Lost Dutchman State Park, Arizona - September 17th to 20th, 2023
Lost Dutchman State Park is a lovely park in the desert, just southeast of Phoenix. It is at about 2000 feet of elevation, so even in the middle of September, day time highs were reaching into the 100’s. Despite the heat, we found plenty of things to comfortably do and see in the area.
Sunday was a travel day, from Dead Horse Ranch State Park in Cottonwood to Lost Dutchman State Park east of Phoenix. Rumors had it that the traffic from Sedona to Phoenix can be rather heavy on Sunday afternoons, as people return home from a weekend in cooler temperatures. So we headed out in the morning and waited until we arrived in Phoenix to do laundry and grocery shopping. We also avoided interstate 17 and took highways 260 and 87 through the Coconino and Toto National Forests. Most of the route was the same as the one we took four days earlier, from Winslow to Scottsdale. It is a more scenic route than I-17, but a little longer. We don’t mind longer if it is a much more enjoyable drive. Just ten minutes away from the Lost Dutchman campground is Apache Junction, a suburb of Phoenix, with a laundromat and plenty of grocery stores to choose from.
It was lunch time when we reached Apache Junction, so we parked in a shady spot in the grocery store parking lot, turned on the air conditioner, and ate lunch. Temps were in the 100’s. We had a full charge on our batteries and we knew we had electrical hookups at Lost Dutchman, so running the AC off the batteries for a couple of hours would be fine. In half an hour in the high temps, we drained about 10% of our batteries.
The laundromat was a little different. The machines at Superstition Express Laundry do not take quarters. You load a special laundromat card, then use the card at the machines. That means you need to guess how much you are going to need. However, you can get the balance refunded to you at the end, as long as it is $5 or less. We guess that is better than feeding the machines a bunch of quarters.
It was late afternoon by the time we checked in at the campground. It was hot, in the 100’s. We plugged in and turned on the AC. We had a nice view of the Superstition Mountains from our camp site, even from inside Red Tail through the windows. As the evening wore on, we saw a lot of wildlife from the windows as well. There were antelope squirrels (ground squirrels found on the Sonoran Desert that look like chipmunks), rabbits, flickers, roadrunners, and quail. We haven’t seen this much wildlife concentrated in one place in quite a while. It was a nice treat.
As the sun was setting, the temperatures were still in the 90’s, but it seemed somewhat comfortable. We went for a short walk around our campground loop. The desert, with its saguaro cactus, cholla, ocotillo, and other plants we don’t know the names of, was teeming with life. The quail seemed especially active, as the members of the large bevy would call to each other as they scurried around on the ground. It was entertaining to watch.
Monday we had a reservation for an audio tour of Taliesin West. It was about a 45 minute drive from the campground. Taliesin West was Frank Lloyd Wright’s winter retreat. We previously visited Taliesin, Wright’s original home, farm, and architectural studio, in Wisconsin (Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin - July 7th to 9th, 2021). Taliensin West was just as fascinating. They do offer a 90 minute guided tour, but it was sold out by the time we researched it.
The 60 minute audio tour was nice. You download an app to your phone and use your own headphones with your phone. They also provide audio devices that you can borrow. Clearly numbered spots along with instructions in the audio tour made it easy to follow the route through the property, both inside the buildings and outside. Along the way, you learn what organic architecture is all about.
After the tour, we drove into Scottsdale Old Town. For lunch, we tried Diego Pops, located north of the main Old Town area. They had quite the variety of unique Mexican fare. We wanted to try it all, but we settled on four tacos (grilled adobo chicken, crispy cod, charred skirt steak, and Brussel sprouts) along with three sides (jicama & cucumber, Fruta con Chile, and fried plantains). Ann found the chicken a little dry, but all of it was very flavorful and delicious. For drinks, we ordered the prickly pear black tea. The tea only had a hint of prickly pear flavor as the black tea overwhelmed it.
To burn off some of those calories, we strolled the Old Town. It was like an old western town. The streets were lined with small shops including art galleries, jewelry stores, gift shops, spas, bars, and restaurants. At the end of our stroll, we stopped at the Sugar Bowl for ice cream. It is a cute, 50’s style ice cream parlor that opened in 1958. Bil Keane, who lived in Paradise Valley, Arizona, featured the Sugar Bowl in several of his Family Circus cartoons.
Keith got his usual vanilla shake, but Ann opted for a Top Hat sundae. She normally doesn’t get sundae’s, but it seemed like the appropriate thing to do in an ice cream parlor. The Top Hat was a cream puff filled with vanilla ice cream and topped with hot fudge. Scrumptious!
We returned to the campground and hung out in the AC the rest of the day. In the evening, as the temperatures started to cool off, we took another walk around the campground. Large groups of quail were still scurrying around along with plenty of rabbits.
Tuesday morning we drove up to Tortilla Flat. It is a really small town along the Apache Trail, state route 88. The Apache Trail was a road built to reach Roosevelt Dam on the Salt River, which created Theodore Roosevelt Lake. Apache Trail is 45 miles long, from Apache Junction to Roosevelt. However, only the section to Tortilla Flat is paved. About nine miles past Tortilla Flat, the road was closed due to severe erosion. We only went as far as Tortilla Flat, about 12 miles from Lost Dutchman State Park. However, the section we drove was gorgeous scenery.
The town itself is a fun, little tourist trap. It was originally a stagecoach stop on the way to the dam. Initially a gold camp, it later was a freight camp during the construction of the dam. Today it is a fun little stop for tourists. There is a saloon, country store, post office, BBQ patio, a mercantile gift shop, and a small museum.
