This month I have decided to describe a hike on the west side of the Santa Rita Mountains. West side trails are more heavily used than east side trails probably because they are closer to Tucson and 90% of the trails can be reached on paved roads with a standard passenger car. Unfortunately, the west side trails are farther from Patagonia and Sonoita. Because most of the west side trails are within the Coronado National Forest-Madera Canyon Recreation Area hikers have to pay an entrance fee to access these trails. However, Senior and National Interagency Passes, such as America the Beautiful are honored.
The Dutch John Spring Trail is one of the shortest trails in the Santa Rita Mountains; however, it is by no means the easiest. There is a nearly 1,000-foot elevation change from the trailhead to upper Dutch John Spring in approximately one mile of walking. The trail is not well defined in several places and paying careful attention to cairns is necessary. Although this is a popular trail for hikers and birders, you can still enjoy solitude during quieter times of the year.
After significant research, I cannot state conclusively who Dutch John Spring was named after—the answer has eluded historians, hikers, poets, magicians, shamans, kindergarten teachers and a slew of writers through the years. Some folks think Dutch John Spring was named after a German American named John Tannenbaum who moved to the Patagonia area in the early 1920s. Tannenbaum was known locally as The Dutchman and made a living working primarily as a cook on cattle ranches in and around the Santa Rita Mountains.
To reach the Dutch John Spring Trailhead, turn left off the Madera Canyon Road (FR-70) onto the Bog Springs Campground Road (FR-70A), which is just before the Madera Trailhead Parking Area at approximately milepost 12. When you reach the campground, drive to the bathrooms across the road from campsite #1 and park your car. If you feel guilty taking up that parking space, you could use the bathroom before starting your hike. The Dutch John Spring Trailhead is directly across the road from the bathrooms on the left side of campsite #1.
The trail leaves the Bog Springs Campground heading up a combination ramp/staircase constructed from stone and passing almost directly through campsite #1. In a short distance, the trail passes through a narrow hiker gate. Beyond the gate, the route begins to look like a trail, winding along a narrow path 40 feet above the floor of a steep-walled canyon. The path crosses to the south side of a rocky creek bed, switches back out of the drainage and then heads up a knoll alongside a barbed-wire fence. Once on top of the hill, the track veers to the north away from a fence and enters a dense forest. After you pass a Carsonite sign on the right marking the boundary of the Mount Wrightson Wilderness Area, the trail becomes steeper and is embowered by trees for the remainder of the hike.
Approximately a half mile above the campground, a spur trail leads to the left into a shallow drainage to a clearing containing a steel, bathtub-shaped water tank filled with rocks, twigs, and leaves. Next to the tank a sign states Dutch John Spring. The most current USGS topographical maps have this location labeled as simply “Spring.” The topo maps, as well as the Southern Arizona Hiking Club’s map of the Santa Rita Mountains, show Dutch John Spring about a half mile farther up the canyon near the 6,000-foot contour line.
From the first spring the trail climbs uphill steadily along the south side of a creek bed. After a couple hundred yards, the path crosses to the north side of the drainage to a campsite and fire ring next to a 20-foot square dirt platform supported with stone walls on two sides. The purpose of the platform is a mystery, but I suspect it was once the foundation of a cabin.
Roughly 150 yards beyond the platform, the trail makes an abrupt right turn and goes up a hill under a fallen tree. In a few yards, the trail appears to end, but careful examination will reveal it crosses a drainage and continues up the other side. For a short distance, the trail is hard to see but the route is obvious as it goes directly up the floor of a narrow ravine and then climbs above the drainage on the left side. Where the drainage widens and the trail dips slightly, look on the right side of the trail for a small cairn balancing on a fallen log. The cairn may have vanished, but I am sure the tree is still there. There was another larger cairn about 50 feet away on the far side of the wash. Here, the creek is quite wide and filled with large rocks, brush, and trees.
This may have been the location of Upper Dutch John Spring, although I could not find a seep or any other source of water within close proximity. If you are having a lucky day, you may find two cement water catchments some believe to be Dutch John Spring. One has 8/14/43 etched into the side of it.
A well-worn trail continues up the slope on the north side of the canyon. The route passes directly in front of a large cliff face before crossing to the south side of the drainage where it ends at a water seep at the base of a rock wall. Perhaps this is the real Dutch John Spring, as it seems to be the most reliable water source in the canyon.