|
Weekend Warriors Arizona Hiking Guide
|
|
|
|
If a short climb to some spectacular narrows above a waterfall appeals to you, Deer Creek is your hike. This hike is accessed from a river rafting trip on the Colorado River. Deer Creek is located at river mile 137 on river right. Be Aware of: Some scrambling and exposure. This is a moderate difficulty hike. 35 yr old Recommendation: Deer Falls is almost a mandatory stop for river parties. The narrows forming the waterfall are well worth the short climb to enjoy. Elevation change: About 300 ft of climbing.
Distance: 1.0 miles round trip (to the patio and back) Time: It took us about 1.5 hours total. Time of year: Spring, Summer, Fall. Solitude: Not here. Deer Falls is one of the most popular attractions on the river. Map: Click here for map Deer creek falls is an unmistakable landmark noted while floating on this section of the canyon. With the abundance of campsites nearby and the available beaches to pick, stopping here is a popular choose. You could easily spend some time enjoying Deer Creek falls, but a hike to the narrows above the falls really adds to the enjoyment of the area. From the falls, there is a rocky trail on the left that gains elevation quickly. Be sure to check out the views up and down river as you walk higher. Soon the trail switches back and forth for a bit before requiring some scrambling to get to the same elevation as the mouth of the Deer Creek Narrows. Here there is a well defined trail, but there is some exposure to the creek running below, so it is best to go slow and watch your feet. This is the most enjoyable section of the hike anyway, so going slowly allows you the best views of the narrows below. A short distance through the narrows gets you to a location known as the patio. There is a huge cottonwood growing here and it is easy to see why this is a popular stopping point. The mouth of the canyon opens here to the Deer Creek Camping area but at this point the narrow creek is still enjoyable. Some may want to play and swim at this location. Others will want to snap those pictures down canyon. Whichever you choose, this is your turn around point. Return the way you came. You could continue hiking about 3/4 of a mile on well worn trails to the source of Deer Spring, but we ran out of time on our trip.
[Deer Creek Falls]
[view of the river near deer creek falls (note the abundance of boats parked on the beach)]
[narrows on the way to the patio]
[narrows]
[close up of narrows]
We did this hike in October 2007. |
