| |
|
| | |
|
| Hiking | 16.55 Miles |
2,908 AEG |
| | Hiking | 16.55 Miles | 8 Hrs 7 Mns | | 2.51 mph |
| 2,908 ft AEG | 1 Hour 32 Mns Break | 15 LBS Pack | | |
|
|
| |
| Partners |
|
none
[ show ]
| no partners | | I decided to Finish up the trails from the Tortilla Trail Head this Week. Took the JF Trail 5.1 miles in to the high point on the trail. Will have to finish up the south portion of this trail at another date from the other side of the Superstitions. Took me four trips down SVR 213 to finish up the Trifecta of trails from the Tortilla trail head (Peters trail, Hoolie Bacon Trail and JF Trail). I am really tired of SVR 213, I could walk it in my sleep. Anymore hiking at this trail head I will drive SVR 213.
Will skip right to the JF Trail. Of the three trails this one is in the worst condition, maybe I should say the least best condition because it really isn't in that bad a shape. A really rocky trail so a little more caution is needed and on this trip it was a little overgrown with grass making it harder to spot in places. Unlike the other two trails of the trifecta this one doesn't follow a creek so it has the potential of being the driest. On this trip the two small side canyons that you do cross still had a trickle of water in them. I would bet in a week or two these creeks will be dry without more rain/snow. Really green in places and would almost say it was Arizona's version of Ireland. Amazingly free of catclaw which surprised me (there were a few but didn't find them an issue). This trail is a gradual uphill all the way with a few exceptions were it drops into a side canyon or levels off on a ridge. Being it is a gradual uphill there were very few places where the 2 to 2.5 MPH pace was hindered.
This half of the JF Trail is what I consider a ridge trail so as a result the views to the North, East and West are excellent. Fish Creek to the east, Tortilla Well, Fish Creek Mesa and Four Peaks to the north and Tortilla Peak, Music Mountain and Picacho Butte to the west. Once on the ridge at the high point There are views to the south and east deeper into the upper Superstition Wilderness.
I took my first break on a saddle after returning from the summit of the trail. I was eating eating lunch sitting against a rock just to the right of the trail and a coyote came strolling up the trail unaware that I was there. It was about 10 feet from where I was sitting when I told him the roadrunner went that way. If a dog could jump out of its fur it would look a lot like this one did. Totally surprised by me being there it took off the way it came. About every 30 yards it would stop and look back and I'd wave and say, I'm still here. Did this a couple times before it disappeared in the trees. The coyote was actually a pretty good looking dog not as mangy as a lot of them look.
This might be the last trip to the western Superstitions this year because it was getting a little warm, 86 degrees. The morning at sunrise was perfect and there was a breeze most of the day that made the higher temps very tolerable. Only ran into one other lone hiker who was out backpacking the supes for a couple of days. Always nice to run into another person while hiking especially in the more remote areas. Great hike overall. Of the three trails in this area I am really torn between which one is the best. Each one has its own uniqueness, Peters for the Two Creeks it follows, Hoolie Bacon for the views of the western Superstitions and Trap Canyon and the JF for its views in all directions. I think Peters is the toughest because of the steep climb out of Tortilla Canyon, Then Hoolie Bacon and the JF Trail the easiest. Glad I don't have to pick just one. Finished this hike around 2:00 so I still had time to do a little hiking in the Goldfield around sunset. |
| _____________________
| | |
|
|
|
|
|
| |
Route Editor
Route Scout
