I’m old and like comfort which is reflected in my vehicles. For most driving I have a CRV hybrid. I drove it from Gilbert to Safford and got 42 mpg for the roundtrip. It has AWD and can get me to most trailheads. For the really rough roads I have a 4Runner with 3” lift, grippy tires and a rear locki...

@rubywrangler The Chiricahua National Monument has a lot of good trails and is not far from Tucson. Ft Bowie is nearby also if you like historical sites although the hike is fairly short. BTW, a CRV with AWD is fairly capable. I’ve used one to access Reavis both North and South and it makes short w...

@big_load
It was in good shape although narrow and longer than I remembered. I’m always glad when I don’t meet anyone on that road. There was a truck parked at the TH. Checked the logbook and saw they were going to the ranch. Also saw a couple of November entries for the falls.

Has anyone been to Reavis Ranch this season? Thinking about doing a backpacking trip and wondered how the apple crop looks this year.

@TSGdad I just drove the Apache trail which is in great shape. Checked out the Reavis TH. The road to it is narrow but otherwise in good condition. This would be hiking in from the North instead of the south. The hike is a bit longer but doesn’t have the switchbacks that you encounter from the Sout...

I have lots of time, recently retired. I have a 4Runner and need to do some day hikes or even several day backpacking.

I am planning for a SOBO thru hike in the fall if you have interest in that. I have shuttles setup for start and finish.

Thank you both for your replies. Reliability is more important to me than cost. Since my hikes do often take me out of line of sight to various directions I’ll pass on the Defy for now. Interesting point on the Spot. When I triggered the SOS it sent a signal every 10 minutes I think, Those coordinat...

I’ve been busy with work life the past decade but will have a lot of time and hiking opportunity opening by the end of the year. Previously I used a Spot messenger to send premade messages to ease the mind of my wife at home. However, I did use the SOS one time when I got disoriented in some canyons...

The five were attempting the Mother Lode. They chose a route on the East side between peaks 2 and 3 and got stuck. Happily they had cell service and were able to contact MCSO. That is rough terrain. Glad they are safe.
http://www.azcentral.c...

I tried to take a friend to Cold Spring canyon today but was thwarted by high water at the Ellison ranch. The creek was running about 3 feet deep and since I had no snorkel or backup vehicle we decided to come back another day.

My daughter is heading a project to map the Gila monster genome. To do so, they are raising funds for the lab costs. I'm linking the fund raising page which has a video that explains the project. My only interest in the project is advancing knowledge of one of my favorite reptiles. https://experimen...

Went to Devil's Chasm last Saturday. The road was in remarkably good shape. I had no problem picking my way through the rough spots in a stock Honda CRV. The creek crossing had been redone since the last time I was there a few years ago and looked easily fordable for my vehicle.

I'm heading to Cedar Mesa with my wife that weekend. We plan on hiking into Bullet Canyon. We'll set up a camp and then day hike to some of the other ruins. Plenty of water in the Supes. Cherry creek has several sets of ruins; Devil's Chasm, Cold Spring, Pueblo Canyon, and one across the creek whose...

General locations are probably fine. I have a favorite drainage where I've seen two different monsters. It's in the Superstitions and you can see Weaver's Needle from the ridge above it.

When I was at Arches it was nearly impossible to get pictures of the scenery without other visitors in the view. For that reason I don't mind the places (Arivaipa, and others) that restrict entry. Wilderness loses some quality when it is overrun with hordes of people. Also, many people are chronic l...

If I'd had a silent night I would have gone. However, I'm a nurse, on call, and currently waiting for my second post op patient. I'm going to be up all night and will have to catch up on sleep tomorrow. Have fun!

This will be unique for me, cleaning trail with permission. I've picked up a lot of trash and maybe nipped back some catsclaw a time or two but never with a permit.

I have not been to Coffee flat but there is a lot of water in other normally dry areas of the Supes.

Spot does have a breadcrumb option that sends a message every so often. That would allow my SO to direct SAR to a good place to look if I stopped moving and was unable to activate the help button.

I agree, a smaller group is better. When I completed this adventure we started with 4 and ended with 5, picking up a solo hiker into our group along the way. That's much better than losing one.
I'll hit the mountains another time when I don't have to be back at any particular time.