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Coronado Hiking Trails |
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Price Canyon Trail #224 & Baker Canyon Trail #225
These southern Chiricahua trails are two of the few in
the area that are accessible off a road other than the Rucker Canyon
Road. Price Canyon Trail leads from
the end of Price Canyon Road (FR 317) up a narrow sloping notch carved into
the west shoulder of Sentinel Peak. From the turnaround at road’s end,
the trail proceeds up-canyon through riparian clumps of oak and ponderosa
sprinkled with a few Arizona sycamore. About a half mile upstream, the Price
Shake Trail
#236 heads west up a side canyon. A mile upstream from the trailhead, at
a series of seeps called Price Spring, there is an old dam and an exceptional
stand of Arizona cypress, madrone and other desert canyon trees that have
grown
large and tall enough to cause most who pass this way to stop and take note.
Their success at achieving heights not normally known for their species is
due, no doubt, to the narrow configuration of the canyon here and the plentiful
supply of water.
Above Price Spring, the trail enters the Chiricahua Wilderness
and continues to climb the canyon through more stands of cypress,
ponderosa and Douglas-fir.
After passing both the Baker and Rucker Canyon trail junctions, the Price
Canyon Trail leaves the canyon for which it is named to switchback
1,600 feet to the
Crest Trail #270. From this junction, a turn east (right) on the Crest Trail
takes you 2.1 miles to the 9,000 foot summit of Sentinel Peak. After visiting
that high vantage point and enjoying its far reaching views, you can return
to the Price Canyon Trail via the Baker Canyon Trail #225. This steep,
rocky pathway
staircases down Sentinel’s south face, giving you a chance to enjoy those
bragging size views a little longer before you drop into Baker Canyon and continue
your trip back to Price Canyon and the trailhead.
Attractions:
Remote and secluded
Big trees, lush canyon
Access to Sentinel Peak’s views
Access to other trails
10.8 mile loop trip possible
Season: Spring, summer
Length: 5.8 miles (#224), 2.9 miles (#265)
Elevation: 5,840'-9,000'
Rating: More difficult
Use: Light
USGS Map(s): Chiricahua Peak, Portal Peak
Access: From Douglas, take US Highway 80 north 32 miles
to FR 317. Turn left (west) and travel 11 miles
to the end of the road and Trail #224. Trail #225
is accessible via Trail #224.
Notes:
4.7 miles of the Price Canyon Trail and all of the Baker
Canyon Trail are within the Chiricahua Wilderness.
Motorized and mechanized vehicles and equipment, including
mountain bikes, are not permitted in Wilderness. See
the Wilderness section
of this guide
for more
wilderness rules and ethics.
Before using this trail, call the Douglas
Ranger District
for a report on current trail conditions which can vary
with season,
weather and maintenance
status.
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