El Camino del Diablo
El Camino del Diablo (Spanish, meaning "The Devil's Path"), also known as El Camino del Muerto, Sonora Trail, Sonoyta-Yuma Trail, Yuma-Caborca Trail, and Old Yuma Trail, is a historic 250-mile (400 km) road that passes through some of the most remote and inhospitable terrain of the Sonoran Desert in Pima County and Yuma County, Arizona. The name refers to the harsh, unforgiving conditions on the trail.
El Camino del Diablo | |
U.S. National Register of Historic Places | |
El Camino del Diablo in the Barry M. Goldwater Air Force Range, near Wellton, Arizona | |
| Nearest city | Lukeville, Arizona |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 32°4′20″N 113°23′12″W |
| Built | 1699 |
| NRHP reference No. | 78000560 |
| Added to NRHP | December 1, 1978 |
In use for thousands of years, El Camino del Diablo began as a series of footpaths used by desert-dwelling Native Americans. From the 16th to the 19th centuries, the road was used extensively by conquistadores, explorers, missionaries, settlers, miners, and cartographers. Use of the trail declined sharply after the Southern Pacific Railroad reached Yuma in 1877.
In recognition of its historic significance, El Camino del Diablo was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1978. It has also been designated a Back Country Byway by the Bureau of Land Management.