Back Road Adventure

Black Road Adventure Explore the Hieroglyphic Mountains and the Tonto Forest Desertscape North of Phoenix

The desert is by definition a place where rivers often run dry, rainfall is scarce, and the fishing is terrible. That's what most people believe, but take our word, it isn't necessarily true, as the "back road" through the foothills of the Hieroglyphic Mountains proves. This road is not a back road in the conventional sense. It's a secondary highway, only an hour north of Phoenix, that passes through terrain that is unmistakbly desert, but one where visitors can swim, fish, sail, jet-ski, or simply gawk at the spectacle of gigantic lakes impounded by massive dams.

A section of the road is known as the Carefree Highway because it ends in the luxury community of Carefree, but the name also describes the condition of that part of the route. While many back roads in Arizona are spleen-crushing, barely discernible routes across jagged rocks, this one is as smooth as a brand-new stick of margarine.

The western section of the road is State Route 74. It begins at Morristown, a tiny community 10 miles southeast of the old gold mining town of Wickenburg on State 93. Back in the days when Castle Hot Springs, some 20 miles to the northeast, was an upscale resort, the train would stop at Morristown to unload celebrities who were met by drivers from the posh health spa in the Hieroglyphic Mountains. Today Morristown functions mainly as a suburb of Wickenburg, and the resort is closed.

The longer cutoff for the springs is one mile east of the intersection of State routes 93 and 74, but the grounds are not open to the public. The dirtroad leading to Castle Hot Springs provides a scenic side trip, but it can be treacherous in wet weather.

Instead of turning north toward the springs, continue east on State 74 through the hilly unpopulated terrain, where stands of saguaro cacti are visible on both sides of the road. About 18 miles to the east is the entrance to Lake Pleasant Regional Park. Turn left, north onto Castle Hot Springs Road. This will take you to either Castle Hot Springs or the entrance to the lake. The lake appears to be a contradiction in the landscape you just drove through.

With the exception of the giant saguaros, the vegetation throughout this area consists of diminutive plants that, like the saguaros, have adapted to arid conditions. But a little more than two miles in from the highway, just beyond the entrance to the park, a lake created by damming the Agua Fria River covers 10,000 acres, which may lead strangers to wonder how an arid region can accumulate so much water. Some folks regard the dam and the lake that it created as an engineering marvel, others think of it as a mere anomaly, and still others see it as a blight on the desert.

If you want to see the lake and form an opinion over lunch, it'll cost you $4 per car (plus $2 per watercraft) for admission at the park entrance. You can camp in the rolling desert (though campsites are primitive) or fish for largemouth bass, bluegills, crappie, catfish, and carp. You can sail, wind-surf, or motorboat to many scenic bays where a variety of bird life is abundant.

The lake is open to all registered watercraft.

It's possible to get a good view of the lake and the surrounding countryside from another vantagetage, for $1, if you tell the ranger at the gate and he will direct you to the New Waddell Dam Scenic Overlook. From the deck at the visitors center, a good portion of the lake and dam are visible. The visitors center, closed pending the recruiting of volunteers, contains fine models of the Agua Fria watershed and the dam, as well as artifacts produced by the Hohokam, desert dwellers who inhabited the region between A.D. 700 and A.D. 1400. In the desert below the deck, visitors have seen rattlesnakes, coyotes, and entire families of javelinas. From the same perch, sparrow hawks, bald eagles, and redtailed hawks have sometimes been sighted.

Interstate 17 is about 10 miles east of the dam overlook. Cross the interstate and continue east toward Carefree, a planned resort community where fancy shops and palatial homes harmonize with the huge buff-colored boulders and steep ledges of the desert mountains. It's only 13.4 miles from 1-17 to Carefree, and all tourist facilities are available along the way.

A couple of miles before reaching Carefree, a well-marked road on the left (north) side of the highway leads to the historic community of Cave Creek, a former mining camp and ranching center settled in the 1870s. With the phenomenal growth of Phoenix, some 30 miles south, Cave Creek has evolved into a suburban community. Some shopkeepers there have attempted to recapture the atmosphere

Back Road Adventure TIPS FOR TRAVELERS

Back-road travel can be hazardous if you are not prepared for the unexpected. Whether traveling in the desert or in the high country, be aware of weather and road conditions, and make sure you and your vehicle are in top shape and you have plenty of water. Don't travel alone, and let someone at home know where you're going and when you plan to return.

of a time when the cavalry camped along Cave Creek and sheep ranchers herded their flocks from the north to James D. Houck's shearing camp.

If you don't take the cutoff for Cave Creek, continue east about two miles to Scottsdale Road, where Carefree Highway ends. El Pedregal, an attractive shopping center that looks like Taos Pueblo, is directly across the road. During summer, concerts are staged in El Pedregal's amphitheater.

Turn left onto Scottsdale Road and continue a few blocks through Carefree to the intersection of Cave Creek Road. Near the intersection you can visit the K.T. Palmer sundial, reputedly the largest in the Western Hemisphere; stroll through Spanish Village, a shopping center built to look like a small town in Spain; or visit the Tonto National Forest Cave Creek ranger station.

If you'd rather get away from upscale shops and restaurants, turn right (east) onto Cave Creek Road and drive a few miles to the Tonto National Forest. Approximately two miles from the intersection of Cave Creek and Scottsdale roads, a well-marked paved road on the right leads to Bartlett Lake and Bartlett Dam on the Verde River. From the turnoff, it's a 13-mile drive through pristine desert hills and a couple of dry washes to the lake's campgrounds and picnic areas. Most of the year, this entire route can be driven in an ordinary passenger car. However, during the summer monsoon rains, the washes that cross the road just before Bartlett Lake will be running swiftly. The force of a flash flood can sweep your car away or pummel you with trees and brush. Under those conditions play it safe: go back to Carefree and do something else. There'll be plenty of options.