The Lost Goldmine Trail runs 5.85 miles from the Hieroglyphics - Lost Goldmine Trailhead in Gold Canyon to Peralta Road. It passes through a rolling bajada on the edge of the Superstition Wilderness highlighted by a rich collection of cholla, saguaro, barrel cactus, palo verde, mesquite and creosote.

Red has the longest spectrum of visibility and is generally the last color seen before the sun sets

Loosely packed alluvium soils of the bajada provide ideal conditions for cholla and saguaro

A spine wound from a barrel cactus is considered a 'dirty wound', prone to quick infection

In the 1870s Jacob Waltz was said to have located the Peralta mine with the aid of a Peralta descendant

The Hohokam irrigated tens of thousands of acres at the height of their civilization

The Lost Goldmine Trail abuts the dacite and rhyolite cliffs at the entrance to Peralta Canyon

The Tohono O'odham use saguaro rib poles called kukuipadto to harvest saguaro fruit

Alluvial deposits at the base of mountains form broad, gentle slopes that may extend several miles from the base

Though succulents can absorb large amounts of water, they can only absorb water from soil wetter than their own interiors

The Lost Goldmine Trail features high concentrations of Saguaro and Teddy Bear Cholla

Jaconb Waltz first prospected in North Carolina, Georgia and California before arriving in the Superstitions

An estimated 30,000 golden eagles inhabit the western US, but little is known about the AZ population

Final minutes of sun over the Lost Goldmine Trail

Teddy Bear Cholla is also called Jumping Cholla - the cactus segments seem to jump off its arms and stick immediately to unlucky recipients

The Lost Goldmine Trail is named for Jacob Waltz, who claimed to have discovered pure gold in the Superstitions but died before revealing its location