The Gila Box Canyon

Although relatively close to a major highway and accessible by passenger car at most times of the year at the mouth of the canyon, the Gila Box Canyon is still an interesting place to see and be seen. The canyon is only about twenty feet wide at its most narrow point, and is hundreds of feet deep. The canyon floor is alternatively sandy and rocky. This small canyon, just south of the Superstition Mountains, is not to be confused with the Gila Box Riparian National Conservation Area in eastern Arizona.

My first outing to the canyon was on a Scout trip when I was about 14 years old. We camped by a windmill above the canyon on a dirt road that started on the Highway south of Florence Junction. The canyon seemed like a spooky place with rocky cliffs crowned with hoodos. Our Troop had an old yellow school bus for transportation and my Scoutmaster drove the bus down through the canyon, when the canyon walls were only a few inches from the bus in many places.

In later years, I discovered that the most accessible road turned off of Highway 79 just north of the bridge over the Gila River to the east. The road, which follows an old rail line, is scenic but can be too rough or muddy for anything but a high clearance vehicle during part of the year and can be impassible if the Gila River is running. The road ends at a place marked as Price on the map with a parking area at the mouth of the canyon.

Do not hike this canyon if you are looking for solitude. It is a busy place, on most days in the cool months, dozens of four-wheel drive vehicle traverse the canyon. Since my trip down the canyon in a school bus, the canyon had eroded considerably and is now a challenge for the local off road vehicles. It is very interesting to sit on the side lines and watch the various vehicles try to negotiate the rocky canyon floor. By most standards, the rocks are not considered much of a challenge but the variety of vehicles makes for an interesting afternoon to watch the show.