I braced myself before doing this hike. This is one of my favorite places to ramble. But the Wallow Fire came through here, plus backburning was apparently done as well.

Well, some of it looks about the same, but some areas look totally different, with all the trees just dead sticks. I took the spur trail (not marked, not very visible) to Hamblin Draw (aka Melissa Springs) and up along that little side creek all the trees are very dead indeed.

The odd part is the hay. The government spread hay on thousands of acres after the fire, and it sprouted and prevented a lot of flooding and erosion and soil loss. But it sure looks strange to be walking in a HAYFIELD where once you'd have been walking in a shady forest.

The creek (South Fork of the Little Colorado River) looks healthy and clear. I was glad I went on the hike, but it will take some getting used to. I plan to spend the summer up here in the White Mountains, and so I will likely hike this trail many times.

I did not see much elk sign, but there were a few tracks. There is almost no snow left from the last storm, ground is damp, and a new storm is on its way.

That being said, I would really like the original hike write-up to be changed because it is all about hiking down from Mexican Hay Lake, which almost no one does, and which is not the prettiest part of the hike.