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| Hiking | 10.15 Miles |
3,339 AEG |
| | Hiking | 10.15 Miles | 6 Hrs 41 Mns | | 2.06 mph |
| 3,339 ft AEG | 1 Hour 46 Mns Break | | | |
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| no partners | | Somehow I hadn't managed to log any miles in October at all, and I needed to do something about it and quick. I wondered if the Santa Ritas would be a good place for fall colors so I decided to try Agua Caliente.
At the parking area I was greeted by a pair of abandoned trail runners. They were in good shape, name-brand, and clearly not intentionally left. I left them in hopes their owners might return to collect them while I was hiking.
Part of the reason for logging no miles in October is a bulking and weightlifting program taking up my workout time, and yesterday was leg day. That was mighty inconvenient for the steep ascent to Agua Caliente Saddle.
There wasn't much in the way of fall colors in the canyon portion of the hike. I took lots of short breaks on the way up to let my hamstrings calm down. From just below Walnut Spring to the saddle there was a lot of bear poo. I think I remark about the bear poo every time I post a triplog about this trail.
At the saddle I rested in my hammock a bit before deciding to head over to Pete Mountain. At the top of the first high point on the ridge I turned round and saw the patchy fall colors I was hoping to see, and reconsidered Pete Mountain. If I was going to see anything related to fall weather it was going to be on the north slope of Mount Hopkins. My legs really didn't want to do any more ascents anyway, so they talked me out of Pete Mountain. I went back down to Agua Caliente Saddle and resumed the trail to Josephine Saddle.
There were indeed patchy fall colors on this section, and while it was nothing spectacular it was still pretty. A small stand of aspens is about halfway between the two named saddles, but they had already lost their leaves.
I ate a late lunch at Josephine Saddle before heading back to the car. On the way back, in the upper part of the canyon section, I saw a single large coati descending a tree and trying very hard to avoid having its picture taken. Closer to the parking lot I startled some white-tailed deer who fled hastily. I saw at least five and heard a few more. Considering all the bear scat below the saddle I thought I'd see at least one bear, but not today.
The lonely trail runners were still there beside my car, so I took them and decided to post in the HAZ lost & found forum, which I did upon my return. |
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Autumn Foliage Observation Light
Kinda disappointing to be honest. Oaks turning brown. A few aspens on the trail were bare already. Some patchy interest here and there but this is probably not the place to go for fall colors. |
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Walnut Spring |
Gallon per minute |
Gallon per minute |
| |  No flow per se since it’s basically a natural tank, but it’s got plenty of water and pretty clear too. | | | |
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