Overview:
This route follows a green canyon bottom up into the fold between Burro Peak and Ferguson Mountain where it strikes the Continental Divide Trail (CDT). It then takes the CDT south over Burro Peak to the antenna-whiskered heights of Jack’s Peak. The route is one of the suggested alternatives for CDT thru-hikers and is well maintained. It could be a “destination hike” for anyone living in southern New Mexico, particularly in the winter season. For folks living close-by it offers a first-class opportunity to get those hiking legs back in shape as the season nears.
Driving Directions:
If you are coming from the south then drive Interstate-10 to Lordsburg and take one of the exits for Old Route 10/US-70/Motel Drive. If you are coming from the east (Deming or Las Cruces) this is exit 24. If you are coming from the west (Tuscon) this is exit 20A. Turn onto Motel Drive and continue driving into Lordsburg.
- In Lordsburg look for the “US-70/NM-90 to Silver City” junction. This junction is signed using large green highway signs. Enter onto US-70 west
- After 2.2 miles turn right onto US-90, signed for Silver City.
- After 30 miles, just past mile-marker 30, watch for a yellow junction sign labeled “TYRONE RD”.
- Go left onto Tyrone Thompson Road (signed), which is gravel.
- After 3.9 miles, where Tyrone Road crosses a sandy wash, turn left into the wash. The drop into the wash is a little rough but it is doable in a sedan if you go slow. As you enter the wash you will find a post signed “4249F”. Park here.
If you are coming from the north then drive to the intersection of US-180 and NM-90 in Silver City. (Inside the city these roads are named Silver Heights Blvd and N. Hudson St, respectively).
- Turn south on NM-90/N Hudson St
- After 12.4 miles, past mile marker 31, turn right onto Tyrone Thompson Road (signed) and proceed as above.
Tyrone road crosses several low points. The correct wash is immediately past the intersection with Forest Road 827 (signed) coming in on your right. A roadside sign saying “Help Prevent Wildfires” is also immediately before the wash.
Trailhead:
The trailhead is just a wide spot on FR 4249F. There are no toilets, trash receptacles or water. It is important to note that you will be parking in a canyon bottom. This may not be good practice in monsoon season. If you look back you will see that Tyrone Road is underpinned by about five large culverts. This tells you that large volumes of water comes down this canyon from time to time. If it is rainy then you will want to pick another destination.
There is a another road that departs from this wash that rises to the west out of the canyon bottom, roughly parallel to Tyrone Road. Don’t follow it, stay on 4249F in the canyon bottom!
Data:
Note: the map shows a short extension, north on the CDT, that takes you to Mud Spring
- Starting Elevation: 6320 feet
- Highest Elevation: 8020 feet
- Net Elevation: 1700 feet
- Distance: 4.3 miles (one way, without the Mud Spring extension)
- Maps: Burro Peak, NM quadrangle
Hike Description:
Follow FR 4249F for about 500 feet. The road will pull to the southwest side of the wash (left on ascent) and eventually turn back and cross the canyon bottom. Immediately before this crossing look for a prominent path that stays on the left side of the waterway. This is the main Deadman Canyon trail. The initial mile is a pleasant stroll along side the waterway, with canyon walls rising on either side dominated by ponderosa pines. The trail soon leaps through a semicircle carved into hard rock and begins a long but generally gentle ascent into the Burros.
At 1.4 miles from the trailhead the trail abruptly switchbacks onto the southwest wall (to your left, on ascent) and briskly climbs to the narrow-topped rib that also serves as the canyon rim. The trail follows the rib above the steepening and broken terrain of the canyon bottom then gradually contours below the ridge and back to the canyon bed. The overall pitch of the terrain eases here. On this date the canyon bottom was covered with lush green grass – not your typical Chihuahuan scene. Indeed, in the middle of this pastoral setting was a tiny stream with several small pools. The quality of the water was poor. Dense algal blooms were found in each pool.
Above this watery wonderland you will encounter a ranch road that is still very much in use. Turn right and follow it for about 20 feet, watching for a path that departs to the left so as to stay near the canyon bottom. Wind your way through numerous Ponderosa and the occasional alligator juniper. Soon you will come to a trail junction. Study the junction carefully so you will recognize it on return, then turn to your left and head uphill.
