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| Hiking | 13.51 Miles |
2,931 AEG |
| | Hiking | 13.51 Miles | 8 Hrs 54 Mns | | 1.85 mph |
| 2,931 ft AEG | 1 Hour 35 Mns Break | 20 LBS Pack | | |
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| no partners | | Two mud-dro-planing stretches after the gravel dwindles in the beginning on the drive-in with wide bald tires. A few large pond puddles were the same on the drive out but the road, in general, felt more assuring. Three other vehicles at the trailhead. Oddly we all arrived within minutes of each other. CCW seemed most courteous to give them space.
Bluff Spring Trail 235
Lost count of tiny little frogs after a half dozen. Several rabbits on the drive-in, then three throughout the day. Black-throated and song sparrows kicked off the morning chirps. Then a loud cactus wren.
Terrapin Trail 234
Short segments of catclaw wadding. Not painful because new leaves buffer contact and the thorns are not razor-sharp until dry. The area has a hint of Santa Cruz closet mold smell lingering. I've known it's a plant for a decade but haven't figured it out. Only a couple of instances of ankle-rope-saw catclaw. When all this catclaw matures or dries out you might as well start practice screaming on the drive to the trailhead. Halloween's coming up, maybe a catclaw Grim Reaper BYO Sickle group hike.
Dutchman Trail 104
Palomino Mountain was hands down the visual highlight of the day due to perfect light when I hiked by. The first sign of fresh human footprints but I suspect they started at First Water.
Peralta Trail 102
Busted out the umbrella at about 11:26 am. It looks tacky but radiant heat picked up between cloud cover and breezes. Regardless of my appearance, according to point 3 on Damone's 5 point plan, where ever I am is the place to be.
Slender two to a three-foot snake. Extremely fast, made a whipping sound zipping by in a flash. Perhaps a dark yellow lengthwise stripe. Saw another 4-5 ft slender snake jet off. Seemed like 20mph. No length-wise stripe.
From Piper Spring up there are a lot of sugar sumac(guessing) skeletons from the 2020 Sawtooth Fire. catclaw was minor except for two spots. Recorded a loud Northern Cardinal but never saw it. The pinion pine on the overlook drew an impromptu ear-to-ear grin.
Heading down from Fremont I passed the first hiker after 11.5 mi, then about eight more.
Synopsis
Needed to be sure I could carry a pack and put in a day after a June 30th slip; all systems go. Fire damage probably impacts the experience exponentially just east of this loop. This feature-rich loop through geology is full of life. Current minor annoyance catclaw will solidify and bleed unarmoured skin past the opening miles by the time most explore in prime season. |
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Route Editor
Route Scout
Route 
Clear flow from recent rains