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| Hiking | 11.49 Miles |
3,138 AEG |
| | Hiking | 11.49 Miles | 5 Hrs 29 Mns | | 2.57 mph |
| 3,138 ft AEG | 1 Hour 1 Min Break | | | |
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| no partners | | Started the day at my campsite on the Gila River at the Gila Hot Springs. It was in the high teens and my goal at 6:30 AM was to get my camp broke down and into the sun as quickly as possible.
The Signal Peak Trailhead starts off of SR 15 about 10 miles North of Pinos Altos. The trail goes up to the lookout in 2.5 miles, crisscrossing the mountain in moderately steep switchbacks. The forest on the northern, ascending face is predominantly pine, with some fir and oak mixed in.
The lookout was locked at the final flight of stairs and the views were just ok from the summit of Signal Peak. I was tired from lack of sleep, the cold morning and lack of coffee, but imagined that I had enough gas in the tank to make it to the junction of the Continental Divide National Scenic Trail. Along the way I met a Silver City local who was clearing deadfall from a smaller, fire damaged section of the trail. I inquired about any loop options, but according to him everything would have me walking on SR 15 for miles.
I continued on to the Continental Divide Trail. The forest throughout this entire trail system is incredibly pleasant to walk through with sunny, open glades, intermixed with darker portions of deeper fir forests on North facing slopes.
The trail volunteer was the only person I saw all day until the very last mile when I ran into 3 other day hikers. The weather was perfect, the trails were very well maintained and the Gila National Forest is an incredible area that I will be exploring in greater depth on future trips. |
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Wildflower seed in the sand and wind
May the four winds blow you home again |
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