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| Hiking | 12.00 Miles |
800 AEG |
| | Hiking | 12.00 Miles | 5 Hrs 30 Mns | | 2.36 mph |
| 800 ft AEG | 25 Mns Break | | | |
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| no partners | | | Like many other people, I've been bitten by the bug to someday do the Arizona Trail. It'll be in sections, and I'm not sure how quickly it'll happen -- but I got the chance to get out there and start! I made the weird decision to start in the middle, geographically -- on top of the Rim -- partly because I like a lot of the Southern Arizona scenery and would like to finish there, and I like idea of finishing with the Grand Canyon and some Utah sights. Not quite as excited about the middle plateau, though -- so maybe I'll get those parts done first and keep building the excitement as I go. I did part of this passage as an out-and-back, going as far as I had time and the legs to go. The distance is approximate, and in any case is definitely farther than I've gone in a single hike in a number of years! General Springs Canyon was really pretty; some water down in the bottom, lots of shades of green down there, and little waterfalls coming down from four side-canyons. Maybe I'm imagining, but it seems like there was more water coming down and crossing the trail in the afternoon than there was in the morning, even with no storms that direction. After leaving the canyon, the trail became more of a long walk through the same forest. I'm used to hiking in southern Arizona, where you can be in the forest and within a couple of minutes there's a long view off the mountain. So it felt strange hiking up on the Rim (which I haven't done), because I was in the forest and the view all around to the horizon was consistently just forest. It was nice walking though, and the ponderosas smelled wonderful all the time. Heard a little thunder behind me on the return, but no threat of rain nearby. Saw a BIG blue heron flying up from the water in General Springs Canyon on the way back! Hope to do the northern part of this passage soon -- maybe camp near Blue Ridge Reservoir. |
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Route Editor
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