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| Hiking | 10.50 Miles |
1,627 AEG |
| | Hiking | 10.50 Miles | | | |
| 1,627 ft AEG | | | | |
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| partners | | Jim and Brian and I left rainy Tucson and carpooled down to the east side of the Santa Ritas on a stormy and chilly morning, parking my truck at the Arizona Trail/Chinaman Trail trailhead. We headed south on the Chinaman Trail, following the route of an old mining flume/canal. The occasional warmth of the sun soon vanished for the remainder of the day, and occasional short lived drizzles became the norm. This was my first time on this trail, and I enjoyed the green hillsides of oak, pinyon and juniper, far reaching views to the Whetstones and Huachucas, and, for the cactus fanatic in me, Echinocereus rigidissimus aplenty.
Big Casa Blanca Canyon brought the first tall pines, while high above the canyon storm clouds hung low and heavy over Josephine Peak and Mount Wrightson, dragging drooping boils of snow flurries across their summits. We took a lunch break at Bear Spring (located west of where the USGS topo shows the spring), and then began ascending the south slope of the canyon. Interesting sandstone beds along the way were reminiscent of Coconino Sandstone and this section reminded me a bit of Mogollon Rim hiking.
The climb ceased at Walker Basin Trail junction, where we turned north to follow it across the eastern slopes of Josephine and Wrightson. A couple of drainage crossings actually held a little bit of water, a surprise given how dry the summer was.
We reached Gardner Canyon Trail late in the afternoon and began the last leg, dropping into the piney goodness of Gardner Canyon. Nice forest in here. Trail transitioned into road, darkness arrived, and we finished the last half mile by headlamp.
Arriving back in Tucson we stopped for dinner at Filiberto’s before heading home.
Definitely a cold one, but the stormy skies and winter like conditions were a neat change of pace. Good hike. |
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| "…you never know when a hike might break out" -Jim Gaffigan |
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Route Editor
Route Scout
