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| Hiking | 7.18 Miles |
920 AEG |
| | Hiking | 7.18 Miles | 2 Hrs 58 Mns | | 2.42 mph |
| 920 ft AEG | | | | |
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| no partners | | Second hike of the daily double. Got to the Jacob’s Crosscut TH a little before 7am. A good thing, because the lot fills up fast! I was here last week and it’s funny how the early arrivals dictate the parking arrangement. A different look this week from last week. Felt sorry for the Ranger. He was playing traffic cop, when I was leaving trying to direct traffic and to get people to park elsewhere.
I was excited about this hike, because I was going to knock another trail off the “get r done list” as well as check some trails that didn’t appear to be on HAZ, (or at least I couldn’t distinguish them on HAZ. There are so many tracks out here, it is sometimes difficult to tell one from the other). Went in on Jacob’s Crosscut for just over .2 miles before turning up a user trail that leads somewhat directly to the Praying Hands area. I used this trail to exit last week and I was curious how it would compare to last weeks loop hike. The distance is about the same, but the elevation change is definitely less aggressive. At about .6 miles in, I noted a single track heading back towards the TH. It is not signed, but there is a large cairn marking it. (On the way back I took this route and it shaved a little under .15 miles off the hike. When you are starting your hike and you cross the wash make a left instead of a right at the Jacob’s Crosscut sign). At about .75 miles, there was a user trail heading off to the west. As I was heading up I was surprised to discover just how close the Treasure Loop trail was. I could clearly see people framed along the horizon. They didn’t look that faraway and it looked busy! At about 1.75, there was another user trail heading off to the east, and again, just before the rock ramp, at around 1.9 miles. This one was cairned and also headed off to the east. I was thinking some of these trials might tie together, but before I could check any of them out I wanted to visit Praying Hands. After ascending the rock ramp I reached a saddle and just to the south of this, and a little higher up, is a rock monolith and another saddle. I knew from last weeks hike that there is a trail that takes off to the east and south. I knew this was another trail that I wanted to check out. From here it was only about .4 miles to Praying Hands. So I hiked over there first, went up to the hands and enjoyed the solitary views. Last week Four Peaks was putting on show with its snow covered slopes. Today, they were covered in clouds. Made it back down to the main trail safely and then headed back to the first user trail I wanted to check out, just above the rock ramp. The trail is pretty solid as leaves the saddle and heads southeast. In about a 100 yards the trail enters a wash, it it only stays in there for 30 ft or so before exiting on the east side. The trail parallels the wash briefly before returning to it and then challenging you with a slippery 15 ft climb up a steep slope. At this point water was dripping down the rock walls and I could hear water gurgling in the growth. The view from the top of the slippery slope is pretty nice. Decent views to the north and east. From here, the trail became easier to identify as it made its way up the western slope. Met my first hiker along these switchbacks and she informed me that I was on the Canyon of the Waterfalls Trail (also, once known as the Windgap trail) and that I was nearing the end. I had to negotiate a rather sketchy rock shelf to enter the canyon proper, where the waterfall was hidden. The rock shelf was nothing too bad, but it might give some people pause. Definitely worth the effort. Water was falling from several levels. Somewhat annoyed with myself for not checking this out last week. I’m sure the falls would have been breathtaking. Met two women back in the canyon, one with a broken hand. Doctor had advised her to avoid hiking, or if she must, hike on flat ground. You can’t get much flatter than the Supes  I can’t believe this trail isn’t on HAZ! I have a feeling it is probably incorporated with some other hike, but it probably deserves a description of its own. On the way back I talked with four other parties and all of them were heading to the Canyon of the Waterfalls. Didn’t get a chance to check out any of the other user trails, but there is always tomorrow. |
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Route Editor
Route Scout
Route 
. I wasn't sure if the pictures I'd seen of the arch and the balancing rock were zoomed-in shots taken from a distance, but I was pleased to see that it was easy to access the arch and go inside.
Tried to avoid the masses and other than a short section hiked on the Massacre Falls trail we did a good job. West Fork First Water Creek had a really nice flow of water. Feet and pants up to the knees were wet. Spooked a deer between Praying Hands and Massacre Falls. Nice hike but will return this area to off limits on the weekend until after April.
