| |
|
| | |
|
| Hiking | 7.00 Miles |
2,389 AEG |
| | Hiking | 7.00 Miles | 8 Hrs | | 0.88 mph |
| 2,389 ft AEG | | | | |
|
|
| |
| Linked |
|
none
[ show ]
| no linked trail guides |
| Partners |
|
[ show ]
| partners | | What a wonderful day in the AZhood to do my first ridgeline hike; though not the Supes, the Estrellas provided a good indoctrination. It was a pretty clear day so the views were great every which way you looked  . For this hike, it was good to have folks around who support and encourage you as you hike quite a few false summits and where the Peak keeps getting further and further away.
At the same time as your breathing increases you realize how lucky you are to have great comraderie and scenery that makes the occasional lacking of air worth  every breath and every step! As we neared the top the mica flashes at you everywhere, we're thinking "bling"; so we designated this "THE BLING HIKE". I loved the little bit of scrambling we got to do getting up to the top of the peak and down to the saddle. Fun, fun, fun  . However, another hiker from another group went into extreme fear mode and had to get back to the saddle now where she said she "was grounded on all three sides"  .
We all agreed that this was a much more beautiful hike than we were led to believe and the drive on the dirt road, at least this day, wasn't nearly as difficult as others had suggested. This climb was kind in places as it leveled somewhat to let you catch your breath. But of course, the ultimate reward  was at the top sitting amongst the quartz rocks.
Coming down I did a little bit of the lead trying to follow the many cairns on the ridgeline  . I actually enjoy this part of hiking as you traverse back and forth on the narrow ridgeline trying to find the easiest route. Then, led by John, we got to finish off the day with a trip to the fascinating mica mine remains.
The hiking time includes a 15-20 minute break on the way up, about a half-hour break on top and about a 10 minute break on the way down. I didn't realize that I had taken nearly an hour worth of video which turned out pretty good since most of it was done while walking.
Oh, we also found some of the cairns very interesting, some of them perplexing, some of them beautiful and we tried to make those ever purdier. John and I thot we should have a culture tab for cairns and then have some kind of descriptive rating: big, bad, purposeless, beautiful, interesting, creative, needs work, etc but I'm afraid with all the cairns out there, one would need a website JUST for cairns. 
3-1-2014 didn't realize the video links were not here. This is when I first started doing videos and with my old camera so the wind noise is a little high. But I did do some fast mode and that's rather entertaining:
Part I of IV: heading up the Peak http://youtu.be/K0tMd8PTRhA
Part II of IV: reaching the Peak http://youtu.be/FW_y4fOK03A
Part III of IV: just about at the peak and then heading down the Peak http://youtu.be/kDRF7KoSpbk
produced and edited February 2014 in honor of John R Scott. We loved hiking with you and this was just the beginning: Part IV of IV - finishing off the Peak and over to the mine http://youtu.be/T2rWTl_oYHw |
| _____________________
For me, sometimes it's just as much about the journey as the destination.
Oh, and once in awhile, don't forget to look back at the trail you've traveled. |
| | |
|
|
|
|
|
| |
Route Editor
Route Scout
