Brown Mountain Trail

We met near the Gilbert Ray Campground at the trailhead parking lot to leave on this 5 mile round trip hike.  Sherwin, Suk, Roger, Nancy, Paul and Toy.  Shirley was taking this picture.

In the first five minutes one of these pretty little cholla cactus thorns attached to my shoulder as I brushed by it.  Ouch!  They don't call these Jumping Cholla for nothing.

You can see how these Cholla are very close to the trail... and one must respect your distance from them as you pass.

In places the ground is distinctively red... red rock.

Shirley had lagged behind us taking some of these great photos... and as I looked back and saw her booting it up the trail, I caught this shot with my iPhone camera, looking back into the sun.

There is a large number of young saguaros... many only 5 feet tall or so in this area.  Did you know it can take 50 to 75 years before they get their first arms?

Along the trail we saw Saguaros at all stages of life.  One minute they are only 5 feet tall and just starting to grow... next minute you see one like this tired old grandfather in the stage of dying.

As we went along we stopped occasionally for a water break or to visit.

It was just a gorgeous day out here.  Perfect for a hike.

At the top of Brown Mountain Toy got this shot of us... I'm pretending to be a Saguaro.

From the summit we could see the Desert Museum.

We have spent many enjoyable hours exploring around this Desert Museum. A great spot to bring your guests.

These two little fish hook barrels had shiny red needles.

When we got to the picnic area close to Desert Museum can you tell I was happy?  I am always ready for a picnic. Others were very pleased and impressed to find flushing toilets here.

We could all get around one picnic table, but this was a group of hikers who followed us here today and they needed two tables.

I talked to other hikers along the trail and learned that there was another way back... the Cougar Trail.
So we all thought we should explore that trial today as well.

It turned out to be a great way to go...  along the valley floor, not as much climbing and hence we we got back in half the time... and likely less than 5 miles round trip this way.

Not to mention that going home we don't stop to take as many photos.

Toy thought that he would like to climb to the top of this peak.

The trail is really in pretty great shape... and we were very fortunate not to see any rattle snakes today.  They say that around the Desert Museum there are a lot of rattle snakes... so watch out!

Back at the parking lot it was Paul's turn to get the cactus needles out... he had picked up several little hitch hikers, so I got out my Letterman pliers out and he made quick work of removing them from his shoes.

Starting back I asked the name of this mountain with the towers on it. Toy, who is very knowledgable was quick to tell me it was Tower Mountain. But getting home when I googled it, there was no Tower Mountain in the Tucson Range. If any one really knows the name, please let me know.

Shirley had fun shooting this with her new polarizing filter.  It makes a lot of difference as she rotated the lens taking several shots.

"There are two kinds of climbers, those who climb because their heart sings when they're in the mountains, and all the rest." -Alex Lowe

As we were on the trail coming home I was singing,

If you go down to the woods today
You're sure of a big surprise.
If you go down to the woods today
You'd better go in disguise!

For every bear that ever there was
Will gather there for certain,
Because today's the day the
Teddy Bears have their picnic.

Picnic time for Teddy Bears
The little Teddy Bears are having
A lovely time today.
Watch them, catch them unawares,
And see them picnic on their holiday.

See them gaily gad about.
They love to play and shout,
They never have any care;
At six o'clock their Mommies and Daddies
Will take them home to bed,
Because they're tired little Teddy Bears

Hike to Rincon Peak -Part One

This morning the mountains around us were covered with a fresh dusting of snow.

That is Rincon Peak in the background. Can you see the frost on the windshield of my truck?

From our front door looking north-east... that snow on the tops of the Rincon Range won't last very long. So I got out early to make sure I captured the shot.

All our hopes of getting off to an early start last Thursday were frustrated by not being able to find the trail head. It is the second time that it eluded Chuck and me... and we were right there and didn't see it in the predawn darkness.

Kevin and Chuck posed for me as we got ready to start our hike on Thursday.

The first section on the Miller Creek Trail is very gentle with several creek crossings. There was no problem keeping our feet dry today, as we could easily walk across on large stones... but there could be times after a rain that it wouldn't be so easy.

