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| Backpack | 47.06 Miles |
9,362 AEG |
| | Backpack | 47.06 Miles | 3 Days | | |
| 9,362 ft AEG | | | | |
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| no partners | | This one has been high on my list, and just so happens to "finish" off the Galiuro Wilderness trails... though exactly what counts as a trail out here is up for debate 
Ash Creek
Trail conditions were fantastic. Lots of fall colors (still!) holding on. Creek was mostly dry until the last 1/2 mile, where the overflow from the upper spring set up some intermittent pools. Switchbacks passed by quickly in the chill morning air, even with my water-laden pack. This might be the best-maintained trail in the wilderness (at least until the junction w/ East Divide, more on that later).
East Divide (Ash Creek -> Rattlesnake)
After a quick hop on the shoulder of 6996' the trail slides down the other side, and I totally missed where and had to play in snow before getting back on tread. And... that was the only mishap. The trail is in RIDICULOUSLY good shape for how little traffic it gets, largely due to its original construction.
From the GPS it looks like this rollercoaster is a squiggly line that dances all over the place. On the ground it's much more tame, designed mostly as straight segments that are easy to follow even when there's minor overgrowth or faint tread. The intermittent switchbacks are well-constructed, large cairns mark directional changes, and the route dances through some downright cool formations.
There was some snow clinging on north-facing slopes that provided minor obstacles, over a week since the storm that had "1-2 inches of accumulation". The switchbacks that climb up the side of 7193' are deceptively numerous and made my hamstrings sad. Near the High Creek junction, along 7490', the overgrowth does get thick (about the same as the upper sections of High Creek Trail, not spiky, just thick). Otherwise, this trail was a complete delight and I'm eager to find an excuse to revisit.
I was running low on energy & water at Paddy's Saddle and seriously thought about bailing down High Creek. The hassle of getting from one trailhead to the next kept me out there. Pushed on through increasing snow to the Rattlesnake Trail, with a few sections getting up to 4" of slush that chilled my trail runners. Dropping elevation for the night was my main goal at this point.
Rattlesnake (East Divide -> Holdout Spr)
For the shade this trail gets, the snow accumulation wasn't that bad, and I made pretty quick time down. That washed out section now had ice & snow, so yeah, I bypassed above again. Otherwise, some overgrowth, mostly not spiky, and then Rattlesnake had intermittent flow, which is always nice to see. Then I was at Holdout Spring and it was time to set up camp.
Opted to do the cave this time. There was a single bat and some shy flies on the wall -- otherwise, no droppings or nasty critters to deter me. Waterfall was trickling, which made for a lovely ambience, and I had a great night of sleep on that shelf.
Rattlesnake (Holdout Spr -> Powers Cabin Connection)
Was braced for this to be a slog, and it wasn't really that bad. The overgrowth isn't nearly as bad as I remembered. There were one or two sections that I opted to boulder-hop instead of haul up a steep slope, which may have skipped the worst of it. Oh, and a large patch of deadfall directly west of Holdout, that was annoying.
Powers Cabin Connection
I was just on this a few months ago so I zipped up quick. It was an easy climb with minimal overgrowth and a few small patches of snow.
West Divide (Powers Cabin Connection -> Jackson Cabin)
Trail down to Powers Cabin was recently groomed, though the person who clipped the catclaw & manzanita left the pieces on trail, which snagged at my pants and was slightly annoying. I tossed the larger pieces to the side. The old cabin showed up suddenly and I paid some quick respects there. It was cool to see, though the catclaw is growing so close around the walls that it's annoying to get decent photos.
After the cabin the trail is almost easier: gentle downhill, less catclaw, and intermittent shade. At the bottom there is a large, grassy clearing with a fire ring where I suspect @ShatteredArm camped last year. Continuing south, there were a number of pleasant water tanks in the tributary below the large dam, and a less-pleasant (but probably more dependable) tank above the dam. There was good tread and a cairn that headed east on a tributary but the trail was supposed to go south, so I went south and picked up the trail after 5-10 minutes.
Things were starting to heat up and I was not looking forward to the exposed sections south of Kielberg Divide, so I made quick work up the climb and didn't pause at Long Tom. Next time. Trail was pretty well defined all the way to the saddle except for one section just below the mine. Dropping south off the Divide was not too bad -- there were no cairns, just plenty of game trails that made for easy switchbacks. Near the bottom the catclaw showed up, by then it was easy enough to use the drainage instead and deal with the occasional deadfall or boulder obstacle.
The area around Knothe Spring was interesting, though the trail was difficult to track, and beyond the bone-dry trough there was a large washout that erased any sign of tread (and looked a bit sketch). Managed to find a rough track with a few cairns that went up and over the hill to avoid it. Trail quickly dropped into the drainage that winds through Cedar Flat, which was a fascinating area. For the most part the trail stayed in the drainage, and I did track it across a few shortcuts. The surrounding hillsides were dotted with junipers and steep enough to block any big view and it felt... both expansive and claustrophobic at the same time.
