2019 - Trip Report - Harquehala Mountain

Harquehala Mountain

By Mignon Slentz

Wilderness near Salome, Arizona is where a group of us spent MLK weekend. There were members of the Desert Explorers meeting the Arizona boys who had all worked for McDonald Douglas at one time, added to high school friends of mine from Laguna Beach.  Everyone took turns looking at each other’s rigs, discussing under the hood modifications and peeking inside the pop-up campers and trailers. Some participants stopped off at Quartzite first to browse the myriad of booths and stalls. On Saturday, the Arizona boys went shooting while the Desert Explorer contingent drove to the staging area off Eagle Eye Rd. to access the Harquehala Mountain Rd. The 10.5 mile steep, 4x4 and sometimes rugged road led up to the Smithsonian Observatory that was in use 1920-1925 where the sun’s rays were measured and data collected.

The Harquahala Mountains are the highest mountain range in southwestern Arizona, and are located southwest of the towns of Aguila and Wenden. The name originated from the Yavapai ‘.Hakhe:la”, which means “running water.” The last night in camp, those of us remaining sat around the fire watching the lunar eclipse.  ~Mignon