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LHall · 08-03-2009, 10:18 PM

We just returned home from 4 beautiful days high atop Mingus Mountain. This seems to be a very well kept secret in AZ. It may be the electric only and the 3 miles of rough gravel forest road, but well worth the trip especially at $10 per night at the USFS campground. Here is a little information on the area and some photos of our campsite.

Mingus Mountain is a mountain located in the U.S. state of Arizona in the Black Hills mountain range. It is located within the Prescott National Forest near State Route 89A approximately midway between Cottonwood and Prescott. The summit can be reached via Forest Service roads that branch off from Highway 89A. From the mountain, there are views of the Verde Valley and the towns of Cottonwood, Jerome, and Clarkdale. The Woodchute Wilderness, north of the summit of 89A, also offers views and hiking trails. There are several National Forest campgrounds in the area and it is the transmitter location for Prescott full-service television station KAZT-TV and several low-power television stations serving Cottonwood, Clarkdale, Camp Verde and Prescott Valley.
According to the book, Roadside History of Arizona, by Marshall Trimble, "Mingus Mountain was named for Joseph and Jacob Mingus, two brothers who settled in the area in the 1880s and later operated a sawmill near the base of the mountain". Another source [2] attributes the name to William Mingus (d. 1911, Prescott, Arizona), a pioneer prospector who lived and worked on Mingus Mountain in the 1870s.

LHall · 08-03-2009, 10:27 PM

Here are some more photos.
#1 Hang Glider Launch Area
#2 View from our campsite
#3 Our Campsite
#4 My nephew checking out the view with the telescope

silverback · 08-03-2009, 10:50 PM

Louis,
I've been interested in that campground for a while. Thanks for the post. It's "just up the hill" from Jerome right? It looks awesome.
-Ken

PeeWee · 08-03-2009, 11:06 PM

Taken from our deck

TBRich · 08-03-2009, 11:28 PM

Thanks for the post on Mingus Louis...it looks terrific...glad you had a good time!

pauluptime · 08-04-2009, 04:28 AM

Thanks for the post and the photos. We're traveling through in early October and will add MM to our camping agenda.

Do you have any links to the USFS camping site/etc.?
Thanks

LHall · 08-04-2009, 07:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pauluptime

Thanks for the post and the photos. We're traveling through in early October and will add MM to our camping agenda.

Do you have any links to the USFS camping site/etc.?
Thanks

Here is the link we used: Prescott National Forest - Recreational Activities

LHall · 08-04-2009, 07:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by silverback

Louis,
I've been interested in that campground for a while. Thanks for the post. It's "just up the hill" from Jerome right? It looks awesome.
-Ken

Ken, it is between Jerome and Prescott on HWY 89A. the entrance to the park is at the summit which is roughly 6 miles outside of Jerome. Hwy 89A is very winding through this area and quite scenic. I scoped out the group area which may be reserved for a future rally. I think we could get possibly 20 rigs into the group area.

LHall · 08-04-2009, 07:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PeeWee

Taken from our deck

PeeWee,

You certainly have a nice view at sunset. Had I thought ahead I would have notified you that we were coming through, I had forgotten that you were in Dewey.

flyfshr · 08-04-2009, 08:13 AM

That certainly looks like a great place for a 4CU rally. How was the temps? I'll bet they were a bunch cooler than down here in the valley. Thanks for posting.

Brad
FF

LHall · 08-04-2009, 08:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by flyfshr

That certainly looks like a great place for a 4CU rally. How was the temps? I'll bet they were a bunch cooler than down here in the valley. Thanks for posting.

Brad
FF

The temps were in the 70s during the day and into the 50s and 60s at night. Being on top of the mountain there is a steady breeze, sometimes quite brisk, and we had to be mindful of our campfire. We had one pretty cool thundershower move through, very similar to the ones last year in Williams.

AZ-JH · 08-04-2009, 11:08 AM

Thanks for posting. Mingus Mountain is so gorgeous and the electric hookup is a bonus. Great views. We did scope the area out once with the tow vehicle but were hesitant to take the AS up that narrow road. We had concerns of another unforeseen RV coming the opposite way and someone would have to back up all the way to a pull-out. It didn't stop the other campers, though. There were plenty of RVs up there when we checked it out.

Gypsy Jo · 08-04-2009, 11:27 AM

Haven't been up there for a few years.Still beautiful. sure is a nice change from the valley.

silverback · 08-04-2009, 11:47 AM

I would drive up (if towing) from the Prescott side. The Jerome/Cottonwood side is definitely too twisty.

LHall · 08-04-2009, 03:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by silverback

I would drive up (if towing) from the Prescott side. The Jerome/Cottonwood side is definitely too twisty.

The road up from the Prescott side is no problem. In fact the only problem with coming from Jerome is Jerome. The streets coming up could be a bit of a white knuckle trip with a long trailer, and I noticed on spot in town where you pass a street that cantilevers over the main drag a bit making it seem very narrow right past the Haunted Hamburger.

The road from 89A is Forest road 104. Although it is gravel, it is pretty wide and there is plenty of room to pass two RVs. It is a little unnerving that there is no guardrail, but makes for a heck of a view on the climb. We just took it easy and went about 15mph up with no issues, we did not even have a piece of clothing drop in the closets. The fact that the road is gravel and a little rough, keeps many out I believe. The place did not even fill entirely during the weekend and there were many who just spent one night there and left. The other thing is that there is no water available. The nearest water is either Prescott or Cottonwood. The camp host told us that there was water available at the nearby Potato Patch Campground on the other side of 89A, but another camper told us that they were not allowed to fill there if they were not staying there since they truck their water in. We filled our 45gal bladder at the Giant station in Cottonwood and had plenty of Water for the 4 days we were there.

jimmini · 08-04-2009, 04:09 PM

Glad to see you have a bladder now and with your Gen.you can keep up with me.

I have found some nice boondocking places here in the White Mountains that are not campgrounds.

Glade all went well on Mingus mountain,looks nice.

To bad you can not make Benny Creek this week end.

LHall · 08-04-2009, 04:15 PM

We are shooting to come up there next weekend!

jimmini · 08-04-2009, 04:34 PM

Sounds good do you what to boondock or be in campground?

Quote:

Originally Posted by LHall

We are shooting to come up there next weekend!

elfirebob · 08-04-2009, 04:57 PM

Wow,
Nice shots of a beautiful area. Thanks for posting and your heads-up on access also helps!
We're up there a few times a year and will add that spot to the See More list.
After negotiating the Apache Trail, the Jerome haul is a piece of cake...
Stream Safe,