesday, July 24, 2012

Apache Trail


When most people hear desert or Arizona they picture miles and miles of flat barren land with lots of cacti and tumbleweeds, however this is not anywhere close to being true for the Apache Trail. The Apache Trail, about 40 miles in length total, and is a semi-paved, 22 mile dirt road, intended for 4 wheel vehicles, that passes through the Superstition Mountains which connects Apache Junction to the Theodore Roosevelt Lake. The trail itself is extremely dangerous at multiple parts, there are steep cliff drops and very little in the way of safety barriers on the already extremely narrow roads, not to mention dirt does not provide the best traction around the hair pin turns. It is not intended for the faint of heart, or those without trucks and jeeps with four/all-wheel drive.  For those brave enough to trek the trail however, the sites and natural beauty it holds cannot be compared to anything else in this world.
One of the smaller dangerous parts of the trail
Map of the Apache Trail

The Apache trail was originally a stagecoach trail that ran through the Superstition Mountains. It was named after the Apache Indians who used the trail for traveling purposes; however the trail has served humanity for more than a millennium. The trail links Apache Junction at the edge of the greater Phoenix area with Theodore Roosevelt Lake, and travels through the Superstition Mountains as well as Tonto National Forest. The trail has supposedly been around and regularly used for transportation purposes since almost 900 A.D
The first step on taking this journey is to actually get to the beginning of the trail, which isn’t particularly entertaining. The beginning is right after the town of Tortilla Flat. From the metro Phoenix area it took my family and I about 2 hours to reach. On the way we got small teases of the beauty we would see later on while driving the trail, such as large rolling hills and lots of the flora that the desert has to show, including cacti, for as far as the eye could see. After a while we began to experience the very intense mountain driving, which brought us down to a grueling 20 MPH just trying to avoid driving off the sides of the cliffs we were on. This was probably the most boring part of the trip because we were going so slowly, we were on a paved road, and there were still lots of cars, RV’s, and trailers with boats all about. I didn’t have that feel of being truly disconnected from society, which is what I was hoping for and expecting.
The (Very) Small Town of Tortilla Flat
After passing the first lake and camping area, which was populated with boats, jet skiers, RV’s, campers, and all manner of society, we reached the small town of Tortilla Flat, pictured right. The town is extremely small with a grand population of 6 people total, one pub, and one gift shop. The town is amazing in the fact that it truly captures the feeling of the old west; both the pub and the gift shop are amazingly preserved and are both still truly original from their time when Tortilla was a major stop for people traveling through the Superstition Mountains. It is at this point where most of the travelers or tourists will stop and turn around or go back to the lake, so many consider this to be the “end of the road.” Only people with the intent of braving the dangerous dirt trail will go past the town of Tortilla Flat.
A quick bathroom break and buying some waters later, we were back on the trail. After about 10 more minutes of driving we reached the beginning of the dirt only trail, and after looking around taking in all the natural beauty, I realized I had the feeling I wanted of being truly detached from society. From this point on we took the roof of our jeep off and I stood up to get a full 360 view of everything for the length of the drive. While taking lots of pictures and trying to ignore the intense heat on my back and face, it was hard for me to imagine that this beauty didn’t even stop after 22 miles. It went on and on and on for the whole length of the desert. Large mountains and gigantic rock structures abound, it took me a while to actually become aware that the road we were driving on was no wider than a few feet more of our jeep. After realizing what we were actually driving on and taking a second to look down, I almost got sick from the height of the drop that was no more than 4 feet to my right.
We eventually reached the first “rest checkpoint” which consisted of two, absolutely atrocious bathrooms. This was the one downside to the entire trip; after passing Tortilla Flat, there is only this one bathroom stop, and it was absolutely disgusting. So basically if someone planned to drive the trail, you would need to go to the bathroom right at Tortilla, and then hold it all the way to the Franklin Roosevelt Lake, which is a LONG 22 miles if you have to go to the bathroom. Aside from the bathrooms however, this is the first spot we stopped at and were able to walk around on top of a massive plateau that had huge ravines all around it. Echoes carried for what sounded like miles, and you couldn’t see a sign of life or civilization if you tried, we were truly in the desert.
The "Rainforest" Ravine/Valley
Back on the trail we started our descent from the plateau which consisted of a full 180 degree hairpin turn around the biggest rock wall I’ve ever seen in my life. What I saw next blew me away, and I mean I was literally speechless; it was green, everything was green, it looked like we had just entered the rainforest. We were in a ravine, or valley, between two very large plateaus, heading down on the trail on one side of the mountain. The reason that this rainforest in the desert is possible is because the valley was protected from the sun by the two plateaus, which allows lots of green flora to grow and flourish, and whenever it rains the water just meets and sits at the bottom for the plants to get nutrients from. This descent was by far my favorite part of the trip, literally an experience and a site I will never forget. Once we reached the bottom though we began a long trek on flat ground, which allowed us to pick up speed and get some wind in our hair.
The first long stretch of flat land in a while

This picture is the beginning of the flat trail we began once reaching the bottom of the ravine. It allowed us to speed up to about 45 MPH while still getting some nice wind to cool us off, and still getting a great view of the mountains. It was along this road that we met our first, and only other car on the whole trail, someone heading the other way. Saying it was a hassle to make sure that neither one of our cars drove off the road while trying to pass each other would be an understatement.
The Apache Lake alongside The Apache Trail
After driving on the flat road for a decent amount of time, we finally reached Apache Lake, pictured right, which is a long narrow lake that you drive alongside until the end of the trail and the dam that blocks off the FR Lake. This lake was completely empty as opposed to the first lake we passed; it was extremely serene, and so relaxing that we actually decided to stop, take a quick break, and go for a little swim before moving onward. Given the location of the lake, I believe that most people that do take the trail stop at the place to relax and go for a swim, because it is essentially the middle of the trail, a perfect spot for a break. It was a very nice rest and much needed; I wouldn’t doubt that anyone else who drives this trail does the same as soon as you meet the Apache Lake. Then the mountainous driving began again, except now at the bottom of the cliff drop offs there was a lake instead of just more dirt and rocks. It was a nice view for a change, but didn’t make me feel any more comfortable or safe then earlier during the same drops. Finally we made it to the dam and the end of the Apache Trail. The site at the end was gorgeous just as I had been expecting, the largest lake I had ever seen. I couldn’t even see the end of it in either direction, literally a perfect ending to a perfect trail. The things that we all enjoyed the most about the end, perfectly clean bathrooms were readily available to all.
Overall the Apache Trail is one of the most beautiful trails I’ve ever seen in my life, and something I think everyone who believes that a desert is just flat land and cacti needs to experience and see; as well as everyone else that enjoys natural beauty. Given the trails length, it is definitely something you want to clear a whole day for. The only possible downsides are that you do need a vehicle with four/all-wheel drive, otherwise you wouldn’t be able to handle the dirt trail, and that there are no bathrooms along the dirt part of the trail. But otherwise the experience was amazing, and I don’t think I will ever be able to go anywhere in my life and feel the sense of just being away from everything as I felt that day. The natural beauty is everywhere, and every site, with the exception of the cliff drops, just makes you stare in awe at it. It was definitely a trip that I will never in my life forget, and hopefully take my kids along the path one day as well so they can experience the same feelings I felt that very day. 






























Resources
Hedding (2006) "Driving the Apache Trail."

Wikipedia

AmericanSouthwest (Unknown) "The Apache Trail"
Posted by at No comments:
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)