The Trail:

The trail through Castle Hot Springs is a fairly well maintained graded road that runs in and out of a creek and washes. There are some nice Sonoran Desert vistas and the old Castle Hot Springs Resort can be seen (but not visited because it is currently closed to the public). The trail ends at Lake Pleasant - another nice place for views and a picnic.

Rating:

1.5

Runs:

Date: 1/23/2009

Suspension: TeraFlex 2.5" Spring Lift, stock tires

Photos:

A view of a wash (you don't drive up it):

Entering into a wash - it's well graded here, but can easily be washed out in a flash flood:

Another view along the way:

Another view along the way:

Another view along the way:

A portion of the old Castle Hot Spring Resort - looks like a barn:

Another view of the property:

The property was named from the mountains near it that looked like a castle - perhaps these?:

One of the resort buildings that still remain. The buildings were constructed between 1896 and 1905. A caretaker maintains the grounds and ensures that the public does not trespass:

In the sandy river bed, the foundation of one of the buildings that burned down can be barely made out behind the two trees in the center:

As the trail winds down into Lake Pleasant (hiked to the top of a hill to take the picture):

A view of Lake Pleasant from the end of the dirt portion of the trail at the top of another mountain that we hiked:

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Last modified: December 21, 2009 06:36:23 PM