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| Hiking | 10.75 Miles |
1,892 AEG |
| | Hiking | 10.75 Miles | 5 Hrs | | 2.53 mph |
| 1,892 ft AEG | 45 Mns Break | | | |
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| no partners | | Following a night of camping at upper Little Yaeger trailhead, I started hiking from the upper North Mingus trailhead late morning. My first time on this trail in a few years, and everything was looking lush and green. A few new aspens were poking up from the old, dead aspen grove.
The temperature had risen considerably below the Viewpoint junction, where a couple of unseen hikers hooted loudly from the slopes above.
Leaving the shady comfort of the pines, I made a short side trip down to the old Pittsburgh-Jerome Mine, where some remediation work had turned the old mine shaft into a bottomless ventilation/bat portal tube. A rock dropped took 5-6 seconds to hit bottom.
I recalled hiking the unmarked side road on the southeast side of hill 6772 years ago, and thought it might connect with the Bug Hollow Trail. The road didn’t seem to be going the right direction, so I made a moderately bloody bushwhack up the south side of 6772 to access Bug Hollow. Moments later I passed a cairned route heading toward the side road I had been on. Will have to remember that route next time. (Joe, Bruce, is that cairned route the route that you took?)
Bug Hollow and Upper Mescal trails were smooth sailing and a welcome return of pines and shade. I was surprised to see the new 530 Trail, where I stopped for a short lunch break before following it to the highway summit parking area.
Next up was a mile of dust and passing cars while hiking Forest Road 104, and then a return to solitude at Butterfly Spring, where I started east along the ButterflyTrail and Mingus Inner Maze, with their confusing network of mountain-top trails to who-knows-where. A wrong turn here, and some off-trail there dumped me off onto the connector route I remembered, which I followed to the north edge of Mingus Mountain and the North Mingus Trail. A short walk south brought me back to the trailhead and some much anticipated cold water in the ice chest. A bit warm and with less water reserves than I prefer, but all in all a great loop hike. Next stop: Oak Creek.
Water report: Butterfly Spring had about a quart per minute of slimy water flowing. Butterfly tank above had a big pool of stagnant but not too-nasty water. |
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| "…you never know when a hike might break out" -Jim Gaffigan |
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