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| Hiking | 14.00 Miles |
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| | Hiking | 14.00 Miles | | | |
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| no partners | | I've spent the last week working my way along the canal from Indian Bend/Hayden out to Granite Reef dam. All canal walking, doing anywhere from 3-4 miles at a time (since I'm alone and don't have a shuttle, it works out to 6-8 miles a day). Starting around 7:15 almost every morning, I've been treated to some wonderful sunrises. Not to mention a few breezy and chilly mornings. Nothing much to stop the wind on the reservation.
Outside of the first section along the golf course, it's fairly lightly traveled. Once you get east of the 101 you're largely by yourself. Some days I pass almost no one; other days, a few bicyclists and a jogger or two. First day I made it to Longmore Rd.; second day to Center St.; third day to the landfill past Gilbert Rd.; and today out to Granite Reef dam. Parking isn't always easy on the reservation, nor is it always easy to cross the ditch that parallels the canal. One morning the wind was blowing strongly enough and it was chilly enough that I bailed out after .3 mile and went back to the car. Waited for about an hour before starting again. Several areas I just had to park off to the side of the road, like at Center St./Chaparral Rd. Today I found a blocked-off side road that was gated just below the canal on the Beeline Hwy to park. I'd walked probably 1.5 miles when a pickup slowly pulled up beside me. It was an Anderson Security guard patrolling. She asked what I was doing--I said I was hiking the Maricopa Trail. "Was that your white rig back by the highway?" (Yep, please don't tow me!). She asked how far I was going. I said toward the dam. She said I was only a mile or two away, so I made up my mind to get there. Also mentioned to me about the wild horses, javelina (pack of 4) and a bobcat. I saw the horses and a coyote, but no javelina.
Took maybe another 40 minutes to get to the dam, where I turned around and came back on the same route. I was chugging along pretty quickly the last mile, wanting to get back to the car before anyone could tow it. Maybe that's why I have the beginnings of blisters on the bottom of both feet. Normally that's not a problem, though I didn't put KT tape on my feet this morning.
Making pretty good progress. I've completed the 14-mile stretch out to the dam, almost all of South Mt., the Gateway section in Scottsdale, and from a couple miles short of Spur Cross out west past Ben Avery Shooting Range. |
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