Icy Hike along Miners Needle Loop

In early 2022, during a particularly wet and cold winter, I took all three kids out to Peralta Trailhead for a long, all-day hike. Our outings had steadily increased in difficulty as we explored more and more of the Superstition Wilderness together, building their little legs for a big adventure. Today was the perfect combination of unique conditions, a long loop that expanded our map, and a free weekend day. That did mean starting the morning with puffy jackets and warm beanies. I brought along a large backpack, knowing that I’d be carrying their extra layers as the day heated up.

The little climb on Dutchman Trail, as soon as you leave the parking lot, was a good way to warm up a bit. Only a hundred feet and change, not enough to shed layers, just enough to get the blood flowing. As we dropped down the other side an early morning view of Barkley Basin greeted us. The sun was still rising, coloring the distant spires with orange lights, and the valley looked chilly. I gazed out over the scene, picturing our route snaking through the basin and where it turns to climb up next to Miners Needle, while my kids played with ice puddles, a rare sight out here.

We continued down into the basin, a pleasant rolling drop, and were soon faced with the deep, flowing Bark’s Canyon. This drainage has intermittent flow at best. I’ve crossed over it at least a dozen times on different outings and have found it dry most of the time. Today the creek flowed loud and deep, and there was no way my kids were crossing it. I carried them over, one at a time, hopping across the rocks, careful not to slide in. My thin trail runners would not hold much of the cold water back, and we had many more miles to walk yet.

The rest of the basin section passed by slowly. Our trail was narrow and pretty, with plenty of Sonoran Desert growth to enjoy along the way, drainage crossings to break things up. Bark’s Canyon was the only serious crossing, and the kids were able to navigate the other ones on their own. And yes, we did stop a few times to break up icy puddles and make big splashes in the pools. This is still a rather uneventful section of trail, one I normally slip some earbuds in during and try to cruise along. The kids’ fresh eyes here, and their curiosity, did make it pass by easier today.

A few miles in and we passed the junction with Coffee Flat Trail, which continues east towards Reed’s Water, Randolph Canyon, and eventually JF Ranch way over by the Reavis area. Our route swung north with a few switchbacks, lazily gaining elevation. By this point in the day the cold temps had faded, and didn’t mind the tall mountains next to us casting shade. Miners Needle loomed to the left, the mountains to the right, and we continued up the drainage. Our planned breakfast break was just past the saddle, and I used that as an incentive to keep everyone moving. A surprise waterfall showed up along this section, so of course we had to stop for a quick photo session.

Past the waterfall, the trail swings to the side, doing one big lazy switchback before the saddle above. We were back in the sun, now warmed up, and pushed our way up. There were a few distractions… Tom climbed a few rocks, and I showed Noah the backside of Miners Needle, which is oddly accessible from this angle. From the basin below it looked like a series of hoodoos, towering high above. At this angle you can see an obvious ramp up and the hollow interior, the hoodoos almost forming walls around the inner section. With these distractions the last bit passed quickly and we soon settled down, just past the saddle, for a coffee-and-cocoa break.

After second breakfast, with the cook gear and our extra layers stuffed into my pack, we headed down a gentle downhill slope towards Bluff Spring. This section of trail can get overgrown with catclaw and other spiky plants. My kids do not tolerate the spiky stuff that well, and this was a slow section, with me frequently pushing branches out of the way for a pain-free passage. I didn’t mind the slow progress towards Bluff Spring. We had all day to spend out here, and plenty of food. As long as we got back to the car before the late afternoon and dinnertime, we’d be good.

We crossed the drainage by Crystal Spring, a water source that I’ve yet to pinpoint, but which somehow supports some decent-sized trees, and then turned back west, starting to close our loop. The next section of trail was a steady climb up some slickrock to a saddle near the Terrapin Trail junction. This section of trail is always a delight. It’s squeezed between the massive Bluff Spring Mountain and some lower hills, and there are boulders and seasonal water obstacles to hop over. Especially now, with the wet winter and thawing ice, those water obstacles made for some fun. The day was warm enough now that some damp jeans from big splashes wasn’t that big of a deal, and I let the kids release some energy.

A rest break near the saddle, and then the “all downhill from here” (mostly) remainder of the hike. We dropped down into the upper stretch of Bark’s Canyon (yes, the same one), eyeing up the impressive hoodoos and views of Weavers Needle across the way. When we reached the bottom, I made sure to point out the location of Peralta Rock for them. It’s normally barely visible, but the sun was at just the right angle for it to pop today.

Beyond the rock there was another climb (remember, I said mostly), and then some hills to swing around, and then a steep downhill. By this point in the hike we were all tired. We were close enough to get views of the trailhead below, though, which kept the legs moving in the generally correct direction. There were a few groups who passed us, and we passed a few, and eventually we reached the bottom. A long, fun day. Everyone fell asleep on the way home, so they were happily surprised when we pulled up to the house and had some ice creams to celebrate our trip waiting for them. Maybe, just maybe, they’ll be ready to tackle Flatiron in a few weeks.