| |
|
| | |
|
| Hiking | 15.60 Miles |
760 AEG |
| | Hiking | 15.60 Miles | 6 Hrs 46 Mns | | 4.33 mph |
| 760 ft AEG | 3 Hrs 10 Mns Break | | | |
|
|
| |
| Partners |
|
none
[ show ]
| no partners | | I parked at the trailhead by Lowell Observatory south of Marshall Lake and headed northbound to where I left off last June. Got there before dawn with 30 degree temperatures outside. I decided to finish my Coke Zero Sugar and wait a few extra minutes before heading out. At the start I heard a lot of noise that I had originally assumed was elk calling. Once I got down to Marshall Lake I saw cattle everywhere, so I'm thinking now it might have been the cattle making all the noise.
Marshall Lake is just a dry bed now with tall grasses. There were several car campers there with morning fires going to warm themselves up. I headed up Marshall Mesa to my turnaround point from last June. I had pulled some bark off a dead tree and scratched it to mark my spot. I found that again, verifying my spot and finishing off Passage 31.
Once I got back to my vehicle, I stopped to have a lunch break there and take off my sweatshirt. Once the sun hit, the temperature went from 30 to 70 in about 4 minutes. After lunch, I headed further southbound on the Anderson Mesa passage for a few miles and turned around. This segment is more exposed with more pinyon pines around than ponderosas. The trail is also pretty rocky, which wears on the feet after the 10 mile mark. There were some more dry and semi-dry lake beds there. The best view is where the trail goes over to the cliff and Upper Lake Mary is visible. Also lots of glimpses of the SF Peaks as you're headed northbound.
Saw two backpackers, both hiking by themselves headed southbound. The one lady I saw again on my way southbound on Anderson Mesa while she was taking a break. We talked about the various segments of the trail. She has to finish up from Superior up to Pine and she's done. Easier said than done. I hiked just short of the trail junction down to Lake Mary Road and turned around. Ended up with 32 miles hiked for the weekend. |
| _____________________
| | |
|
|
|
|
|
| |
Route Editor
Route Scout
Route 