First hike in the Casa Grande Mts, nice little spot. Did this as a quick one while there.
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"I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived." — Henry David Thoreau
On the way back north I decided to hit another all time unique for me on the outskirts of Arizona’s premier city! I opted to climb the trail and save the road for the downhill. I couldn’t figure out why the gps track went beyond the benchmark peak until I got up there. The ridgeline is really cool! I did a full out n back, hitting the range high point and a few other bumps along the way.
The gnats are out but the breeze helped keep them at bay. Visibility was terrible but there’s not much you’d want to see from here anyway!
The entire hike was accompanied by high caliber rapid gunfire along the base of the mountain. I skipped calling the sheriff. Probably because there’s a firing range.
Busy day of work down in the Old Pueblo, so only had time for a short one. Hit up this old favorite on the way home, nice temps in the afternoon with some cloud cover and a breeze. Made it up the Bolt trail, over on the ridgeline to the end of the trail, and then back around and down the Radio road. I will say the concrete on the tower road is much nicer for a decent than the old ankle buster rocks that were there to contend with. I did not see any other hikers until I made it back to the tower road, then I saw a good 30 people or so. Some jack- decided that it would be a good idea to put a big heavy rock on top of all the prominent Cholla and Saguaros along the ridgeline trail...the plant guy in me could not stand for it. I must have pulled off a good 50-60 on the way back to the tower. It is not quite orange spray paint on rocks, but pretty close in my book. All in all a good day!
After work grinder for some elevation gain, started out about 4. Made my way up the bolt trail, down the tower trail, and then back up the tower and over the ridgeline and back. The trail was in good shape, just a little muddy from the morning rain. There had to have been 30 cars in the parking lot when I was done, this was the busiest I have ever seen this trail. Trying to make that 20,000' gain for the month, if I can squeeze in one more hike by Saturday that should do it...
Great after work stop for a quickie. Hiked up the Bolt trail after a quick search, headed south along the ridgeline to the end of the trail, and came back via the radio tower road. I really enjoyed the Bolt trail, great elevation gain without having to walk the road. No other hikers out when I got there at 4 p.m.
Quick one in on the way home today, nice to hike with only a few pounds on my back after this weekend! Powered up the radio tower road, and continued on the ridgeline to the American Flag memorial, then turned around and headed back. I saw at least 20 other people yesterday afternoon, the most I have seen on this trail yet. No big surprise, the weather was quite nice.
Headed out to see if I could spot Comet PanSTARRS. I was unable to get out the night before due to my wife being released from the hospital (yay! ) so I postponed the trip. I was worried I wouldn't be able to see it as it got darker and darker but I finally was able to make it out for about 10 minutes right before it set.
"The only thing we did was wrong was staying in the wilderness to long...the only thing we did was right was the day we started to fight..."
-Old Spiritual
My book, The Marauders on Lulu and Amazon
I snuck this one in one the way home from Tucson for work. I wouldn't call this a destination hike, but if you are driving by it is just a few miles off the I-10 and very easy to get to. There is some nice elevation gain going up the radio tower road, and even more if you continue west along the ridgeline. Lots of cholla, so not too dog friendly, but not too many people either making it good for some quick solitude. I thought I would get in a little extra training for the Spartan Race this weekend, so I plowed through all of the elevation gain without any breaks and jogged most of the downhill. I was a little disconcerted to see some broken window glass in the parking lot, but there were some cars there much nicer than mine so I thought I should be OK.
2nd hiking club outing of the year. No students showed up so us chaperones just hiked anyways. Laggers!
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"The only thing we did was wrong was staying in the wilderness to long...the only thing we did was right was the day we started to fight..."
-Old Spiritual
My book, The Marauders on Lulu and Amazon
First Hiking Club trip of the 2012-2013 school year. Started late (7am) so it was hot. Decided not to go all the way to the flagpole. Went to the second summit instead. Not a bad group of kids!
"The only thing we did was wrong was staying in the wilderness to long...the only thing we did was right was the day we started to fight..."
-Old Spiritual
My book, The Marauders on Lulu and Amazon
"The only thing we did was wrong was staying in the wilderness to long...the only thing we did was right was the day we started to fight..."
-Old Spiritual
My book, The Marauders on Lulu and Amazon
Jogged up to the gate and back with the softball team. Had to slow down on the way up and back to stick with an injured team member.
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"The only thing we did was wrong was staying in the wilderness to long...the only thing we did was right was the day we started to fight..."
-Old Spiritual
My book, The Marauders on Lulu and Amazon
"The only thing we did was wrong was staying in the wilderness to long...the only thing we did was right was the day we started to fight..."
-Old Spiritual
My book, The Marauders on Lulu and Amazon
3 of us on this hike and omg i was on a mission to get to the top. i was the only one of the party able to make it to the radio towers and then i jogged down to my party wish i had more time to do the ridgeline trail. might take the dogs the next time since the road is very maintained and would be safe for them
This is Casa Grande's equivalent of Camelback. It's nothing to go out of your way for, but it's easy enough if you're passing through and want to add a couple of extra miles to your day. The Bolt Trail is the way to go if you're headed up the mountain and the Radio Tower Trail offers the quicker descent. I did a quick summit of Casa Grande 2 then took the Ridgeline Trail to the Flagpole, the range's highpoint. I set my camera's self-timer and took some Iwo Jima poses at the summit, but settled on a Captain America pose for my new avatar.
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"I've driven across deserts, driven by the irony, that only being shackled to the road could ever I be free"
- Frank Turner "The Road"
Went up early to catch the eclipse. Looked great from the parking area, but by the time we were at the towers, it was obscured by haze and dust.
_____________________
"The only thing we did was wrong was staying in the wilderness to long...the only thing we did was right was the day we started to fight..."
-Old Spiritual
My book, The Marauders on Lulu and Amazon
WARNING! Hiking and outdoor related sports can be dangerous. Be responsible and prepare for the trip. Study the area you are entering and plan accordingly. Dress for the current and unexpected weather changes. Take plenty of water. Never go alone. Make an itinerary with your plan(s), route(s), destination(s) and expected return time. Give your itinerary to trusted family and/or friends.
Route Editor
Route Scout
decided that it would be a good idea to put a big heavy rock on top of all the prominent Cholla and Saguaros along the ridgeline trail...the plant guy in me could not stand for it. I must have pulled off a good 50-60 on the way back to the tower. It is not quite orange spray paint on rocks, but pretty close in my book. All in all a good day!
) so I postponed the trip. I was worried I wouldn't be able to see it as it got darker and darker but I finally was able to make it out for about 10 minutes right before it set.
