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| Hiking | 4.00 Miles |
724 AEG |
| | Hiking | 4.00 Miles | 3 Hrs 7 Mns | | 2.40 mph |
| 724 ft AEG | 1 Hour 27 Mns Break | | | |
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| no partners | | As Tibber wrote, there is "much to gawk at" along the trail long before you get to the landslide. My gawking was largely at birds, flowering plants and briefly watching a climber negotiate Sven Slab. And of course I had to stop for photos. Diverse area with a few plants I don't see often (Fairy Duster and Christmas Cholla) and more avian life than on any trail I've done for a while (Curve-billed Thrashers, numerous White-Crowned Sparrows, Phainopepla and Gambel's Quail, a single Black-Throated Sparrow and two strangers, possibly a Gray Catbird and a beautiful warbler feasting on Fiddleneck that I didn't come close in identifying. Yes, I need to get more consistent with my style in naming plants and animals. Upper case or lower?)
Stopped to read most of the scattered interpretative signs: Grus and Clay. Lichen, Moss and Varnish. Verde Valley River. Fallen Mushroom. Ice Age Climate. Fracture Orientation. Slope Steepness.
The Landslide is impressive. You can easily see the headscarp and fall zone from the enormous slidemass. Didn't take all of the Marcus Landslide Loop Tr, but walked over to the sign at the easternmost point, "Superstition Mountains and Four Peaks." Great view most days from here looking out across the deep valley east to the high mountains. Sadly, Four Peaks was hidden in rain clouds most of the afternoon. Did not know until I read the sign that the higher parts of Four Peaks are quartzsite. Thought it was all granite up there, but the granite is only in the lower parts.
Walked back as rain approached from the north and a cool east wind picked up. Made it back to the car just as rain struck at 1545. Encountered maybe a dozen hikers and bikers on the trail. Tom's Thumb Tr seemed much busier. Numerous vehicles in parking lot when I arrived at TH. |
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Wildflowers Observation Moderate
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Route Editor
Route Scout
