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| Hiking | 2.50 Miles |
250 AEG |
| | Hiking | 2.50 Miles | | | |
| 250 ft AEG | | | | |
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| partners | | We first went to the Trailhead across from the Parking Lot at Rustler Park at 2:50pm or so. After ascending for awhile, I had the "duh" moment and realized :idea: we were going to join up near our camp spot where I had earlier spotted a "Trail" sign and had wondered, �I wonder WHAT trail?� We decided to head back to Tonto and drive back to our camping spot and head out from there. Good idea.
So we headed to where the sign gave you your hike options arriving at 3:11. We hadn't picked a particular hike as we had decided to hike so that we could be back to finish setting up camp by 5:15 or so. Fortunately, the Barfoot offered the perfect mileage of 1.5 miles one way. So off we went. We were instantly rewarded with a hill filled with ferns and fabulous trees. As we proceeded further we were treated to some beautiful vistas and wildflowers scattered about.
Our favorite spot was where a fallen tree had been cut as it had lots of wildflowers around it and a huge root structure. The lightning and thunder continued to get louder and closer as did the wind and the rain. Unfortunately, we decided to turn around as the rain seemed like it was going to come down harder and more consistently. We soon learned from some hikers who were headed back that we were within 10-15 minutes of the Lookout. DRAT!
We got back to camp around 4:45 and finished setting up. It took us quite awhile to get the fire to burn well as the kindling was so wet. Fortunately Kat had some stove alcohol and we had dry papers from our Rx that we used to finally meet success. However, it was still pretty cold at 8500 feet and I didn't have a jacket or long pants. Burrrr. So we turned in early and decided to get up earlier the next morning and head down toward the Visitor Center picnic areas to warm up and have breakfast before our Chiricahua Nat'l Monument hike. |
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Wildflowers Observation Light
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For me, sometimes it's just as much about the journey as the destination.
Oh, and once in awhile, don't forget to look back at the trail you've traveled. |
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