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| Hiking | 19.19 Miles |
971 AEG |
| | Hiking | 19.19 Miles | 7 Hrs 40 Mns | | 2.84 mph |
| 971 ft AEG | 54 Mns Break | | | |
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| partners | | I’ve signed on with Chris’ AZT collecting. Up this week, the southern section of AZT #15. Wally was in as well. We opted for the Florence route via Hwy 87 to Freeman Road, rather than the route via Superior/Kearny on Hwy 177.
Freeman Rd is in very good shape and we had no issues driving the 20 miles to the trailhead. When we arrived there were some campers and a pack of crazy dogs.
We started out about 730am. The skies were clear and the temp was perfect. The plan was to hike up the trail for 9-10 miles and turn around and head back to the same trailhead.
We came across a thru hiker near the trailhead. He had done 30 miles on Friday and was planning on traversing the entire 28 mile section on Saturday. Wally hiked ahead with the fellow for a while. Even though Chris and I were moving at good pace, Wally and the Thru Hiker left us in the dust. We came across 4-5 other people/groups hiking the section as well.
The scenery for this section will not be voted the #1 most beautiful. It’s a little stark and desolate, but it does have it’s charms as well. The trail for the entire hike was in excellent condition. We saw signs of trail maintenance in some areas. It follows a road for the first 1-1.5 miles and then branches off. The landscape is rolling hills with easy elevation gains. There’s a section of granite rocks that is interesting. We passed several ranches and crisscrossed a few dirt roads as well.
At the 9.5 mile mark, we stopped and had some lunch. We returned the same way we came in.
We saw a ton of rabbits, some ravens and few hawks. Wally and I came across two small non-venomous snakes. I wasn’t fast enough on the camera to get a picture. And, I was lucky to catch a large diamondback near the end of the return.
A nice hike on a warm day. Great company, as always. |
| _____________________
"Jobs fill your pockets, adventures fill your soul."
instagram: @andydilling |
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