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| | Foliated Phyllite Fiesta, AZ | | | |
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Foliated Phyllite Fiesta, AZ
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| Hiking | 4.19 Miles |
740 AEG |
| | Hiking | 4.19 Miles | | | |
| 740 ft AEG | | 6 LBS Pack | | |
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| no partners | | This is our warm weather workout hike that we try to do several times a week in the summer in an effort to stay in shape for real trails. No car needed, (gotta watch that carbon footprint) as we live on Black Mountain in Cave Creek and this hike starts at our home and utilizes the three steepest roads going up the west side of the mountain. All the elevation gain is done in three very steep short sections, (all the huffing one would want at our age). We will often add the Surrey Hills saddle into the mix to add some distance and gain. Photos don't convey how steep Carriage Lane is at the top. I wouldn't dream of driving my car up there as I'm certain all the motor oil would run back in the oil pan and starve the engine. Not sure the road engineer thought it all the way through. No homes up there yet but the lots are for sale. Coming down is all baby steps even with a pole cause if you fall you would tumble for a long time before coming to a stop!
The best part of this hike is avoiding the masses on the nearby summit trail. We start well before 5am and the conga line throng has already started. The regulars are nice folks but there are more and more millennials going up staring at their cell phones and clutching their Triple Venti Half Caf Soy No Foam Lattes from Starbucks and we don't even have a Starbucks in Cave Creek. Scratch that...Mrs. SloFolks just informed me we have eleven Starbucks in Cave Creek. My sincere apologies (and condolences) to any HAZR's that hike with Triple Venti Half Caf Soy No Foam Lattes.
Another plus is that this all takes place on the west side of Black Mountain....that means NO SUN in the morning.
For those of you curious about the title of this triplog it's comes from the fact that Black Mountain is comprised of a metamorphic rock called Foliated Phyllite. Well the west side is anyway. The east side or the Carefree side switches to tan Granite with large boulders and has the look of the McDowell Sonoran Preserve mountains. You can clearly see the two geologic faces of the mountain when viewed from the south. As an added bonus the property taxes are much lower on the Phyllite side of the mountain. Yay! |
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| "If you wait, all that happens is you get older" |
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