Quartz Canyon

Quartz Canyon, 3AIII

Superstition Wilderness, AZ

5 Miles, 2 Rappels

22 January 2012

Overlooking Quartz Canyon from the North

I must have passed by this canyon a hundred times over the years as I drove through Tortilla Flat on my way to hiking and backpacking around Fish Creek and the canyons near Apache Lake.  Quartz Canyon, located just south of Tortilla Flat, is a short canyon (two-thirds mile), but well worth the rock hopping up Tortilla Creek and Peters Canyon and the strenuous climb to the ridge over-looking Quartz Canyon. Some fellow canyoneers had done this canyon over the Christmas break and posted pictures on Facebook.  I found some beta on another canyoneering web-site but not a lot of detail.  I knew there were two rappels of 120 ft and 100 ft but I didn't know exactly where they were located and was unsure on the best approach.

There are two routes, long and short, into Quartz Canyon and both start at the dirt overflow parking lot just east of Tortilla Flat near the museum building off of Apache Trail Road.  Parking in the overflow lot is free.

Tortilla Flat Overflow Parking Lot Looking Southwest

The longer route starts out climbing southwest over the ridge behind Tortilla Flat and continues on the west side of these mountains heading due south towards Geronimo Head.  This route continues south until you reach the west end of Quartz Canyon which provides for a very easy entry into the canyon at the saddle.  The saddle is exactly one-half mile due east from Geronimo Head.  Quartz Canyon drains northeast into Peters Canyon.

Robbers Roost Canyon

Robbers Roost Canyon, 3AII

Superstition Wilderness, AZ

4 Miles, 3 Rappels

21 January 2012

Atop Robbers Roost looking down on Peralta Rd

There are more than a couple of Robbers Roosts in the southwest but this one is a fun technical canyon just east of Phoenix, Arizona in the Superstition Wilderness. Just off of Peralta Rd in Gold Canyon, the trip to Robbers Roost takes the traditional route up from the Carney Springs trail head but instead of returning on the Peralta trail, we did three rappels as we worked our way down the canyon below Robbers Roost. The final rappel was the longest at 240 ft.

We parked the vehicle at the Carney Spring trail head just off of Peralta Rd. There were three of us on this technical canyoneeering trip, so we felt like we should make good time getting through the rappels. An AHOTE meet up group of 20+ had started out just before us on a Superstition Ridge Line hike with a key exchange in the middle. We met up with them later for our traditional after hike lunch. The final rappel can easily be seen from the Carney Springs trail as you are climbing. It is off to your right in the canyon adjacent to the Peralta Canyon. It is marked by black rock from the dry waterfall. This is Robbers Roost Canyon with Robbers Roost overhead.

View of the 240 ft Rappel from Carney Springs Trail

We hiked up Carney Springs to the mesa and Boulder Saddle. We then headed east along the top towards Robbers Roost. There's not much of a trail but cairns lead the way to the Roost. Once we arrived, we did an optional rappel down into the Roost just because we wanted to.  I won't count that rappel, but it was interesting enough with a tight start.  It dropped you right into the Roost.  You can down climb into the Roost pretty easily with an entry point near the Rabbit's Hole.  This is the way most people get into the Roost.