Purple Pansy Mine / Hassay. Plain Trail
This trail takes you on a diverse desert ride past old mines and some great scenery. Beginning in the Hassayampa Plain, the drive transitions from fast moving roads to rocky trails near the Purple Pansy Mine. After passing an old mill site, the trail ends at Eagle Eye Road at the base of Harquahala Mountain.
**Permit: A very brief part of the trail crosses State Trust Land near the starting point. Check land map and get a permit if you are going to stop.
Where to go:
The description below travels from the east to the west, beginning at Vulture Mine Rd. and ending at Eagle Eye Rd. From Phoenix, head west on I-10. Take exit 103 (339th Ave / Hassyampa Rd.) and head north. After 2 miles, turn left on Indian School Rd. After an additional 3.7 miles, turn right onto 355th Ave. past the solar farm. Proceed 13 miles north and west until arriving at a stop sign at the Vulture Mine Rd./Aguila Rd. intersection. Continue west onto dirt roads and to the start of the trail. This intersection can also be reached by heading south of Wickenburg on Vulture Mine Rd.
Trail Description:
From the intersection of Vulture Mine Rd. & Aguila Rd., continue west on wide and smooth dirt roads. There are several staging areas if you want to park a trailer. The road slowly climbs as it continues west and northwest. This segment is extremely fast-moving and also sees a high volume of heavy semi-truck traffic. Always yield to trucks which can usually be seen from a long distance due to the large dust clouds. After 4 miles, the trail crosses a cattle guard and then a few large, dry washes. The trail continues to slowly climb and has some more curves. The terrain remains pretty plain, but gets better as go along. At 10.8 miles, the road curves to the left as it splits. Stay left at this important junction. You’ll see a sign for a rock quarry as you now head south.
Shortly after the junction, the trail passes the remnants of the Lead Dike Mine, off to the left at 12.2 miles. The mine wasn’t a huge operation, but there are a few interesting foundations left if you feel like exploring. Continue south as the trail remains wide and smooth. At 13.1 miles, the main trail will make a turn to the left. At this point, stay right off the main road and onto the lesser BLM Road 9108C as it continues southwest. From here, the trail gets narrower but remains in pretty good shape. The scenery is nice as the road continues to slowly climb towards some hills in the distance. At 14.6 miles, the trail briefly heads downhill and then passes through a corral and windmill. Continue southwest as the trail immediately crosses a wash. Things remain mostly easy with small stretches of rocks and erosion present on the trail surface.
At 16.0 miles, you’ll arrive at another trail junction at the base of the hill. Continue to the right, onto BLM 9110. To the left is a spur trail to the site of the former Aguila Microwave station where it dead ends. Continue north as the road keeps climbing. This section of trail gets rockier and more rutted out. In a few of the wash crossings, you will see some short paved strips from when the road was built to the microwave site. At the 17.7 mile mark, the trail reaches a high point as it turns due north. This section is especially scenic as you parallel a rocky ridge just off to your left. The trail remains rocky in places. At the north end of the hill, you’ll turn to the left and head west and cross a cattle guard. Stay left at a clearing at 19.4 miles where another trail goes off to the right.
Continue along the trail as it crosses a small wash. At 19.8 miles, you’ll make an important left turn off the main road to head south towards the Purple Pansy Mine. The trail gets narrower and rockier and after half a mile, will reach the Purple Pansy off on the right. There are several interesting structures to look at as well as some sketchy looking adits. Continue south an additional three-quarters of a mile to reach the Purple Pansy pit. This features a large quarry where you can see the steep walls lined with a purple-ish rock known as manganese. Turn around at this point and return the 1.25 miles back the way you came, back to BLM 9110. Back on the main trail, your trip odometer should now read 22.3 miles. Continue to the left to head west on the trail. Stay straight at 22.9 miles as a trail joins from the left. The trail heads west downhill and crosses a few minor wash outs & rocky areas. Stay straight at 26.3 miles where a side trail goes right to Ambrosia Mill. Numerous slag dumps remain at the former processing site of Ambrosia Mill, however, it is gated off pretty well. Stay slight left at 27.1 miles as it curves and meets the paved Eagle Eye Rd. at 27.3 miles.
Notes & Trail Ratings:
This trail overall is mostly easy. We’ve rated it a ‘3’ out of ‘10’. Almost the first half is wide, fast-moving graded roads. There are a few rocky sections and minor rutted areas near the Purple Pansy, but nothing major. A high clearance vehicle is a good idea to do the full trail with side trips. 4WD is recommended but not required. Allow anywhere from 4-6 hours to do the full trail, plus make stops at the multiple historic sites. There are also several great trail side camping areas. Easily extend this trip by combining it with the Harquahala Mtn. Byway trail or Big Horn Mountain Trail also in the area.