I assumed that the best way to drop into Redfield would be to stay in the drainage, and boy was that wrong. First I bumped into a 20-30 foot dry fall that might have been possible to navigate around, so I scouted out the eastern bank and picked up a trail. It was very steep and dropped down quickly, and then I saw a 100+ drop in that drainage that I was planning on following. So... guess the trail is it. The last few minutes of the drop got annoying and overgrown.
Redfield, all the way to Hooker Cabin, is an absolute gem. There's some rough boulder-hopping, and the intermittent flow meant a few large pools that made for difficult bypasses, and it's choked with huge logs in sections, and it's gorgeous. Towering rock walls, weird formations, and gargantuan trees felt like I was in another land altogether. I did pass by what might be an alternate route in this area, the marked topo line that climbs up next to 5626', which I'd consider a "highwater" option. Otherwise, by all means, stay in the canyon, it's fantastic.
After Hooker Cabin the sheen wore thin. There were still cool rock formations and towering walls, though they were muted and withdrawn in comparison of the upper stretch of Redfield. Also, the intermittent flow completely dried up, leaving me with a dry, empty canyon in the fading afternoon heat. To break up the miles of boulder-hopping I tried to follow the tread along the banks a few times, pushing through catclaw and deadfall at times. I was pretty exhausted by the time I reached Jackson Canyon. The trail does clear up in this final section (likely because Jackson Canyon has much larger boulder obstacles) and it was fairly easy work to reach the cabin.
Slept on the floor in the back room. With the windows closed it stayed pretty warm in there, I didn't even put my beanie on until the next morning. Having no water sources along Redfield yesterday afternoon and a bone-dry Jackson Canyon I borrowed a few water bottles from the cabin to get me through the night.
Bassett Peak (Jackson Cabin -> Peak -> East Divide)
Couldn't find where the trail leaves the cabin area so I went cross-country until the tread materialized, and after that things were pretty easy. The trail stays out of the creek, dancing from one bank to the next, and is relatively easy to follow, with a combination of flagging and cairns to help guide through the rough sections. Took a quick stop at the spring area before pushing on to the "steeps".
There was one annoying washout where the drainage ate up the slope which caused some route-finding, think it was around 5330'. After that I was happy to see the tread mostly leave the canyon and start really steeping. The first climb reminded me of YLE, a steady, somewhat defined march up a grassy, rocky slope where it's useful to just aim for a landmark instead of fretting over tread. When the switchbacks finally kick in more than half of the total elevation gain is already behind you, and they are well-defined and make for a solid paced haul up the hill.
I broke up the next few miles into groups of switchbacks, and there was only one that gave me some issue at 6680', when it's easier to go straight up a rocky washout than fight the brush. I'm sure that a little more attention here would have found a tread on one side or the other, just didn't have the patience at this point. Was pleasantly surprised when the trail crested up and over the ridge and turned northwards, with Bassett Peak, the last milestone, looming above, though that last mile absolutely dragged. The trail is in good shape and the views are good, I was just tired.
Quick stop at Bassett Peak and then it was time to descend, where I finally saw my first set of human prints in the snowy northern slopes. Someone else had been out here! I was glad, because the tread was infinitesimally narrow on the steep, loose, and soggy northern slopes, covered with a few inches of slushy snow and ice, and those tracks gave me a bit of purchase. Also, the trail was quite overgrown here, which gave me extra handholds on a few sections. After those nasty switchbacks it was back to the fantastic East Divide vibe with solid tread and creative routing.
Ash Creek
This again. With the exception of a few stops to nurse blisters, guzzle extra water, and chat w/ a lone bear hunter by Lower Ash Spring (the only other human I saw out there), it was a downhill race towards an eventual greasy burger. |
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Cedar Spring |
Dripping |
Dripping |
| | | Missed the actual spring, but drainage had intermittent flow for most of the trail. |
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Echols Spring |
Dripping |
Dripping |
| | | Spring had water and there was intermittent flow down to Gold Gulch. |
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Holdout Spring |
Gallon per minute |
Gallon per minute |
| | | Waterfall was flowing, cave was dripping, catchment was overflowing. Plenty of water here. |
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Jackson Canyon |
Dry |
Dry |
| | | Dry at confluence w/ Redfield, dry along trail up Bassett Peak. |
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Jackson Canyon Spring |
Quart per minute |
Quart per minute |
| | | Steady drip coming out of the pipe, full (and very green) plastic trough. Source is more appealing than the trough. |
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Kielberg Tank |
26-50% full |
26-50% full |
| | | Several tanks were flow and trickling due to recent rain & snow, tho they dried up quickly downstream. |
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Knothe Spring |
Dry |
Dry |
| | | Knope water to be found. Dry drainage below the dry trough. |
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Upper Ash Spring |
Quart per minute |
Quart per minute |
| | | Dripping out of pipe, intermittent flow from here downstream for 1/2 mile or so. | | _____________________
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