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Massacre Grounds
Day Hike
Superstition Wilderness
April 2, 2005
by Ted Tenny

  GPS Route Map 

    We hiked in from Jacob’s Crosscut Trailhead, named after Jacob Waltz, the legendary Lost Dutchman. “I avoid the Massacre Grounds Trailhead,” Ted explained, “because the last time I drove there, the road massacred one of the tires on my car.” Six enigmatic hikers enjoyed this bold adventure — Lori Brown, Debbie M., Joyce Parrish, Brian Cross, Michael Humphrey, and hike leader Ted Tenny. The weather was sunny and cool, with a pleasant breeze.
looking east from the Treasure Trail     Jacob’s Crosscut Trail goes south all the way to Broadway trailhead in Apache Junction. We walked the first mile of it, to the Treasure Trail in Lost Dutchman State Park. Then we turned southeast and started uphill toward the Green Boulder. When we neared the top we left the Treasure Trail and headed east on an unmarked trail toward hill 2759. Desert flowers were blooming in abundance.
    The trail got fainter and fainter, as Ted looked for the cairns that marked our intended route. We passed through a fence, then found an easy place to cross a ravine before it became an arroyo.
Sonoran springtime splendour     Here the bushwhacking began in earnest. “We’re going against the grain,” Ted observed as we climbed in and out of washes and tried to avoid the prickly vegetation which was hiding some of the cairns.
    We persevered, only to find ourselves on the rocky slope south of hill 2759. It proved to be the ideal spot for a water break. Continuing southeast, we walked up a smooth ridge toward the Massacre Grounds. Along the way there were cairns and signs of a trail, but most of it wasn’t really a trail. Within a half mile, however, we came to a well worn trail that took us on up to the Massacre Grounds, where we had our picnic lunch.
climbers on the balanced rock     “It’s easy to see why the Peralta miners got massacred. You’re cliffed out on three sides, and the Apaches are attacking you from the side we climbed up on.” After munching an apple, Ted read about the Massacre Grounds from a paperback book, The Story of Superstition Mountain and the Lost Dutchman Mine by Robert Joseph Allen.
    We started down by making a loop around the edge of the Massacre Grounds, enjoying fine views of the top of Weaver’s Needle, the mesas to the east, and the Four Peaks. To the south was a balanced rock with two daredevil climbers standing on it. The trail took us to an unmarked junction, where we turned left to go back down the smooth ridge to hill 2759. There were lots of lizards.
eastern Goldfields, from the abandoned road     Instead of returning to the Treasure Trail, we turned right after crossing the second wash and followed a ridge northwest toward the Crosscut Trail. The ridge was rocky and covered with brush at the top. But as we descended it got smoother and less brushy. Soon we were back among the saguaros and desert flowers. We went through an opening in the fence, evidently left over from ranching days. Then we crossed one last wash, to an abandoned dirt road. Ahead is a fine view of the Goldfield Mountains, beyond the mining district. At the fence we turned right on the Crosscut Trail and walked back to the cars.
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Arizona Trailblazers Hiking Club, Phoenix, Arizona
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updated October 17, 2009