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| Backpack | 15.50 Miles |
1,558 AEG |
| | Backpack | 15.50 Miles | 3 Days | | |
| 1,558 ft AEG | | | | |
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| no partners | | Black Top Mesa via Peralta
This was my first solo two nighter, and what an experience!
I didn't get started until 6PM Saturday. I wanted to be at Pinon Camp for sunrise, and since Peralta is so wide and well traveled (not to mention I've hiked it at least a half dozen times), I wasn't too worried about hiking there in the dark. I went at a leisurely pace and arrived at Pinon Camp by about 7:30PM. I wasn't quite ready to go to bed yet, so I gathered some downed agave from a nearby campsite and started a small fire. After about an hour it went out and I crawled into my sleeping bag. Being so close to the water and not having a tent, it was a bit of a chilly night.
Sunday morning I was up for sunrise and on the trail by 8:00AM, feeling great after a long night of sleep. As I slowly made my way around Weaver's Needle, I couldn't help but think about last week's epic climb and camp on top of that spire (triplog yet to be posted). Mostly I was thinking boy am I glad I'm not doing that again. I was more than happy to skip along the gentle downhill grade of the Peralta Trail rather than climb that steep scree slope to the base of the needle!
Once I passed the Terrapin junction on the Dutchman Trail I was in new territory (for me, at least). Never having been particularly intrigued to see this section of trail, I was pleasantly surprised. The views from the Marsh Valley area, especially of Weavers Needle, are stupendous. Needle Canyon was flowing nicely and there were soome pools large enough to swim in. After trudging up Bull Pass and the unmarked Black Top Mesa trail, I was finally at the top by 12:30PM. I spent the day napping, reading, and wandering the mesa looking for compositions. I checked out the Spanish petroglyphs which were interesting, though the main attraction on Black Top Mesa are definitely the views. I had a nice secluded campsite right near the edge of the mesa. There was an existing fire ring and I collected some wood, but the evening was warm enough and I was tired enough that I never started a fire. Since I wasn't in any sort of microclimate like Pinon Camp, the night was fairly warm. A curious mouse scurried around my campsite throughout the evening and a fly bothered me all night. Or some sort of buzzing insect. It must have been a copule days worth of dry sweat and not changing clothes, because it REALLY liked me.
Monday I hiked back via Terrapin and Bluff Springs. Much more pleasant than Peralta. I was back to a packed trailhead by about 1PM. |
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"Arizona is the land of contrast... You can go from Minnesota to California in a matter of minutes, then have Mexican food that night." -Jack Dykinga
http://www.joelhazelton.com |
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