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| Hiking | 22.00 Miles |
5,214 AEG |
| | Hiking | 22.00 Miles | 33 Hrs | | 1.10 mph |
| 5,214 ft AEG | 13 Hrs Break | | | |
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| no partners | | The mission was to walk up Davenport Wash, pick up a couple of game cams, and find refuge from New Year's mayhem and gunfire.
The Verde River was flowing too high for my truck to make it across the ford at KA Ranch, so I waited around for a while, then hitched a ride with the first truck to cross.
From the river it was on to Sears Trail, which I followed five miles, just past the four springs. Sears Trail is easy walking and it had some TLC back in November by the forest service. From there I headed north to check 6 springs that showed on the Sat images. There are no Manzanita hedges to contend with in the lower Maz elevations, so off-trail here is a cinch.
Camp was on the lower mile of Bear Creek, which was running at a good clip due to the snow melt. Bear Creek is a fun bushwhack: drop in from the Maz Divide Trail, walk the creek to Davenport Wash, then hump back up the hill in Mazatzal Wash. You are bound to see a few things.
Spent the night next to a warm fire and brought in the New Year under the stars, waking up in the morning without a hangover.
Bear Creek has some nasty drops and falls so I had to portage around it, running into a huge buck along the way, by far the biggest specimen I had seen in 2011. As per usual, he ran off a good deal before I could get his picture. He will never see a hunter this far back in the bush.
There are about a dozen springs in this region so there is no reason for anyone to ever die of thirst out here in the summer; the big cottonwood trees can be seen from a distance, good indicators for water.
Davenport Wash was a running stream its entire length, lest the last mile being swallowed up by the deep gravel. It has a few riparian areas along its length where the bedrock is shallow, though the pools likely dry out periodically, as there were no fish present.
Walked into a big heard of pigs on the way back, with one hanging around long enough for me to get a good pic. A useful trick when photographing wildlife is to remain motionless, and then give them a whistle, to which the critter will stop and look back at you.
Put all my electronics in a zip-lock bag, and made a rather dicey crossing of the snow melt swollen river. One slip and I would have been swept downstream, adding a little bit of hurt at the end of the trip. The water was running at 350 cfs (not so bad), but the current was strong and the water past the knees; much higher and I would have been toast. All went well and came home with nary a scratch or bruise....a sissy trip for sure! |
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Autumn Foliage Observation Moderate
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Wildflowers Observation Isolated
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Wash Spring |
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Gallon + per minute |
| | | Judging by the thick stand of trees around the spring, Wash Spring likely has standing water year-round. If not, head north up the large washes adjacent to hill 3067, both have water. | | _____________________
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