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| Hiking | 5.18 Miles |
1,229 AEG |
| | Hiking | 5.18 Miles | 2 Hrs 5 Mns | | 2.49 mph |
| 1,229 ft AEG | | | | |
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| no partners | | Early morning hike in the Fountain Hills Preserve. Decided to check out the new addition to this trail system. Didn’t get on the trails until 5:30 and the sun was just peaking as I started the Promenade Trail. Took the Promenade for about .8 miles to where there is a 3 way split in the trail: the Sonoran, the Lower Sonoran and the new trail on the slopes, the Mesquite Hollow. The Mesquite climbs higher on the slopes than the Sonoran(s), but parallels them heading north. The trail is well defined, composed hard (baked) compact dirt and has some short, aggressive climbs. About .5 miles in (1.35 miles from TH), you reach the trails namesake, a healthy looking mesquite in a wash (hollow). This is also where the Mesquite spur is located. I did not do the spur today. It’s only .1 miles and I figured it would give me a reason to come visit the preserve again. Instead, I continued on to the Sonoran Trail and took that back to the Promenade. Only at 3.5 miles when I reached the Promenade so on the way back I tacked on the Western Loop Trail.
Long drive, but it’s always nice to knock another one off the list. Air quality was worse than I expected. I typically feel that when I’m on the east side of the valley looking east, that the air is pretty good. Not today. Only encountered 4 hikers, 3 of them on the Western Loop Trail. Not much wildlife on trail. Vegetation looked healthy. Ocotillos and saguaros are in much better shape than what I see on South Mountain. Usually when I’m done hiking I’ll spend some time at the TH reading, cooling off. Today, I was enchanted by a small chipmunk that had climbed a Palo verde to feed. I was amazed watching him move along the seemingly delicate branches. While he was in the tree he started to talk. Sounded like a bird. Totally unexpected. Oddly enough, one of the best part of the hike occurred while I was sitting in my car.  |
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