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| Hiking | 4.90 Miles |
1,511 AEG |
| | Hiking | 4.90 Miles | 3 Hrs 15 Mns | | 1.51 mph |
| 1,511 ft AEG | | 15 LBS Pack | | |
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| no partners | | Smoke from the Bush Fire was pretty much gone yesterday so I figured I might get a better view from a ways up Peak 2541. Last week I tried a new-to-me off-trail ascent, mostly following Javelina trails but was thwarted about 3/4 the way up. Time to try another approach so I headed up the steeper slope from off the Hawes Secret Trail .
This was another one of those ascents where I am constantly asking myself if the better part of valor is simply to give up and head back down. But every time I looked back down I really didn't like that idea, so I soldiered on.
Then, just at the point I was really ready to say it's not worth it and call it a day, I popped up onto a large boulder and got quite a surprise... two huge eyes staring at me. 
Wow! Less than two feet away is an owl, and best of all it has yet to move. I had enough time to pull out the camera, take a photo and even a 15 second video before it flew off.
Cool! The whole trip was now worth the effort. Oh wait, I still have another few hundred feet to go. But no matter, now I'm stoked and nothing was going to stop me now.
Now, let's get some photos of the Bush Fire smoke. Sad to say, I would have been better off to climb Stewart Mountain if I wanted a better view than yesterday, but then I didn't feel like driving any farther than I had.
On the way down along what is proposed to be a new official Hawes area trail I came across a bird squawking so loudly and intensely I just had to see what all the fuss was about. And whad'dya now, I see something pink underneath a small stack of rocks maybe 15 feet off the 'trail' so I remove the rocks and find a near-empty bottle of Jim Beam (only 'im Bea' was left of the decal) as well as a metal canister with a half-full bottle of Patron Tequila Silver.
Some cache, huh? Actually a liquor stash. That would be the last of my unique encounters/finds today, although I did catch a few new plumes of smoke just before reaching the trailhead.
Great day for a hike! Low humidity early and a breeze much of the time, with the exception of the steepest part of course as it was in the 'shadow' of the wind. |
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Route Editor
Route Scout
