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| Hiking | 15.25 Miles |
1,398 AEG |
| | Hiking | 15.25 Miles | 7 Hrs 9 Mns | | 2.31 mph |
| 1,398 ft AEG | 33 Mns Break | | | |
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| no partners | | Day 2 of the Flagstaff trip and I was back and Sandy’s Canyon again, but this time at the proper, actual trailhead. My goal for this day was to hike to where I left off 3 weeks earlier when I hiked part of AZT33 starting from central Flagstaff hiking south to the pine trees. Out and back from Sandy’s Canyon this was only 8 miles. While I was out at where I left off, I hiked over to where I had hiked 5 years earlier from the Little America Hotel trail system. I overlapped my previous hike, but I really barely remember this turnaround spot.
Once I got back to the junction with Sandy’s Canyon trail, I decided to head south more on the AZT towards Marshall Lake to do some of that. At the bottom of the hill is a large, interesting red colored rock formation similar to the one under Fisher Point at the junction. I figured I would go a mile or 2 and ended up going almost another 4. This section of the trail has also had extensive re-routes that seem to add mileage for zigzagging across the old alignment for no good reason. Even the route up the hill to the mesa has some rerouting.
The climb to the top of the mesa was very gradual and easy. Had a few rocky sections here and there, but not as bad as the one gnarly rocky section on the Sandy’s Canyon Trail once it levels out at the bottom. About half way up there is a clearing with some emerging undergrowth and burnt looking ponderosas. Looked like a possible lightning strike a few years ago.
At the top it was very level and smooth. I had started slower in the morning, due to soreness from the day before and being tired. By the time I was up there, I was picking up some steam and had hiked pretty far. I stopped around 11:30am for lunch and to turn around, budgeting the time I would need to get back to pick up Dmitri at NAU from his summer camp.
The weather was actually a bit chilly at the start with the sun low. I actually had my sweatshirt on, but didn’t need as soon as the sun hit. The weather still remained cool and breezy throughout the day. There were a few times when the wind picked up a bit, especially on top of the mesa. The combined effect of the feeling and hearing the wind, the smell of the pines, and general peace and quiet made for a very stress reducing environment.
Saw more hikers than bikers this day. A couple hikers asked if I was hiking the AZT, making for interesting small talk. I ended up doing over 15 miles, giving me almost 34 for the weekend. Surprisingly feeling pretty good on the Monday afterwards. |
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