Skull Mesa Traditional Geocache
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Difficulty:
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Terrain:
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Size: 
(regular)
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A 5.75 mile one way hike to the cache in three stages: 2.15 miles easy, 2.6 miles moderate, and 1 mile difficult.
I was out hiking in this area last week for some new caches, and as I turned and headed east along the Cottonwood Trail, I looked up and knew I had found the location to place my first cache.
Trailhead access for the shortest route is located at the parking area for the Spur Cross Ranch Conservation area. There is an entry fee of $3.00 per person for entry into the park, which is open from 6:00 am to sunset.
The first phase of the hike follows the Spur Cross trail through the Conservation area, and then upon entry into Tonto NF, FS Road 48 up to the Spur Cross Trailhead of the National Forest Cave Creek Trail System. Distance to this junction is approximately 2.15 miles; a relatively flat walk on old jeep trails. The trail makes 4 crossings of Cave Creek that may involve wading or rock hopping if the creek is flowing. [Update 1/28/10: recent flooding of Cave Creek has obliterated a section of FS Road 48, and two additional creek crossings are now necessary for a total of six along that segment of the hike.]
At the Forest Service Trailhead, the route heads east along FS 1533 for about 400 feet to a junction with FS 247. Follow FS 247 for the middle section of the hike, which has some moderate climbing, ups and downs, and a net gain of 750 feet of elevation over the 2.6 miles to the junction with FS 248.
Now comes the hard part: head north on FS 248 to the cache location on top of the mesa. This segment gains 1050 feet over a mile of trail. This trail is not as well traveled as the others. Parts are a bit overgrown, and you will see cairns marking the trail from time to time, but not consistently, but I never had to stop and figure out which way I was supposed to go.
Once you've made it to the top, the cache should be an easy find. Take some time to enjoy the view.
All of the trail junctions are well marked with signs, but I have included waypoints for them as well. The mileages on the signs don't match up particularly well with my track log.
I have included a JPG file of the FS Trail System map for the area. Again, actual mileages vary. Also a JPG of my track log and the elevation profile.
I've described here the shortest route to the cache, but it is also accessible with a longer hike from either the Cave Creek Trailhead or Bronco Trailhead in the Seven Springs area of Tonto NF.
All of the usual caveats for a desert cache: bring lots of water, watch out for dangerous plants and animals, bring a hiking stick or trekking poles, wear sturdy shoes, and bring an extra bottle of water to boot.
Allow plenty of time for this hike. When I placed the cache, I hiked the round trip in 5 hours 15 minutes, but I hike fast and I wasn't stopping for other caches or sightseeing along the way.
The cache is stocked with a variety of swag, and included an unactivated FTF V2 geocoin for the first to find, which was claimed by MTime.
The Tempting the Fates, Skullduggery, Fear No Cache, Pirate Treasure and Wretched Skull geocoins are permanent residents of the cache, please do not remove them.
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
Nzzb pna va n perinff orfvqr n whavcre gerr.