The Verde Independent

BEAVER CREEK – Since 2011, the Beaver Creek Trails Coalition has held a Trails Day event for folks to learn more about the community’s hiking options.

From 11 a.m. until 2 p.m. Saturday, this year’s Beaver Creek Trails Day will be held at Sycamore Park, located next to the pedestrian bridge in Lake Montezuma.

This year, the coalition will talk about the recently-completed Wickiup Mesa Trails system, said Stan Mish, president of the Beaver Creek Trails Coalition.

The trails, which serve Rimrock and Lake Montezuma, “took about six years to complete,” Mish said.

Wickiup Mesa Trails system, which includes the Forest Glen Trailhead and seven trails totally about 6.5 miles, was developed and maintained by the Beaver Creek Trails Coalition, in partnership with the Coconino National Forest Red Rock Ranger District and Yavapai County.

Montezuma Crossing

Technically, completion is a loaded word with the Wickiup Mesa Trails, as Mish said the coalition still has plans for an additional trail that “now is more like on a three- to five-year plan.”

The site of the proposed .3-mile Montezuma Crossing Trail has what Mish called “environmental concerns,” and that “three agencies would need to coordinate to make that trail happen.”

At the end of the day, Wickiup Mesa Trails will be Saturday’s hot topic at Trails Day, Mish said.

But that’s not all, as the coalition, in its master plan, is proposing another series of trails with a trailhead that would be “near the Beaver Creek Adult Center, where Montezuma Avenue crosses Russell Wash.”

“There are very few places in the county where the roads touch the forest,” Mish said. “This is one of them.”

The new trails system is still “a little ways off,” Mish said, as the project “would need to be adopted by the US Forest Service” and that “funding may be required.”

Beaver Creek Trails Day

As with each year’s event, local, county and federal agency representatives will attend the event and will provide off-highway vehicle (OHV) information and forest maps, as well as answer any questions, said Stan Mish, president of the Beaver Creek Trails Coalition.

According to Janet Aniol, the coalition’s treasurer, there will be tables with information on trail hikes, soliciting input on master plan, trail maintenance crew sign-up and a kiosk fabrication crew, as well as what she called a “priority project for recruitment of help will be removal of barbed wire.”

At noon, coalition member and Dutch oven cook Bill Stafford will serve up New Mexico red chile and cheese enchiladas, pinto beans and peach cobbler with whipped cream.

Don’t forget to pick up your raffle ticket to win a t-shirt, trail gear or other accessories.

Sycamore Park is located at 4710 E. Beaver Vista Road.

Guide to the Wickiup Mesa Trails

Bull Pasture Trail

The Bull Pasture Trail is .3 miles across open grassland from Forest Road 9202Y to the Mallard Trail/Montezuma Well Vista Trail.

This trail is rated easy by the Beaver Creek Trails Coalition.

Cedar Knoll Trail

At .6 miles, the Cedar Knoll Trail goes from the Forest Glen Trailhead past Cedar Knoll to the Mallard Trail/Well Vista Trail.

This trail is rated easy by the Beaver Creek Trails Coalition.

Elmore Wash Trail

At 2 miles, the Elmore Wash Trail goes from Sunset Loop Trail to Forest Road 618.

This trail is rated moderate by the Beaver Creek Trails Coalition.

Golden Gulch Trail

The Beaver Creek Trails Coalition describes the Golden Gulch Trail as .6 miles of gradual incline from the Golden Gulch Access to the Mallard Trail with scenic views north toward Sedona.

This trail is rated moderate by the Beaver Creek Trails Coalition.

Mallard Trail

The Mallard Trail is .3 miles from Mallard Access over a rock ledge to the Golden Gulch and Well Vista trail junction.

This trail is rated moderate by the Beaver Creek Trails Coalition.

Sunset Loop Trail

As one of two Wickiup Mesa trails at 2 miles long, the Sunset Loop Trail connects Golden Gulch, Well Vista and Elmore Wash trails.

This trail is rated moderate by the Beaver Creek Trails Coalition.

Well Vista Trail

At .4 miles from the Sunset Loop Trail, the [Montezuma] Well Vista Trail ends at a rocky ledge and a bench, and overlooks Montezuma Well.

This trail is rated easy by the Beaver Creek Trails Coalition.

-- Follow Bill Helm on Twitter @BillHelm42