Brown Canyon to Ramsey Canyon

Lower and Upper Brown Canyon Trail
Distance: from where I parked, 8.5 miles
Elevation start: 5225'
Highest point: 6500'
Elevation turn-around (Hamburg trail junction) 6225'
High desert terrain

Sadie and I did another near-nine-mile hike and we didn't even start until 11:30am. Weather was beautiful with little wind or clouds. We started this hike from the Ramsey Canyon Road access and parked .7 miles up along the dirt road closer to the ridge. This took some mileage off the overall hike, as otherwise it would have been a 4.9 o/w hike to where we turned around, but it also provides for a more secluded start. There were many cars parked at the Brown Canyon Ranch, where many people park to hike the Lower Brown Canyon trail section.

A gravestone in memory of a passionate equestrian is at the ridge, shaded by a live oak. But the steep and rocky descent is a few steps away. Elevation here is 5225'.

My initial plan, since I started so late, was to go two hours out, two hours back. I had no idea how far that would take me. The first two miles in the exposed lower canyon, among the oaks and mesquite and blooming manzanitas and the dry creek bed were hot and dry and I stopped twice to rest. But once I got going again the landmarks came quickly: abandoned mining equipment, an old foundation, the turn-off to the Panoma Mine, the horse trough, and from there the start of the Wilderness, where neither mountain bikers nor horses are allowed.

I brought both cameras with me. With 12 pounds of water, snacks and the two cameras, my load felt heavy. Sadie drank most of her water from the creek, and there was plenty of that in the middle of this hike.

The Lower Brown Canyon trail, popular with hikers, bikers and horse riders, has two sections: one for hikers, the other for bikers and horses. I somehow missed the turn-off for the hikers, which branches off to the left after a mile and ascends a rocky and steep trail lined with oak. I thought I was lost since I got off the trail briefly to follow Sadie, who ran toward a steep rock slab thinking the shiny rock was water. It was not. I bushwhacked back to the trail and somehow must have found the biker section instead.

Once one gets into the wilderness section where the horse trough is, the trail takes on a more woody and steep character through lush riparian habitat. This is now known as the Upper Brown Canyon Trail and is part of the Miller Peak Wilderness. Horses and mountainbikes must turn around here. Larger oaks and now pines and alligator juniper dot the forests here. Cottonwoods, big-tooth maples and sycamores line the creekside. Yuccas, sotols and plenty of impressive agaves intersperse. This is a beautiful hike in the fall. There is no sign of a forest fire here, and the tall trees provide for cool shade. One of the largest triple trees is here near the mouth of the intermittent waterfall.

The first scenic vista is on an exposed rock slab, with views both of the valley and the granite slot canyon below, which also features a waterfall in the rainy season. This area is ideal hawk and eagle nesting habitat, but I saw no raptors today here. From here on the trail is more of a gradual grade through a shaded oak-pine forest.

A fence separates Brown from Ramsey canyon as the trail reaches a saddle at 6275' and then descends into Ramsey canyon. This is over three miles into the hike. The last time I hiked up here with Kevin in late 2004, there were mounds of backpacks, discarded clothes and lots of trash left behind by illegal border crossers. Today there was no sign of trash anywhere.

I don't remember the last time I hiked Brown Canyon trail this far. Was it with Kevin that one time? The vista into Ramsey is just as beautiful, and when I came across a clearing I sat in the shade of a young oak tree and savored the view, even though it was past 3pm and I needed to think of the return hike. I could hear birds now: mellowlark, bluejays and two red-tailed hawks. Yellow Swallowtails and plenty of bees were also out. I even spotted a grey squirrel. I think spring has started! At 3:20pm I decided to walk a bit further down the trail, and in fact reached the intersection with the Hamburg trail at 3:46pm. Elevation here is 6250'. Had I started my hike today early I could have hiked up Hamburg trail to the Crest Trail. I've yet to do that hike!

There was no water here. I photographed a few trail signs and then made the ascent back at 3:40pm, now enjoying the waning rays of sunlight through the trees. Leaves, rocks, moss and lichen were shining in their late afternoon sun. I took a lot of macro shots here. It took me an hour to get back to the slot canyon and the sun was sinking fast. But I was in no hurry as the descent is always faster than the ascent and I didn't plan on taking many more macro shots once it got too dark. The shadows also emphasized the dead and dying trees here; the color scheme looked more like autumn colors than spring colors.

I met one man walking a westie here, but I let him get ahead of me so that Sadie wouldn't growl and push to run ahead. I never saw the man again. He was the only other hiker I saw on the trail, and he went back via Brown Canyon Road, a dirt road open for hikers near the horse trough.

I took my time enjoying nature. I stopped a lot to photograph scenes. We were in the open canyon by 5pm, and now the faded sun has made this a cooler hike. We got back to the truck at 6:15pm and were back at home at 6:30pm.

Brown Canyon truly is a beautiful canyon, and this hike to Ramsey canyon is now a premiere hike since Miller Canyon has been destroyed as a major habitat.