How to get to the Coves [Archive]

View Full Version : How to get to the Coves

lamanite480

08-23-2006, 03:26 PM

I know that its at Butcher Jones, but beyond the fence how does one get to the beach of saguaro lake? is that the same as the coves? please help! :confused:

SHNIPE

08-23-2006, 03:29 PM

when you get to the parking lot at butcher jones go to the back of the lot. There is a large green cattle gate and guard. Go through it. follow the brown trail markers to the right and up the first couple of hills. It kinda becomes obvious how to get back in there once youre going. Make sure you DONT GO ALONE cause its easy to get stuck or in hairy situations even though it seems like a simple run through washes... besides the lake is always more fun with people!

lamanite480

08-23-2006, 05:48 PM

Anyone wanna make a quick run out there?

SHNIPE

08-23-2006, 06:29 PM

Im stuck at work or i would. Im one of those guys that has had one of the experiences of being stuck out there alone cause i thought i would be fine. yeah fine got me stuck on the side of the hill between coves 1 and 2 and no way up or down.... be safe

Az Bratt Pakk

08-23-2006, 06:33 PM

It is closed right now not sure for how long

lamanite480

08-23-2006, 07:14 PM

weak sauce!

GLEN REAMS

08-24-2006, 01:33 AM

the road to the butcher jones cove is closed the one that you can just drive up and pay to park but if you go north up the road about a half a mile there is another pull off and to the left there is a parking lot for the boat over flow area but keep straight and try not to wander off to far to the north stay as south as possible alot of the washes end up as a dead end and its very easy to get turned around went out there saturday and had direct out a lifted blue xj that was pulling a tj that once he got out there his fuel pump took a crap on him and what we thought would take a hour at the most turned into a 6 hour day and he ended up having to get directed out by a sheriff helicopter it was a pretty intresting day haha but its alot funner with other jeepers

etropic

08-24-2006, 02:23 PM

be carefully when it's raining.... you might end up like our friend JJ...

http://www.virtualjeepclub.com/showthread.php?t=15752

http://www.virtualjeepclub.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=6898&d=1155883543

that was not two weeks ago

8upXJ

08-24-2006, 10:33 PM

GLEN REAMS

08-25-2006, 01:24 AM

the crazy thing is in the other post about this jeep is that he got the thing running thats amazing!

lamanite480

08-25-2006, 10:06 AM

be carefully when it's raining.... you might end up like our friend JJ...

http://www.virtualjeepclub.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=6898&d=1155883543

that was not two weeks ago

Hell No! if that happens, i'll do "Lone Wolf Mcquade" style (movie with Chuck Norris) and pour Beer all over myself and smash down on the pedal!

etropic

08-25-2006, 10:54 AM

Hell No! if that happens, i'll do "Lone Wolf Mcquade" style (movie with Chuck Norris) and pour Beer all over myself and smash down on the pedal!

He said within 10 minutes of BONE DRY the water was almost up to his knees. They were on thier way out and a three foot wall of water came crashing down on them like a tidal wave. It was all they could do to get out safely !

shannonmac

08-26-2006, 08:51 AM

the crazy thing is in the other post about this jeep is that he got the thing running thats amazing!

wow...now that's good karma right there...

ryan rich

08-26-2006, 11:18 AM

so the coves r still open but have to go through the rolls to get there correct:confused:

David C

08-26-2006, 07:58 PM

so the coves r still open but have to go through the rolls to get there correct:confused:

You are correct. You can enter at Pobrecito boat waiting area. Just go across the cattle guard of the open gate and turn left. It is a labyrinth of trails from there. Pobrecito is about a quarter to half mile north of Butcher Jones Rd on Bush Hwy.

corwyyn

08-27-2006, 12:22 AM

You are correct. You can enter at Pobrecito boat waiting area. Just go across the cattle guard of the open gate and turn left. It is a labyrinth of trails from there. Pobrecito is about a quarter to half mile north of Butcher Jones Rd on Bush Hwy.
And that cattle guard is on the southeast side of the parking area? Looking at Google Earth it looks like you take the south entrance into Pobrecito and just keep going straight instead of turning north into the waiting area, is that correct? Thinking about heading out that way tomorrow, I've still got a lot of exploring to do out there :cool:

lamanite480

08-27-2006, 01:16 AM

Thinking about heading out that way tomorrow, I've still got a lot of exploring to do out there :cool:

You mind if i tag along?

corwyyn

08-27-2006, 01:20 AM

Not if you don't mind being seen with a KJ :D I'm getting to sleep late (I usually do) so I'll probably head out there around 11am or so. I'll check the thread before I leave to see whats going on.

David C

08-27-2006, 07:58 AM

Yes Corwyn, you have it exactly right. Once you make the left after the cattle gaurd and follow the fence line for about 75 yards or so, the road will open up wide and trucks will be parked there and quads and motorcycles will be running around. You want to bear to the right there and I follow the wash down about a quarter to a half mile until I come to a road leading up the hill to the left. The trails out there truly are a labyrinth and it is very easy to get turned around and get totally lost.

I know that area well, but I learned it by going out there a hundred times with my gps hooked to my laptop running some very good mapping software that showed my real-time location on USGS aerial photos able to zoom in to 1m resolution. Even with that, I have found myself confused out there. The program is USA Photomaps available online for free. Just google search for it.

