| |
|
| | |
|
| Hiking | 6.90 Miles |
943 AEG |
| | Hiking | 6.90 Miles | 3 Hrs 8 Mns | | 2.20 mph |
| 943 ft AEG | | | | |
|
|
| |
| Partners |
|
none
[ show ]
| no partners | | Took the family out for a local hike in the morning since the Steelers play the night game. I noticed that there is a new section of the Maricopa Trail that junctions with the Pass Mt. loop Trail that goes NW towards Ellsworth Road and ends at the Bulldog Trailhead.
On our way to the park from our house, we could see the clear skies to the east where we were going to hike, but dark skies to the west. That turned out to be a cell of rain that hit us about a mile into our hike. The rain was very light and went away rather quickly. There was another cell right behind that one, however. That hit us as we approached the Bulldog TH. The rain was a little heavier, but still not too bad. That cleared up on our way back and we had some sunshine for about 20 minutes. we could see another wave coming from further out to the west, but fortunately we were done by the time it hit.
The section of the Maricopa Trail is ok, nothing special, but nice to hike something different. It parallels Ellsworth for about a quarter mile before ending at the TH, which makes it a bit annoying to hear the traffic while you hike. It junctions the Pass Mt. Trail near the high point of that trail, so the hike out and then back gets split into a gradual climb, followed by a gradual descent. On our way back up the Maricopa Trail we saw 3 deer. I got a good glimpse of a buck, which looked to be a 6 or 8 point. Wasn't quick enough with my camera to get a picture, though.
When I plotted the track on my computer, I noticed that a section of the Pass Mt. Trail has been re-routed to the west a bit, hugging the boundary of the archery range in the park rather than hugging the boundary of the park and the Tonto NF. Wonder why they did that.
The weather for this hike was perfect, just enough clouds and rain to make the temperature very pleasant, and no lightning. We made very good time, the best the kids have ever made on a hike this long. |
| _____________________
| | |
|
|
|
|
|
| |
Route Editor
Route Scout
