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| Backpack | 44.00 Miles |
8,500 AEG |
| | Backpack | 44.00 Miles | 4 Days | | |
| 8,500 ft AEG | | 38 LBS Pack | | |
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| no partners | | Backpacking in the Lizard Peak Wilderness. Steep and tough trails, but with amazing views.
Day 1: Up Cross Mountain Trail, to Lizard Head trail, and down Bilk Creek trail and along Wilson Mesa. 16 miles. Bilk Creek trail is amazing and probably was the best part of the entire trip. Wilson Mesa is extremely mucky due to allowing motorcycles during the summer, which tear it up.
Day 2: Climb to Rock of Ages TH, then up Rock of Ages to Elk Ridge trail and onto Navajo Lake. I had high hopes for this day, but the people who routed the Elk Ridge trail should be shot. The trail adds a ton of unnecessary elevation for what would otherwise be a nice trail along the treeline. Navajo lake is nice but it gets very cold as the sun sets and the cold air tries to leave the basin.
Day 3: Climbed Wilson Peak, met several people who almost died sliding off the mountain on snow. With being really close the the peak, so that I could probably hit it with a rock, encountered an icy patch, and turned around about 100 yards from the true summit, the trail routing to Wilson Peak is a complete disaster, for being a popular 14K'er.
Day 4: Down Navajo Lake Trail and Kilpacker and Groundhog Stock trail back to the vehicle.
This is a decent loop that packs a lot of elevation. The horrible trail routing makes the trails way too steep, you can observe many places where people and horses are sliding/falling and probably horses are breaking their legs. It seems that the goal of the wilderness trail routers is to ensure every uphill section is at least 30% grade, especially when it is scree on hardpack. Why bother creating an extra switchback when you can simply discourage anyone from travelling the trail in the first place.
Except for Wilson Mesa, which is muddy and depressing, the wilderness is very nice and even dayhikers should find many of these trails accessible from nearby trailheads. |
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Autumn Foliage Observation Moderate
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Wildflowers Observation Moderate
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http://hikearizona.com/garmin_maps.php
Hike Arizona it is full of sharp, pointy, ankle-twisting, HAZmaster crushing ROCKS!!
Hike Arizona it is full of sharp, pointy, shin-stabbing, skin-shredding plants!
Hike Arizona it is full of striking, biting, stabbing, venomous wildlife! |
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Route Editor
Route Scout
This alpine lake was actually the first leg/night of a 3-day backpacking loop around this cluster of mountains. 
The next morning I was spooked by a momma Black bear and her cub twice coming within 100ft of my camp as I was packing up. 
Afterwards I continued east dropping into Bilk Creek and taking the awe inspiring Lizard Head trail up and over the 12K foot pass while passing by many gushing waterfalls and of course the funky looking Lizard Head Peak with snowy Wilson & Gladstone Peaks looming up above. So flipping jaw dropping! 
Having got my fill of Colorado goodness, I dropped down from the pass & back below the treeline and finally back to my car at Cross Mt TH to make the LONG drive back home... 
