This 3 mile out and back hike makes for a pleasant easy half day. Most of the way you are alongside or not far from Cave Creek.
To get to the trailhead, drive to the end of FSR 92, details elsewhere. Pretty much any vehicle can make it, but there are a couple of rough spots. Any truck will do fine, or just drive a vehicle you don't care much about.
We did this hike on a hot day in August. Up at 6000 feet the temperatures were reasonable. When we were in the shade and a bit of a breeze blew past, it was wonderful, In the sun we were not so happy -- the sun was pretty intense.
This year we have had an energetic monsoon season, so I expected more wildflowers. There certainly were some, but I was itching for more. I was most happy to see a good variety of Convolvulaceae. We met a fellow who had hiked to Florida saddle and who was on his way back. He said he had encountered a bear up near the saddle. He startled it (and it him) and the bear gave him a growl, turned and romped off.
The hike all the way to Florida Canyon is "only" another 1.9 miles, but that part of the trail is steeper and we figured that that enterprise was better to tackle in cooler weather. As for the grade of the two segments, here you go.
Trailhead to Rock Candy = 670 feet in 1.5 miles = 447 feet per mile Rock Candy to Florida = 1420 feet in 1.9 miles = 747feet per mile
As usual in the Santa Ritas, the Green Trails map is completely misleading. It shows a TH (trailhead) where this hike ends. Indeed there once was a road to the Rock Canyon Mine, but it has been at least 30 years since anyone ever drove it. And besides that, access to any maniac offroader is now blocked and illegal. And rightly so.
As for the Rock Candy mine itself, I doubt that many people even realize that there was a mine in this area as they hike through. I have yet to find any interesting mine openings or relics, but I have not invested a significant amount of time looking.
Our turnaround point was at 6390 feet elevation where we encountered a big steel sign indicating the 1.9 mile distance to Florida Saddle. It also gave mileage to Mt. Wrightson (3.7 miles I believe). So, from the trailhead, the distance to Mt. Wrightson would be 5.2 miles. Not out of the question for a full day of hiking.
The Wilderness boundary is just before you get to the steel sign. There used to be a sign. The post is still there, but the sign itself is gone. It seems to have fallen to pieces, the pieces scattered at the base of the post.
Tom's hiking pages / tom@mmto.org