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| Hiking | 5.75 Miles |
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| | Hiking | 5.75 Miles | 3 Hrs 41 Mns | | 1.56 mph |
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| no partners | | This morning we drove out into the Superstitions to hike the Lost Goldmine Trail. We took two cars and stopped first at the parking lot on the western end of the trail to leave a car. By the time we got to the eastern end of the trail we already has two hours invested. I didn't plan on that.
We started our hike around 10:00 with my daughter-in-law and her dog Steve. The first section of this trail was incredibly lush and loaded with, I swear, every conceivable type of flora found in the sonoran desert. It was like we were hiking through a botanical garden. It was absolutely incredible! If you plan to hike just a part of this trail, by all means, make it from the eastern trail head. The other amazing feature was that we were right at the foot of the mountain which served us an amazing granite backdrop. Truly remarkable.
After a mile and a half or so, we began to slowly climb up a bit in elevation and we began to loose the rich collection of flora but were rewarded with a plethora of Saguaro. I don't recall ever seeing such a vast amount of Saguaro in one spot. Some of them were monstrous and clearly witnesses of the wild wild west of times past.
The wonder of this trail is that the whole trip you are skirting along the base of this tremendous granite mountain.
As we continued climbing we entered a micro climate that would serve us for the rest of the trek. With the predominately southern exposure the landscape was more arid and loaded with brittle bush blazing their bright yellow colors across the valleys.
I was surprised that we didn't really encounter many people on this trail. Most, it seemed, opted to hike the neighboring Peralta Trail. That parking lot was jam packed and into the over flow lots.
This was a very delightful jaunt and I would highly recommend that you put this on your short list of hikes if you don't want to miss the color show! |
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Wildflowers Observation Substantial
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