Images of Tonto National Forest, Superstition Wilderness, in Central Arizona taken in April 2018.

Tonto National Forest is the fifth largest National Forest in the US and encompasses several lakes including Theodore Roosevelt Lake which was created when the Salt River was dammed by Roosevelt Dam.

I spent my first day in the area hiking in the Superstition Wilderness along the Siphon Draw Trail which originates in Lost Dutchman State Park and climbs into the most renowned area in the national forest, the Superstition Mountain Range. This trail ascends over 3000 feet to the Flatiron but I only went as far as the Basin (1000 foot elevation gain) as the temperatures climbed into the high 80’s. My mind was telling me to go to the top but my knees overruled and common sense won out and I turned around and headed back down the mountain.

Days later I ventured back into the park to go on a hike to the cliff dwellings in Tonto National Monument. On the way back to where my RV was parked in Apache Junction I took the Apache Trail Scenic Byway, a 42 mile long road through the Superstition and Four Peaks Wilderness areas along the Salt River that includes a 23 mile stretch of unpaved road with one lane bridges and hairpin curves. It took over two hours to drive but was spectacular as it wound through canyons and desert landscapes surrounded by jagged mountain peaks. It’s not a drive for the faint of heart, or for the family minivan, but if you and your vehicle are up to handling a rugged rocky washboard road and blind curves the sightseeing payoff is enormous.