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| Hiking | 13.30 Miles |
2,211 AEG |
| | Hiking | 13.30 Miles | 5 Hrs 18 Mns | | 2.51 mph |
| 2,211 ft AEG | | | | |
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| no partners | | I was online checking out the new mapped sections of the Maricopa Trail and saw that over at Usery Mt. there's a trail from the Bulldog TH along Usery Pass Road. From the west side of the road, the trail heads up the east side of Usery Mt. and connects to the Hawes Pass Trail system. I took that trail up there, and then took the Saddle, Saguaro and Twisted Sister and Wild Horse Trails back to the car, making for a 13.3 mile loop.
As the unnamed trail ascends up towards Usery Mt., the views are very nice. Four Peaks, the Mazzies and Mt. Ord all had fresh snow from the previous day's storm, making the scenery even nicer. At one point near the top, even Weaver's Needle is visible. The clouds make for some interesting lighting as well. As I got to the high point, the McDowells were all shaded, but Red Mountain was brightly lit up from a small patch of sun. I highly recommend this section of the trail, either as an out and back, or doing the big loop like I did.
the weather was mostly cool all day, depending on if the sun was blocked by the clouds. Saw quite a few bikers, mostly on the lower trails, as well as a couple hikers and a couple trail runners.
Towards the end of the hike, I got sidetracked on some new trails that are being built for the mountain bikers. There's a bunch of dirt ramps for them to make leaps over, some look pretty gnarly. I passed a crew of 4 guys digging out a new trail. They had a 6 pack of SanTan Devils Ale on the ground nearby, so it seems unlikely that they were doing official Forest Service work. |
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Route Editor
Route Scout
