Spare Tire Canyon is a relatively tame trail for
narrow vehicles; anything wider than a Cherokee (XJ) and you'll do no more than wedge yourself in the canyon real good. Rumor has it a Humvee attempted this and wedged in the canyon so bad that a helicopter was needed to remove it.
The trail (FR 404) branches off the main wash and heads immediately into a narrow canyon. Recently the sand has built up enough to allow Cherokee through without incident, however this is always subject to change. In the past, even Wranglers (YJ) with their wider tracks had problems; now that section has about 2 more feet of sand on top.
After the narrow twisting canyon, the trail climbs up to the top of a ridge, giving you a nice view of the hills around you. After running on the ridge, it drops down into another wash along a knife edge. In past years, there used to be a large rock in the middle of the hill just to give you that extra spook; recently this rock has been removed.
After the knife edge, the trail travels up the wash. There are multiple lines to choose from so you can make it about as difficult as you want. In 1999, a chunk of the canyon wall fell and created another tight squeeze. You'll want to watch those rear windows on the Cherokees on this one.
A little more twisting trail with a few optional boulders to play on and this trail is done. This trail can be done with a small group of Jeeps in a few hours. This trail has been adopted by the Arizona Rough Riders and they perform trail maintenance and clean-up on it twice a year.
Needle Rock Solo 7-18-09
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