It took us about 40 minutes to hike to the entrance to the Saguaro National Park, where I signed in for the three of us at 9:00 AM. Later I signed out when we got back at 4:30 PM.

Much of the trail today was in and around a lot of rocks. Notice the large Manzanita trees.

The higher we went the more rocks we encountered.

Sometimes the path goes around the rocks. Sometimes, like this the path goes over the rocks.

We stopped several times for a water break and a snack.

I also had to stop and take a few shots of the flowers and the incredible views.  I was surprised to see this Beardlip Penstemon still blooming in December.

There were a lot of Rocky Mountain Pussytoes growing along with the grass.

This Rincon range is made up of a lot of rocks.  Do you see the waterfall rocks?

This looks to me like a place where the water runs down the rock face and leaves a pretty interesting stain. 

All the large rocks reminded me of Joshua National Monument near Palm Springs, California.

There didn't seem to be any shortage of these huge boulders.

It was here on this large rocky plateau that we stopped for our lunch. As we shared with each other some of our food we soon discovered that most of what we had brought with us came from Costco. The bread, the eggs and the mayonnaise that made the sandwiches, the nuts, the granola bars, the Kind bars, the fresh apples and oranges, the carrots and peppers... even my water came from Costco. All except my coconut and another energy snack Chuck brought.

Sometimes there were just a lot of little rocks, like these in the path.

As we came around a corner the sight of our goal was most impressive. Even though we knew we could not reach it today and still make it back by dark, it was pretty awesome to see it proudly standing tall.

This told us that we had come 4.4 miles from our starting point.

From the Happy Valley Campground the peak was very visible thru the trees.

A path led to three large campsites in this stand of tall Ponderosa Pines.

There probably was room for more than three campsites, but likely not the need. Can you believe that someone carried a folding table over four miles up here?

The presence of these lockers suggest that there may be furry friends who may drop by for a snack as well.

We wanted to go just a little further so that we could see over the other side of the ridge towards Green Valley and Tucson... and hopefully get a good enough cel phone signal to call our wives.

We didn't have to go far from the campground to see this view.

We took each other's picture at the point where we turned around and headed back.

I seldom take as many photos on the way back from a hike... but these little Verbena were begging me to take their picture.

When we stopped for a snack and water break I noticed more Common Sotol... they are very plentiful along this trail.

Their stalks grow tall every summer...

With a lot of yellow flowers at the top.

This is the first time I have used the panorama feature on the iPhone. Can you see the windmills on the distant hills.

I couldn't either. But with the Nikon on full telephoto I could pull them in. They are a long, long ways away.

The folds in the hills with the random trees make an interesting composition.

This Manzanita has a lot of character. I love the shiny red bark. As it ages and starts to die the tree loses its pretty red bark and the wood takes on a weathered look.

These are the Manzanita leaves.

This Manzanita is hosting a little fungus.

We didn't see any Saguaro cactus on the hike today... but there were a few Cholla. This one was loaded with fruit.

What a pretty fruit when they turn from green to yellow with some orange.

No one was happier than Kevin to be getting back down the mountain.

We were almost back to the  Eastern Saguaro Park entrance when Chuck's friends caught up with us... Jerry and Barb Retzalaff, also snowbirds, from Washington state.

They made the roundtrip hike to the top in about 9.5 hours... about 16.5 miles. They met Chuck thru his biking adventures... and they are also avid hikers.

Jerry shared a link for an app that I'm going to install on my iPhone... alltrails.com   

It has over 50,000 trails with maps and great information... so finding your way could not be easier. Check it out.

Next time we hike this mountain we will get off to a better start and should be able to make it to the peak and back in one day before dark. 

Or if I can find any friends to backpack in, I would enjoy going to the Happy Valley Campground the first afternoon and then go to the peak the next day and spend some time there before heading back off the mountain.

"What on earth would I do if four bears came into my camp? Why, I would die of course. Literally shit myself lifeless."-Bill Bryson, "A Walk in the Woods"