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| Rainbow Valley Airports, AZ | |
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| | Rainbow Valley Airports, AZ | | | |
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Rainbow Valley Airports, AZ
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| Hiking | 11.22 Miles |
155 AEG |
| | Hiking | 11.22 Miles | 5 Hrs 38 Mns | | 3.02 mph |
| 155 ft AEG | 1 Hour 55 Mns Break | | | |
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| no linked trail guides |
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| no partners | | The main reason for this hike - Visit three defunct airports in Rainbow Valley, west of the Sierra Estrella Mountains.
Counting two other active airports, I believe there are five airports in Rainbow Valley.
One active airport, Bishop Field, is just north of Rte 238, and the other is Estrella Sailport, SE of Sevenmile Mtn.
I was not interested in those active airports.
I wanted to 'walk the runways' of the 3 defunct, dirt airports, and view them up close.
While on past hikes - Atop Quartz Pk, and up a mountain peak in the north Estrellas - Plus my hike to the top of Sevenmile Mtn, I noticed, and photographed these three dirt airports. My curiosity was piqued.
Also, on the way to the airports, I located a few benchmarks, and also came across a nice memorial to an elderly gentleman who met his demise in the valley.
My trailhead was just off a runway at my first dirt airport. From there, I hiked clockwise to the other airports, and located 'other things' along the way. Some 'other things' were planned, and some were not. It's amazing what you find, by accident, in the desert.
Rainbow Valley is very flat, with all vegetation avoidable. Heck, my AEG was less than 200 feet on this, over 11 mile hike. This made my pace very fast, as opposed to most of my 'hike up a mountain' hikes.
All three airports have two runways, and with just a little bit of work, all the runways could be made safe to use again. The runways were all about 2,500 to 3,000 feet long, which is definitely long enough for most general aviation planes.
Since I located alot of things - Airports, benchmarks, a memorial, etc, I took alot of photos.
HA - Consider this to be three hikes, with only one triplog, then my numerous photos will make sense. I had a great time out there. -  |
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Not All Those Who Wander Are Lost
J.R.R.TOLKIEN |
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