Trails and Erosion Works – Madera Canyon AZ

Description

The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) was very active in the Coronado National Forest during the 1930s. Coronado National Forest is discontinuous across southeastern Arizona and southwestern New Mexico because the forested areas occur only on isolated mountain ranges called “Sky Islands” – a type of landscape similar to the Basin and Range in Nevada.

There were five CCC camps in Coronado National Forest, including Camp F-30 in Madera Canyon in the Santa Rita Mountains. We do not know the exact location or years of operation of that camp.

“The CCC performed a great deal of work here [Coronado National Forest], building recreational facilities and ranger stations, fighting forest fires, battling erosion , and improving the health of the woods” (Audretsch & Hunt, p. 22).

One of the activities in Madera Canyon was to build trails, such as the Bog Springs trail and the nature trail from the Mt. Wrightson picnic area down to the Amphitheater. Another was to convert old mining roads to trails and to install erosion control and drainage works along such roads, as is the case for the Carrie Nation Mine Road that departs from the end of Madera Canyon.