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| Hiking | 7.40 Miles |
1,538 AEG |
| | Hiking | 7.40 Miles | 3 Hrs | | 2.47 mph |
| 1,538 ft AEG | | | | |
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| no partners | | I wanted to check the roads around AZ Trail passage 14, so I figured while I was in the area I would try out a new trail. I’ve never hiked in the Tortolita Mnts so I figured I would start with an easy one.
Got to the TH around 7am. Kind of a different set up. Felt like I was entering a “secured” area, when I drove past the “manned” booth. It kind of reminded me of the “unmanned” booth on Central at the South Mountain Park. The TH was nice. Plenty of parking, bathrooms and a map of the area.
I took Wild Burrow into the “nexus”, from which all the other trails developed. Not a big fan of having to hike one trail to access all the other trails, but it is what it is. The Wild Burrow is pretty much deteriorating paved wash trail. A little over a mile in and I reached the “nexus” with multiple trail options. I spent a bit of time looking at the map and trying to identify colors. A little annoying. It seems they are trying to use color arrows to identify trails. Not an ideal system in my mind, but they did label trails at key junctures so there was no confusion when you came to an intersection. I loved the “feel” of this trail. Ignoring the hotel, it felt like I was hiking across rugged terrain. The trail was easy to follow, but it was very rocky and contoured nicely with the surrounding canyons. It kept me guessing on how it was going to negotiate the terrain. Hiked down to what I felt was the end of the trail. There is a lot of construction happening at the end of the trail. I imagine this terminus will be changing in the near future. On the way back I followed the spur that goes down to the hotel. This is spur is now signed and says it is .5 miles long. I followed it for about .4 miles and turned around when I got to the bottom and entered a wash. Decent side trail. It’s obvious that it doesn’t get as much use, but it is still easy to follow.
Loved the mountains. Very picturesque. Looked forward to getting back here and checking out some other trails. Today was incredibly windy. Made it hard to enjoy the beauty of the trail. Tried to get some pictures of my hiking companion and I ended up chasing him down the trail a couple of times. Almost lost him off the back end of a boulder.  No wildlife today. Encountered 11 hikers on the trail.
Checked out Tiger Mine Rd and Freeman Rd, which bracket passage 14 and both roads are incredibly smooth and easy access for any kind of vehicle. |
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