| | -
-
-
| |  |
|
1 |
-
-
-
-
| |  |
|
1 |
-
-
|
| | |
|
| Hiking | 4.20 Miles |
900 AEG |
| | Hiking | 4.20 Miles | | | |
| 900 ft AEG | | | | |
|
|
| |
| Linked |
|
none
[ show ]
| no linked trail guides |
| Partners |
|
none
[ show ]
| no partners | | The trailhead was surprisingly mellow this morning. At about 8:30am, a hiker came off the Peralta Trail and told us he hadn't seen any water along the way. This was hard to believe, so Lou and I decided to hike up the Bluff Spring Trail to see what was happening out there. Before we even reached the top of Cardiac Hill, we noticed a fast seep coming out of a rock wall. As we topped out at the first overlook of Peralta Canyon, you could hear the unmistakeable roar of a waterfall. High on the canyon wall was a narrow, but substantial fall of about 30'. It was too far away from us to get a decent photo, but the sound effects were inspiring. Further ahead, there was running water everywhere... something we haven't seen out here in years. The whole mountain range was shedding water and the general flow seemed to be increasing as we went. Arriving at Barks, it took some planning and a certain amount of gymnastic skill to get across with dry feet. Just beyond that point, where the creek makes a hard right turn, we came to a lake that used to be the slick rock area. We watched a backpacker make a couple of unsuccessful attempts to navigate around it before we turned back.
Lou had to be at First Water by noon, but I wasn't done playing around, so I opted to go back down Barks Canyon instead of the trail... seemed like a good idea at the time. Well, I didn't get far. About 5 minutes down the creek, I came to a wader I couldn't get around. Not giving up, I went back to the trail and hiked it beyond that point, then worked my way back down to the creek. Feeling victorious, I carefully rock-hopped for about 3 minutes before encountering the same situation again. Had it been 10 degrees warmer, I would have happily splashed all the way down to the Dutchman, but that wasn't happening today, so I reluctantly bushwacked my way back up to the trail.
Still unsatisfied with my experience for the day, I took a few off-trail excursions on the way back to some areas I'd been curious about. After receiving the appropriate number of cuts, scratches and piercings, I felt more accomplished and was content to follow the trail the rest of the way back.
Driving Peralta Road going in, there had been very little water in the low spots, but coming out, there were lakes in the road that were still rising. I hope we get rain again before everything dries up. It's been ages since the last time I got mud on the roof of my truck!  |
| _____________________
I'm at home in the wilderness... it's civilization I have problems with! ](https://hikearizona.com/dex2/images/smilies/eusa_wall.gif "Brick wall") |
| | |
|
|
|
|
|
| |
Route Editor
Route Scout
