The Pine Creek Canyon trailhead is located at about mile marker 10 on the scenic drive. Pine Creek Canyon Trail is listed as 2.4 mile easy-moderate hike. Deb and I picked a cool morning on October 17 for this trail.
A sloping grade takes you quickly down the ledge from the parking lot and across a couple of dry washes then on to the open desert. Varied rock formations chiseled and shaped by wind, water and time are all along the trail. Opportunities to follow the creek are available and of course we detoured to get a closer look at the trickling stream. After the first mile or so, the trail was marked by the ruins of a homestead. The remains were portions of the decaying foundation. The Pine Creek Canyon loop takes you into the canyon where the walls above provided many neck craning photo ops. Up on the cliffs above you could see the rock climbers that have already scaled hundreds of feet of the sheer rock face. A significant grove of ponderosa pines were at the mouth of the canyon which added another layer of color. Bright blue skies, Red Canyon walls and abundant green.. A photography paradise. As the loop left the canyon, we were now on a higher trail which gave us amazing vista views that weren’t available on the canyon floor. With the detours, distractions and our inability to stay on the trail, we logged 2.87 miles and safely back to the parking lot.
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