In another 100 feet come to the signed junction with Continental Divide Trail. The sign is a few feet north of the junction proper and is aimed at CDT hikers (see photo). There is no mention of the Deadman Canyon junction that lies adjacent to this sign. At the junction turn south (to your left on ascent) and follow the tread as it traverses the lower flanks of Ferguson Mountain and then begins a steep, well-engineered assault on Burro Peak. The fold of land between Ferguson and Burro is the scene of considerable forest devastation. It may be that years of drought and bark beetle attack have caused this sad loss of old ponderosa pines. At first it may seem odd that this devastation should occur on the north-facing slopes of Burro Peak. Once you get to the south facing side, however, you’ll note that big firs can’t be wiped-out there for the simple reason that there aren’t any.
The trail crosses just below the summit of Burro Peak. It is worth wandering a few feet off the trail to peer over the tops of mountain mahogany thickets and look into the adjacent terrain. The hill region north and west of the main Big Burro peaks look green by desert standards. In contrast, there is little vegetative coloring in the enormous basin comprised of the north end of Animas Valley (which runs between the Peloncillo Mountains on the Arizona border and the Animas Mountains in mid boot-heel) and the north end of the Playas Valley (which runs between the Animas Mountains and the Big Hatchet Mountains).
Are you up for a little more hiking? Then continue on the CDT south as it drops down through the cacti, banana yucca, mountain mahogany and scrub oak that occupies the south facing flank of Burro Mountain. No ponderosa here! It is a short descent to the forested saddle connecting to Jack’s Peak but the tread is very rocky and it requires attention. Look back once you get to the saddle because this is cattle country and some of the cattle trails leading off the saddle can be misleading.
The tread then makes short work of the ascent to Jack’s peak. The trail switchbacks through ponderosa until you hit a well-maintained road near the summit. If you were to turn left onto the road then you would rise the remaining 100 feet to the the antenna array that has grown on the high point of Jack’s Peak. From the base of these antennae you get long views south to Pyramid Peak (near Lordsburg), the Florida Mountains to the southeast and the Little Hatchet and Big Hatchet ranges in the southern Bootheel. The many dishes up there are presumably sending off microwave communications. It isn’t clear how much of a health risk that may be. If you scout the area to the right of the trail/road junction you will find a large flat area paved with concrete. A pipe collects the water pooling on the pavement and runs it to the Jack’s Peak Cistern (a corrugated-steel cylinder). Below the cistern there is a concrete trough. On this date there was only an inch or two of water in the trough. It was quite clear. Rest your feet, have a snack and enjoy the shade and cool breezes. Return the way you came.
Recommendations:
I went through less than a liter on a very mild April Day. Bring along extra water because there are going to be periods in which water is hard to find in the Burros.
If you run short of water then you might want to hike the extra quarter mile from the signed junction with the CDT north to Mud Spring. The spring is currently full and it seems to have a reputation for being as reliable as any water source in the Burros.
If there is no water in Deadman’s Canyon, Mud Spring, or Jack’s Peak Cistern then there is one further possibility. If you follow the maintenance road from Jack’s Peak downhill for about a half mile you will come to a junction where the CDT leaves the road to your left (watch for a wall-like cairn). Follow the trail about 30 feet and you should come to an in-ground (dirt) tank. Every time I’ve seen it the water has looked foul – but if it is an emergency…
I wore “ballistic gaiters” against the threat of thorn bushes and cacti, thinking that this trail might be somewhat abandoned. Instead, the tread proved to be in excellent shape. The few thorny segments are very short and it was easy to deal with them.
Remember that your car is parked in a wash. If the weather turns wet then you should turn too.
There seems to be another Deadman’s Canyon in the Sacramento Mountains over by Alamogordo, NM. This other canyon gets a lot of attention at the HikeArizona site. Don’t confuse the two!
Links:
KateOnTheRoadLessTraveled has a post in which she describes a portion of the CDT hike down from Burro Peak through Deadman’s Canyon. (Scroll down to Day 15). Interestingly, on an early May day she found quite a bit of water in the canyon, more than I found. This was in 2015, which was still a pretty severe drought year for most of New Mexico.
SheRaHikes also makes mention of the water in Deadman’s Canyon. (Scroll down to “Day 8”). Evidently the water in April of 2015 was low and murky, so it looks like Kate may simply have been lucky with the rain patterns.
A large majority of the search results I got for looking for Deadman’s Canyon has to do with fluorite minerals. Evidently this is quite a hotspot for rock hounds.
New Mexico Meanders 