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| Hiking | 12.00 Miles |
4,729 AEG |
| | Hiking | 12.00 Miles | | | |
| 4,729 ft AEG | | | | |
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| no partners | | Arizona Trail Passage 27 - The Highline Trail - Memorial Day Weekend - Saturday May 28, 2016
The Housholder Family Hikers enjoyed this AWESOME Highline Trail AZT Passage 27 a lot! To start with we had a great time Boondocking along Weber Creek a couple weeks earlier last May to scout out the AZT. There were plenty of great places to set up our trailer which we hauled in from the Houston Mesa Road and took the Control Road to Webber, just don't try and set up shop during a holiday weekend along Weber Creek as camping spots go fast!
Fast Forward to Memorial Day Weekend 2016. Yes we had to roam around a bit to find an unoccupied camp before setting up shop along the East Verde River above Verde Glenn just north of the T Junction Whispering Pines where the Houston Mesa Road and Control Road meet. There was a turnaround spot slightly uphill at a rock quarry that made for a great camping location to squeeze our trailer in, because the East Verde River was flowing and down below us was a real ZOO of packed campers! The kids had a blast as they would run down to the river, splashing and playing in the cool water flow!
Let's Get Hikin'
Saturday we took off early driving over to Webber to stage a truck at Geronimo Trailhead. The morning sun was perfect for some before hike pictures, afterward we headed to the town of Pine and grabbed the after hike reward firs! We stopped in at the Pine Creek Fudge and Ice Cream Store to sugar up! This place had everything a family full of kids would crave! Just take a look at that fresh homemade delicious fudge! Mmmmm!
In no time at all the kids were ready to run from the Pine Trailhead starting off at 10:00 AM. Our goal was to make Webber Creek towards the late evening sun. Starting from this trailhead at Mile 464 is the best choice because the warmer evening sun would be at our backs once we rounded Milk Ranch Point and Red Rock Spring at Mile 467.5 There are horse corrals and restrooms at the Pine Creek TH which we snapped a few pictures at then took off running! The trail is easy going the first mile or so then starts to climb sharply higher from 5800 to 6250 in no time at all, thanks to the newly constructed switchbacks, which add about a mile more to the end goal of about 9 miles, which we called 10 after running around and exploring a bit.
We were the only hikers after the junction with the Milk Ranch Cutoff Trail called The Donahue, until some campers around Pine Springs on the other side, this was great because it is always nice to escape any Holiday Crowds! By 12:30 we were at that Donahue Junction, taking pictures of the new AZT Hardware Signage Installed, with kids you take a few rest stops especially uphill! The views west towards Pine were fantastic and in no time at all we were rounding the corner and looking out towards Payson and points east as we made our way into Rock Springs by 2:00 PM.
From Rock Springs to Geronimo Trailhead, the sun was at our backs and cool breezes were very much enjoyed. Pine Spring had no water last year, but there was great shade thanks to plentiful Ponderosa to enjoy a big meal of yummy eats and at least a 45 minute break! After a late lunch we made quick time mostly downhill towards Webber Creek and the end destination of Geronimo Trailhead. The late day sun made for perfect picture conditions as we entered into the Webber Creek greenery. There was a few nice and flat tent camping spots near the creek that were very inviting as we pulled in around 6:00 PM to splash our feet in the cool clear water! Beware and careful though, there are some patches of poison ivy near this area, make sure to have long pants or socks on!
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1200 FEET DOWNHILL!
May 29, 2016: AZT 27 from the Mogollon Rim 7250 Feet High, near General Springs Cabin downtown towards Washington Park at 6000 Feet in elevation!
The kids would mutiny me if I were to take them from Washington Park up topside so we decided to stage a truck at Washington Park TH and drive around to the top of the Mogollon Rim and hike downhill. Talk about crazy steep. This was some sharp boulder hopping with much calf breaking needed as we quickly made our way lower. Must be about 1000 Feet lower in the quick span of one and a half miles! We started at 12:30 and by 1:30 we made it to where we were leveling off a bit. That downhill part was super steep and needed concentration with loose rocks along the way so as not to face plant by tripping and falling forward. The half mile or so down to Mile 483 is like taking a staircase from a skyscraper all the way downtown!
One of the best parts about Segment Hiking the AZT is we get to pick and choose which way we tackle the trail and the kids were thankful we did this roughly 2.5 mile stretch higher to lower! They call this the Colonel Devin Trail up towards the Tunnel Trail, which is frequented by lots of weekenders. It makes for a challenging uphill workout scramble from Washington Park, and we saw lots of traffic from the holiday weekend. Really soon after the plunge water creeks started coming out of the cliff sides and then it turned into a gentle flowing creek that we enjoyed a late lunch beside a small oasis of shade! There was a giant flume water pipe that carries run off from Blue Ridge Reservoir downhill into East Verde River along this portion of trail, in no time at all we were running into the roughly 6000 foot level of Washington Park Trailhead and the end of our journey some 1100 or so feet lower in elevation! To make things even more special our family splashed around in East Verde to cool off and relax! 
This downhill debacle set up our next segment where we need to work on connecting Washington Park with Geronimo roughly 9.5 miles! |
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