Arizona Dam Site - Salt River Recreation Area

This week's walk went much easier.  I was determined to find the Arizona Dam site (it's a dam site better than most).  It was the original source for the Arizona Canal but the Arizona Dam was washed away in a 1905 flood and replaced by the Granite Reef Dam.  It's located downstream from the Salt River & Verde River confluence.  Last week I tried to find it by parking at the Phone D Sutton Campground and bushwacking west through the Mesquite and Salt Cedar thickets.  Not a good idea.  Scratched, spooked and tired, I skulked back without finding the site.

This week, I parked on Bush Highway just south of the site and followed a well traveled horse trail down to an animal ford on the river.  The dam site was just upstream.  Along the way, I passed this handsome fella.  He kept a wary eye out but otherwise ignored me.

The trail wound back and forth through Sonoran desert shrubs then through a mesquite bosque down to the river.

Old Mesquite (does this qualify as a selfy)

Trail to the river

After passing through the mesquite, the trail crossed the old river channel and ended at a ford on the river.  The animal ford was just west of the dam site.

Dam abutment in left background

As I started east towards the dam, I met a couple who had been unsuccessfully duck hunting.  They had just packed up their blind and were getting ready to return to their car.  We exchanged hellos and they said they were returning by way of the campground.  I told them about the easier route from the south and my trials with the campground route last week.  I closed by saying that I was spooked at times in the thick brush.  The wife said, "try it when it's dark before sunrise."   She said she pleaded with her husband to load his shotgun as they bushwacked through the dark thickets.  He prudently didn't but he said that he was tempted when they at some point passed an old cow somewhere unseen in the brush and she started making a big racket.

All that's left of the dam

Red Mtn in background

West from dam site

After getting a few photos, I started wandering back by a different route.  It took me through some old growth mesquite and what appeared to be some sort of man-made clearing.  The stumps in the clearing were very old but I didn't see any sign of habitation so it could have been an old hunting camp.

On the way back

Old Mesquite

Old camp?

Trail through the mesquite

The next place I want to visit is the old Monroy Ranch site.  There were several ranch sites along the river in the 1900's.  One in this area is the Monroy Ranch.  Monroy was married to the daughter of another local land owner, Dr. Jones.  The 1905 topo map (below) shows the Monroy Ranch site and Jone's crossing.  Another ranch, the Stewart Ranch, is covered by Saguaro Lake.  It also shows some lime kilns which are supposed to be still accessible via Blue Point.

1905 (1906?) topo map (McDowell Quad)

I made it back home in plenty of time for my son-in-law to borrow the truck and for me to do some book shopping on 50% off day at Goodwill.  I found several good books including a geography book I'd been looking for.  Hey, what's up with all the used microbiology books at Goodwill?  Maybe that's spooky too?

Adios