If you ever find yourself lost out there, just get into one of the large washes and head downstream (but not if it is raining or looks like rain upstream!!). Eventually you will end up at one of the coves, Butcher Jones rec area, or the road to the rec area.

There is a good chance I will be out to the coves sometime this afternoon. I usually head for the point between coves 1 and 2 and travel with Bustedknuckles5 in his red 94 ZJ. We will have our CB's on Ch. 4. If we do go, I'll keep my eyes and ears open. It would be cool to meet up with some other members out there. :D Sorry I don't have an exact time yet, but will it be after 1 pm.

corwyyn

08-27-2006, 09:43 AM

Yep, I was out on the point between one and two a couple of weeks ago:
http://members.cox.net/kbeverage/end-road.jpg
Finally made it out into two where we had lunch. I was looking to make it out to three that day, but two was pretty nice and a LOT less trashed-out than one. I'm still planning on heading out around 11am, so that would put me out at Pobrecito around 11:30. I'll hang there for a bit to see if anyone shows. I'll be tuned to CB ch. 4 and FRS ch. 4 (just in case anyone has an FRS radio).

corwyyn

08-27-2006, 04:32 PM

Sorry if I missed everyone - I made it to Pobrecito around noon, then parked up on the hill north of the parking area so I could have a good view of anyone coming in. Called for Lamanite a few times on CB ch4 but I wasn't sure if you had a radio. Left around 12:45 and went north to Four Peaks road and just kinda bummed around. :cool:

lamanite480

08-27-2006, 09:18 PM

Sorry man, i wasnt able to make it. didnt mean to leave you waiting. how was it? able to find the coves?

corwyyn

08-27-2006, 10:12 PM

David C

08-28-2006, 08:49 AM

Hi Corwyn, I apologize for not being able to make it yesterday. The top of that hill is a very good landmark and a nice view as well. Still quite a ways to the coves from there. Butcher Jones is closed due to road damage and massive amounts of sand, debris and sediment pushed down the washes. They are working on clearing it all up. Maybe we can meet up soon and take a quick run out there. I live in north Mesa and can get to Pobrecito in about 20 mins. I could be available on short notice one evening.

corwyyn

08-28-2006, 10:48 AM

Butcher Jones is closed due to road damage and massive amounts of sand, debris and sediment pushed down the washes. They are working on clearing it all up.
Thats what I was thinking, especially after seeing the pictures of JJs jeep that got stuck in the wash headed toward the first cove :eek: Except for the last 500ft or so coming up that hill I have now run the Great Western Trail all the way out to Hwy 87 north of Four Peaks (after 87 drops down the north side of that one hill). Now I need to go out Bulldog Canyon and pick up that section.

Only major problem with going out in the late afternoon/evening is that I work swing shift M-F. Weekends are better now that we aren't working OT much. We'll see what happens over the holiday weekend.

lamanite480

08-28-2006, 02:16 PM

I live in north Mesa and can get to Pobrecito in about 20 mins. I could be available on short notice one evening.

Do you know how to get to the coves from Pobrecito? if so, you mind if i take you up on that offer? im still wanting to know how to get there. typing it and saying it is one thing, showing me is another.

David C

08-28-2006, 08:38 PM

Hi Lamanite480. I sure do know how to get there from Pobrecito, or from 4 Peaks Rd. Getting to the coves from Pobre does involve a couple of steep hills, but nothing too extreme. From 4 Peaks Rd, we can run the wash for the majority of the way. I would be happy to run out there with you. I'll send you a PM.

corwyyn

08-29-2006, 01:50 AM

Oh yeah, did I mention how GREEN it is out there? With all the rain the past couple of weeks it has really got everything growing:
http://members.cox.net/kbeverage/saguaro-lake-overlook2.jpg (http://members.cox.net/kbeverage/saguaro-lake-overlook.jpg)
Click on the image for a larger one. I'll probably pull the large one from my webspace in a couple of weeks so I can free up room - it is over 2Mb!

OlneyJeeps

08-29-2006, 09:39 AM

No problem. I didn't try to get to the coves from Pobrecito, instead I went out to four peaks and came down toward the lake. Made it as far as the following hill before I gave up:
http://members.cox.net/kbeverage/saguaro1.jpg
I had come out this way from Butcher Jones before and made it to the bottom of this hill, but I didn't have skids to keep the rocks at bay. This time I was solo and didn't feel like having to climb back out since BJ is still closed, so I turned back and headed home. Still had a fun day.

BTW, has anyone heard why Butcher Jones is closed? Only thing I can think of is flood damage from the rains. Hope it opens up again soon.

You were almost there!!!! The big hill looks a lot harder than it really is. I have taken my 462A (when it had open difs), 77J10 (open), 88 Grand Wagoneer (bone stock , open), and even bone stock Grand Cherokee up it with little/no problem.
the hill you were at I refer to the "big hill". As someone else commented, it is a great landmark... you can see it from just about anywhere. The ridge it follows down seperates BJones peninsula and the mid coves. As you can see in the pic, fork at base of the hill... go right and you are on ridge that goes all the way back to BJones gate (I make right into the wash as it is much faster/easier ride)...
go left and you go through 2 small valleys (1st is market by little play crack on right) and eventually to play hills (easy down, challenging up if not locked) into play wash 2 (leads directly to lake). If you are not locked, travelling left from T, take 2nd right (you have to kind of watch for it)... this is easy way in (though we did pull a trashed Toyota out a couple of years ago).