Annual Hike Across the McDowells

This 13 mile (or 15 mile option) hike/race from Fountain Hills to Scottsdale is organized every year by the Grayhawk Hiking club.  Basically, we each paid $45 to be dropped off in the middle of the desert to spend four hours hiking back to our car, and civilization.  Fun, right?  We thought so!

The bus ride was quite comfy.  I sat next to a girl who belongs to the Grayhawk Hiking club.  I found out it is a neighborhood group of about 15 people who hike twice a month at different locations during the cool weather months, and then travel north once or twice to hike together during the hot months.  Click here for a link to their facebook page.  They should be posting pictures from the event there soon.

The hike took place on St. Patricks Day, and the t-shirts we received were appropriately green in color.  Each participant also received a bag with coupons and discounts to local vendors.

Registration for this hike was through Active.com.  There was no cut-off date listed, but apparently I was too late to register online and was able to participate only because someone else dropped out.  Lucky break for me, unlucky break for them... a broken wrist!  Also, the registration fee went up by ten dollars after a while, so just for future reference it is a good idea to register for this type of event well in advance.

As we got on the bus, written instruction/maps were handed out to each participant.  These maps also contained our raffle number on the back.  The raffle number was the incentive to check-in at the end of the race.  No prize winners in our group.

The most festive in our group was Sherree with her bright green shirt.  Chattie claimed to have green eyes under those sunglasses... we gave her the benefit of the doubt.  I went with a subtle approach, wearing emerald earrings and a green hair band in my pony tail.  I should have taken more photos of the other hikers who really dressed up for the occasion!

There was some flat ground to cover before heading up the Mountain. 

Here we are at the top of the mountain... at Windgate Pass

And here, looking down at the mansions below.

The rest of the pictures are examples of the pops of color along the trail... springtime is beautiful in the desert.

Happy Hiking!

Tarantula on the Wind Cave Trail

This photo comes courtesy of Janet, I wasn't hiking that day.  Luckily I have seen them on the trail before, or I would have felt so left out!

Pranksters on the Trail

There are some things you just don't expect to see hiking miles away from civilization in the desert.  Once when I took my aunt hiking, she admitted that the vast barren landscape made her feel like she was about to stumble upon something creepy... like a dead body.  What?  Ok, now I am completely off subject.

A few weeks ago while hiking Pass Mountain Trail with Sherree, something caught our eye...

What is that?

Are you kidding me?  Looks totally legit... must get closer to that cactus!

My first reaction after seeing all those zeros was to whip around and look for the hidden camera...  Too funny.  Of course we left it there!  Wouldn't want to spoil the fun for someone else.

Flat Iron 2012

Our second annual hike to Flat Iron was a success!  Everyone who joined us had a great experience, including the two first-timers.  No immediate injuries have been reported. We'll see how everyone feels in a couple days.  I think going into the hike with prior experience was a big help, last time a couple of us had long lasting discomfort from injuries (1 to 4 months).  Our plan of attack this time included taking ibuprofen ahead of time, and getting out the door bright and early to ensure plenty of time to not feel rushed.  Also, just knowing what to expect and how to pace ourselves was an advantage.  Our overall time was 5.5 hours which included an hour or so at the top enjoying the view and a lunch break.

The Crew: Bryant, Janet, Vanessa, Chattie, Sherree, Lisa and Mark

The weather was a bit chilly to begin with, but warmed up to about 77 degrees by the time we were through.  We were glad to have the cooler weather for the incline.  We were nervous about wearing shorts because we all wore long pants last time and weren't sure whether our legs would get scraped up on the rocks.  We have now decided that shorts would be fine next time if the weather is warm.

Approaching the Superstitions was beautiful, with the newly rising sun peeking over the rock and spilling over in streams of light.  The triangle shaped peak in the middle-back is our destination.

There is a nice wide trail with a steady incline for a mile or so, which gradually begins to get steeper as you approach the base of the mountain.  Once you begin to ascend the mountain toward Siphon Draw, the incline is steep and leaves you out of breath. 

It is about two miles to Siphon Draw, your blood will be pumping, and your breath heavy when you reach it.  This is a great place to take a breather and eat a snack to renew your energy.

View of Flat Iron from the top of Siphon Draw...

Next comes the really steep part... but it is a completely different type of steep because you are basically bouldering up the trail, hoisting yourself up using your arms.  This part goes much slower, so you don't get as out of breath... but the climb is difficult.  We recommend wearing gloves once you get up a ways.  Here are a couple photos I took in a steep part, one picture behind me, and one ahead to give you an idea... but really I didn't have my camera out for most of the bouldering part because it was just too difficult to be getting into my backpack while balancing and/or holding on.

There are a couple tricky parts where you're not sure which way to approach a rock face or crack... but with some trial and error you can figure it out.  The most difficult part to maneuver is near the top, where you hang left of a rock wall and use a tree trunk to pull yourself up.

Just a little more climbing after that and then you're on a semi-flat trail that leads to the flat-topped peak.  Exhilarating!

After relaxing at the top, lunch time, and a little potty break, we headed back down.

Look straight ahead, and you can see the blackened rock from the Thanksgiving plane crash, heart wrenching.

I didn't take my camera out on the way down, its just too steep and slippery!  It takes lots of arm usage to lower yourself down the rocks, and once again... gloves are a good idea.  Going down the mountain is tricky and you have to be cautious and slow to avoid injury.

The trail is well traveled, we saw lots of other hiking groups, a few loners, and a few children with their parents.  One guy was 71, he said this was his fourth and final climb to Flat Iron.  One couple said they climb the trail once a month in the winter.  Everyone on the trail was friendly and enjoying themselves...

