Babbitt Spring Canyon

Babbitt Spring is located at the upper end of a small unnamed canyon that drains into the northwest corner of Upper Lake Mary.  The remains of a small cabin is located roughly 1/2 mile up the canyon. I had an email exchange with Mr. Babbitt several years ago and he stated that the cabin was built by his family in 1888. He stated that, in 1886, the Babbitt brothers "purchased a large tract of grazing land" in Clark's Valley. Clark's Valley is the long narrow valley where Lower and Upper Lake Mary are located.

Babbitt Spring

Not long after the cabin was built, the Greenlaw's had a mill near the mouth of Babbitt Canyon near where the dam is now located.  I was told by Mr. Babbitt  that "machinery parts, circular saw blades, old lumber, etc" are visible when the water level is low. I headed out there recently and surveyed the shoreline on the southern side of drainage. There were numerous pieces of old glass and thick crockery. A horseshoe and an old file were also found. The rock outlines of a path, perhaps associated with the mill, go to a flat area near the head of the canyon.

General area where the Greenlaw mill was located.

Schuppert has a brief discussion of a short spur line (belonging to the Arizona Lumber Company*) that began at the Greenlaw mill, went up the canyon and passed through Elk Park Meadow. He stated that the length of the line is unknown. Both 52 and 56 pound line were used and several pieces can still be seen. According to a local railroad historian, these rails came from the decommissioned line that had accessed the Mormon Lake country using much of the old Arizona Mineral belt grade.

Toward the west end of the canyon a piece of much smaller rail is visible. I've been told that this is 18 pound line although Schuppert lists it as 20 pound. There was more of this lighter rail in the late 1980s when I first visited the area. It has likely been covered by rocks and debris from snow-melt and monsoon season floods. I suspect that some has been taken out of the canyon. It is unclear if this smaller gauge line preceded the larger gauge Arizona Lumber Company line or vice versa.

Eighteen pound rail. This is considerably smaller than the other pieces of rail found nearby.

The line continued in the northwest trending drainage that extends into what is currently known as Elk Park Meadows. I don't know which gauge of line was used (perhaps both) and it is not clear how far past Elk Park Meadows the line extended. 

  

Grade can be seen in the center of the photo.