Monument Canyon to Broadway Cave

We drove out to the Superstition Mountains in Tonto National Forest to hike up to Broadway Cave via Monument Canyon., about 4.3 miles round trip with 977' gain. We started as the sun was rising. A lovely chain fruit cholla near the start of the trail.

Lovely colors to the west, Flat Iron in the Superstition Mountains in front of us.

Lots of saguaro cacti and color to the west,

so beautiful!

We hiked past some tall saguaros!

Sun coming up over the horizon to the east.

Most of the trail was an easy grade towards the Superstition Mountains.

As the trail continued, it got a little steeper. Up in the rocks is Broadway Cave. The trail up to the cave is an unofficial boot path that enters the Superstition Wilderness..

A large cairn is at the split in the unofficial trail, take the right spur to Broadway Cave and the left spur to Fireplace Ruins.

The last 1/4 mile to the cave is steep!

entrance to the cave

view looking southwest from inside the cave

mine shaft in the cave, we went a short ways down and stopped where we would have needed to crawl

Spur trail heading up to Fireplace Ruins

Fireplace Ruins

Lovely rocks in the Superstition Mountains

two of the wildflowers we saw along the trail today.

 

 

Damnation Creek

We stopped at the Damnation Creek Trail to hike down to the beach in Redwoods National and State Parks today. This is a short 4.2 mile round trip hike through the beautiful redwoods with a 1,000 ft loss/gain. We had read that there is no water in the creek, so we could walk down across the creek bed to reach the beach today. We saw 2 other hikers near the beginning of the trail and no others today.

So beautiful and refreshing walking through the forest! Laraine Friend took this photo of me.

So beautiful!!!

After our trail crossed the Coast Trail, we saw this sign and continued on.

Lots of ferns and other greenery along the way.

The first bridge was in good shape, just a couple of places to be careful where you step.

We did not cross this bridge, but easily crossed over the dry creek bed below.

Pano of the Pacific Ocean from just above the beach (the boot track leads over a rock arch):

Path down to the beach

Pano from the shore:

Love this view of this rock arch on the beach.

View through the arch from the other side.

zoom of the distant sea stacks 

Lots of lovely rocks on this beach.

We were at the beach at high tide and it was fun to watch the surf.

Waves crashing against this large rock arch out in the water.

Waves hitting a large sea stack.

Another look down the coast before returning up the trail.

Damnation Creek making its way down towards the ocean.

A beautiful morning on the Pacific coast

I enjoyed this redwood forest so much, it was a pleasure hiking back up the 1,000 ft to the trailhead.

Large rhododendrons towering above us along the trail.

Junction of the Damnation Creek Trail with the Coast Trail

Sun beams through the forest

So happy we stopped to do this hike on our road trip this morning.

Looking up through a burnt out stump

some of the flora seen along the trail this morning.