100 Miles of Hiking!

Yesterday, on Arizona's 100th birthday, Sherree, Lisa and I received our recognition and t-shirts for completing 100 miles of hiking within the Maricopa County Parks between Nov and January.  Ranger B presented the shirts to us, and to about 25 others in our area who completed the challenge.

The three of us each hiked over 110 miles in the Maricopa County Parks, plus 10 miles in the Lost Dutchman State Park... for a grand total of over 360 miles in three months!  Not too shabby, especially considering Christmas Break was smack dab in the middle of that time frame!  Most of our time was spent in Usery Park because of its convenient location, but we also hiked Spur Cross and McDowell Mountain Parks for a total of three qualifying parks.

There was an 11 year old girl at our park who had completed the 100 miles with her grandma, I think she was the youngest participant state wide.  Another group who called themselves "The Fab Five" had hiked nine of the ten County Parks in the three months time!

I think the design and wording on the shirts is well thought out, and unique... It will be fun to wear.

After the t-shirts were handed out, there was a 100 minute, 3 mile hike planned.  The weather was frigid and drizzly, and we decided to hit the wind cave trail instead of meandering slowly around the desert with the group.  Maybe not the most sentimental choice... but hey, we were freezing and felt like getting a work out instead.

The blanket of mist dropped lower and lower as we climbed, and when drizzle turned to heavier sprinkles we thought about turning back... but of course we didn't let the weather stop us.  It was reminiscent of  our soaking wet adventures back in December.  I said, I think Mother Nature is playing a trick on us for Arizona's birthday, but Lisa said no, it was her birthday gift to the desert. 

Before:  freezing cold

During: wet and cold... but less cold :)

Our next challenge will be a 13 mile hiking race "Hike Across the McDowell's" on Saturday, March 17th. 

Find more information HERE

Flat Iron Next Week!

I've fallen so behind on this blog!  According to the calendar we hiked Flat Iron last week, but that was not accurate :)  We will be hiking it next week!  We really want to hike it before the weather gets too hot, and unfortunately there are no Fridays available to all of us in the core hiking group.  Therefore we are planning on next Thursday, Feb 23rd.  Anyone who wants to tag along is invited, be warned that it is a strenuous, steep hike... but managable at a slow steady pace.  Reaching the top is a truly rewarding experience.  If you have any questions about the hike, you can ask myself, Sherree, Janet, Lisa or Erica because we all made it to the top last year!  Let us know if you are coming!

Hieroglyphic Trail

Well I am finally adding to the post! I'm so glad that Vanessa is keeping the blog updated! It is so fun to see our adventures. If I was keeping the blog updated we would not be seeing all the fun adventures! Back in November the kids were out of school for Veterans Day. We took them hiking to the Hieroglyphic Trail, which is in the Superstition Mountains. I have not been on this trail and I really enjoyed it, probably as much as the kids.

The trail was fun to drive to. The signs were small to direct you to the trail. You drive through residential neighborhoods and then before you know it you are at the trailhead. We had 3 cars full of kids. Vanessa, Berkley and Austin, Lisa, Mark and Bryan, Allyson, Sydney, Mia and Kendall, me (Sherree), Dylan and Cole and Chattie braved all the children to join us.

The hike was a steady climb but not too difficult. When you get to the end of the trail it is worth the hike! The kids loved all the Petroglyphs, rocks to climb and a little cave to play in! They did not want to leave the area! I am so glad we did this hike and would do it again with the kids.

Time to Play Catch-Up

The month of December flew by in a flurry, I never even had the chance to post anything!

As the middle of the month was approaching, the pressure was on to hit at least the half-way point for our goal of 100 miles before Jan 30!  I'll admit, Lisa, Sherree and I were becoming a little crazy and desperate!  Crazy because we were eager to hike in any type of weather, and Desperate because we found out some of our previous miles didn't count toward our goal (they were not in a Maricopa County Park)... so we felt really behind!

This is what Crazy and Desperate looks like:

Before the hike... gray skies and sprinkles, storm was imminent.

After the hike, drenched but still smiling...

Just for the crazy record, these photos only depict ONE of the rainy hikes we endured... it was a weird weather streak there for a couple of weeks... but we decided to embrace the adventure rather than give up on the challenge.

On another Wind Cave hike, Sherree and I experienced low cloud coverage, it ended up being a beautiful hike...

On another day we saw a couple deer as we were leaving the parking lot

One of the deer pictured here, right in the middle of the photo.
I promise its there... click the photo to enlarge :)

There was one day that we didn't have much time to hike, so we decided to try the Merkle Trail which is also in Usery Park.  It is a flat wide trail around the base of a hill.  We went around Merkle once, then up and over the peak once.  The total distance was about 2 miles, and the mostly flat terrain resulted in an easy quick pace.

Well, that's a quick overview of last months hiking.  We still have pictures of the Hieroglyphic Trail and Spur Cross which haven't yet made it onto the blog... but we've been busy trying new hikes and enjoying our social exercising time.  Today Erica and I took a break from the usual as well.  We met at Rebecca's house and hit the trail from right out her backyard!  Our destination was Cat's Peak which I had never hiked before, it was an enjoyable and windy time.  We heard all about Erica's upcoming move to North Dakota with her family... it will be so hard to see them go.  After the hike, Rebecca made us some delicious spinach and blueberry orange smoothies... yum.

Happy New Year to everyone who reads this blog :)  It is going to be a fantastic 2012!