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| Hiking | 10.94 Miles |
1,540 AEG |
| | Hiking | 10.94 Miles | 4 Hrs 24 Mns | | 2.70 mph |
| 1,540 ft AEG | 21 Mns Break | | | |
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| no partners | | Signs within 100 feet of each other identify this trail as the Swamp Park Trail and the Mad Creek Trail. Both are #1100. The start is undisputedly at the Mad Creek Trailhead.
I had no plan for this and had a window of about 10 minutes put some gear together and get dropped off here and barely got a map downloaded onto my phone.
A warm spell after some early snow made for some muddy conditions down low, with a more pleasant wintry base higher up. About 5 miles in I decided to try to make a loop with Elk Park Trail and hope I got enough signal to call for a ride back to town. (bonus: ending on a dirt fs road gave me at least half a chance to hitch a ride if not).
At this point, I was making fresh tracks as nobody else had been out this way in recent weeks. Trail 1100 crossed Mad Creek in a spot that it only took a couple of carefully placed steps to get over. From here I headed east on 1118 for a short stretch before reaching another creek crossing. In summer it would be a few splashes, but in the snow I wasn't really looking to get wet. I wandered up and downstream looking for a dry crossing, and finally found a way despite the ice and snow obstacles. Figuring I was home free (except for the 1100 foot climb up to Elk Park ahead of me) I sent a text with my route plan. It didn't go through.
Ten minutes later at the base of the climb I reached a much deeper, faster flowing creek (later I identified as South Fork Mad Creek). Once again I put in a good effort looking for a way across. This exposed me to a lot of snow in my shoes, down my neck, and very cold hands. Making any attempt at this crossing with the amount of daylight left and my minimal vacation travel gear would be a bad decision, so I ceded defeat to nature, pulled out my poofy and gloves, and decided to backtrack the way I had come. No more unknown and wintry water crossings-- except to repeat the two I had done to get here ](https://hikearizona.com/dex2/images/smilies/eusa_wall.gif "Brick wall")
I made good time on the return trip, and even saw another person! Thankfully my previous text had not gone through as my ride would have ended up miles away. In the end everything worked out and dinner of hot stew was perfect.
I've flirted around the edges of the Mt Zirkel Wilderness before, and would love to spend some more time there. The creeks I encountered all start on the divide, just a few miles and some modest elevation above where I was. It's a pretty part of the world, even in the pre-winter drab of November. |
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| I'm not sure what my spirit animal is, but I'm confident it has rabies. |
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Route Editor
Route Scout