We ate an early lunch at the Superstition Saloon. Keith had their Killer Chili that they have been serving for decades. Ann wanted the Prospector, a pulled pork sandwich with prickly pear BBQ sauce, but they had run out of pork. Instead, she opted for the Dutchman burger, which also came with the same BBQ sauce. To wash down all our tasty food, we both had prickly pear lemonade. The prickly pear flavor was very subtle, as the lemonade dominated the flavor, but it made the drink a very pink color.
For dessert, we walked next door to the Country Store and had a scoop of prickly pear ice cream. Now that had a nice prickly pear flavor. If you’ve never tried prickly pear before, we’re not sure we can accurately describe the flavor to you. It is definitely a “berry” flavor, like a cross between cherry, strawberry, and raspberry.
In the afternoon, we drove over to Granite Reef Recreation Area so Ann could try paddling the Salt River. There are quite a few areas where you can paddle the river, including several lakes, such as Canyon Lake near Tortilla Flat. However, the Acacia Recreation Area on Canyon Lake was closed and Ann heard that the Granite Reed area is a good place for paddlers, as it is not very crowded, the river is rather calm there and has a reliable flow of water, not too shallow.
The parking lot is small, but it was early on a weekday, so we had no trouble finding a spot. By the time we left, the parking lot was rather full, as locals arrived after work. Ann put her board in the water just a little after 2 pm and was back before 3:30 pm.
The recreation area is just above the Granite Reef Dam, so you paddle upstream until you’ve had enough, then turn around to go with the current on the way back. It was a peaceful paddle, and it wasn’t too difficult to paddle against the current, for almost a mile upstream. Then the current seemed to get stronger all of a sudden. Ann was paddling as hard as she could, but wasn’t making much headway. A couple of paddlers had stopped on the bank just upstream of her. They were standing in the water, cooling off, and watching Ann struggle. She asked them if she was making any progress. They said “nope”. They then advised her to head closer to the bank as the current was not quite as strong there. Ann didn’t want to go much further, but there was a steer just ahead along the bank. She wanted to turn on her GoPro and get a shot of the cow, but if she knelt down to turn it on, she surely would be pushed too far back downstream to get a decent shot before she could get the GoPro started.
Ann managed to get past the really strong current and get the GoPro turned on. After getting her shot of the steer, she turned around and started heading back. The trip back was much faster and easier, now that she was going with the current. Ahead of her, she could see something floating in the water. Was it an animal? She turned on the camera again. As she got closer to it, she figured out what it was. It was a Croc, not the animal, but a shoe. She picked it up and brought it back to the picnic area.
As she approached the recreation area, there were horses and birds along the far bank. The horses were there when we arrived, but were gone by the time Ann got out on the water. She maneuvered closer to the bank where the animals were, with her camera running. However, she got a little too greedy. The water got a little too shallow and the skeg of her board caught a rock. Down she went, on her back, in the shallow water. At first she didn’t think she got hurt, but as time went on, her back started to hurt. The water was refreshing, though. By the time we went to bed that evening, Ann was in quite a bit of pain. She thinks the jerking motion of the board and her body jerking to react to it, pulled a muscle in her lower back.
As we waited for Ann’s gear to dry after she got off the river, we decided to make dinner. The plan was chicken salad sandwiches, so there was no cooking involved. Yet again we’re thankful that we have everything with us in Red Tail. We ate outside in the picnic area. The picnic table was in the shade so the temperature, despite being close to 100, was very comfortable. As we were putting our dishes away, a large group of grackles, who had been surrounding us as we ate, descended on our picnic table. We didn’t leave them any scraps, but they left us some poop on Ann’s paddle board that was leaning up against the table to dry. We guess they were communicating their displeasure.
Wednesday morning was overcast. It was a perfect time to go for a hike. Luckily, Ann’s back felt much better after a good night’s sleep. It was not back to normal, but the pain was down to a mild ache. As long as she was careful not to pick up anything heavy or move suddenly, she was fine.
The Siphon Draw Trail led from the campground up into the Superstition Mountains. We were on trail by 9:30 am. The trail ascends up into a small canyon. We followed the trail until it became rather steep. That was far enough for us, so we sat down for a snack, then headed back down. There were nice views out across the valley looking over Phoenix. The canyon itself was pretty, with huge boulders lying in the bottom. The trail continues up to a couple of peaks, the Flat Iron and Superstition Peak 5024. We didn’t have any desire to bag one or both of the peaks, especially since people were reporting that there was some rock scrambling involved.
We made it back to our camp site by 12:30 pm, just as the clouds were breaking up and the sun was starting to shine again. The hike was rather pleasant with the overcast skies. Sun would have been better lighting for pictures, but it also would have made it feel much hotter. We were thankful for the clouds during our hike.
We completed the 3.7 miles of 1237 feet of elevation gain in three hours. It was hike number 48 of our 52 Hike Challenge for 2023.
In the afternoon, we hung out at camp. Keith worked on moving the solar wiring over from the Xantrex solar controller to the Kisae DC to DC charger (paid link). He didn’t complete the switch, but he made a lot of progress. Meanwhile, Ann worked on a blog post and video.
Sitting outside in the shade was comfortable, until the gnats found us. They would swarm our heads. Every now and then, one would bit our scalps. The bites weren’t as bad as mosquitoe or no-see-um bits, but they were still very annoying. When we got get tired of the bugs pestering us, we went back inside Red Tail.
You might think that a desert is pretty void of life, but Old Dutchman State Park was teaming with a variety of interesting plants and animals. It felt very much alive. Along with all of the other activities in the area, we had a lovely stay.
Check out our related video: Lost Dutchman State Park, Arizona
(Ann)