Backpacking Fossil Creek - Bob Bear / Fossil Springs Trail - The Dam, the Toilet Bowl & the Cave

Backpacking Fossil Creek - Bob Bear / Fossil Springs Trail - The Dam, the Toilet Bowl & the Cave
The best swimming hole in Arizona
Fossil Creek. It's amazing. A spring fed stream in the middle of the desert. Fossil Creek has a waterfall, another waterfall, a unique and terrifying swirling cauldron called the Toilet Bowl and plenty of places to swim.
And it is probably the most confusing hike in Arizona. I saw so many questions about it that I created a short video just to clarify some of the questions I saw over and over online. "How is the road to the waterfall?" "How is the hike to the waterfall?" "It says the road is closed." "Do I need permits?" The answers aren't easy either. And if you haven't been there, it's easy to get confused, and possibly to get yourself into trouble.
Fossil Creek has a permit system in place during the prime hiking time specifically because SAR has to do so many rescues. The hike to the waterfall? It's an easy 1 mile hike. But the road strands many would be hikers. The hike to the dam that is also a waterfall? It's an easy 4.5 mile downhill hike....that then requires you to hike back a brutal 4.5 mile, 1,400 ft elevation gain hike out, all with full sun exposure. People confuse the two. And with good reason.
And then there's the Toilet Bowl. The Toilet Bowl is a unique geological feature that almost begs you to dive in and swim through an underwater outlet. But the swirling waters create a a disorienting and sometimes deadly current, making it easy to get trapped, not knowing what way is up. And the current below the dam is very strong.
But if you can wrap your head around the logistics, Fossil Creek is a paradise.
If you want to visit the waterfall, you come in from Camp Verde and drive down a 14 mile gravel/dirt road. It's kind of rough, but not too bad that I feel a 4WD is needed. However, I've heard plenty of people talk about getting flat tires, so keep that in mind. Once you're there, it's an easy 1 mile hike to the falls.
In this video, I visited the Fossil Spring Trail (now called the Bob Bear Trail) from Camp Verde. The road to the trailhead is short and any vehicle can get there. But the trail is much harder from this side; it's the 4.5 mile (each way) in and out hike with about 1,400 ft of elevation loss (and then gain) that I described earlier. You first come to the spring, which is source of this perennial creek. It's amazing to watch water forcefully bubbling out of the ground, and then see how it creates this rushing stream just yards away.
A short hike and you come to the dam. Or at least it used to be a dam. There was an old hydroelectric plant here, but it's long since been abandoned and the dam demolished. But there is still an amazing waterfall, complete with the toilet bowl and a great swimming hole. Just downstream is a really cool cave you can swim into as well. Just an amazing place all around.
There is a trail that connects the two locations (The Flume Trail), but I have not hiked that yet. There used to be a road that connected both sides as well, but it's been closed for years. And that "road closed" sign (and online notification) creates constant questions from people who want to visit. Yes, you can get to the trailhead as long as you pick the right one. You just can't drive from one to the other.
There's also a permit system to consider. So, in short, there are multiple waterfalls, but one isn't really a waterfall, permits are required unless they aren't and the roads aren't closed except the ones that are. Simple. You'll be fine.
Anyway, I make videos, I'm not a blogger, so enough with the description. Hope you enjoy the video.
#hiking #Arizona #fossilcreek #backpacking
Music by Endemic Sound.
On a Whim - Tigerblood Jewel
Meadow Thoughts - Cody Francis
Out of the Cold - Nashional
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Filmed on:
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Canon EOS R:
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Weebil S gimbal for your DSLR:
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