Mormon Lake to Pine
October 19th
Amity:
As I write, the wind is blowing full force and the noise as it whips through the tops of the pines is in many ways more tremendous than the breeze itself. The day was blustery and grey and quite chilly. The night, while quite cool, has yet to drop to temperatures sub-freezing as predicted by a resident of Mormon Lake while we re supplied this morning.
Another day winding through pine forests, mostly on cairn/blaze marked trail. By late afternoon I was finding myself more and more grumpy with what I would describe as ridiculously circuitous trail routing. Given the rolling, largely flat landscape, lack of obvious natural obstacles such as cliffs or canyons, and simple pine duff and rock ground cover, the routing seems even less excusable. The last hour of the day was spent walking due north after having spiraled up and down around a small knoll. I'm sure on a pleasantly warm day walking in circles in pine woods might be sort of refreshing, but for me this afternoon it was just plain irritating. Bargman Park was a welcome sight after so much wandering, and mixed in with the night wind I hear coyotes, elk and the mooing of cows just down the lane.
Brian:
We left Mormon Lake and followed a series of jeep roads until reaching a frequently used Forest Service Road, which we traversed until HWY 3. Walking along a HWY is never fun, and this was no exception. Fortunately we came upon the AZT shortly and veered east into the forest. The trail tread appeared to have been recently worked, and we even came upon a few hundred yards of orange flags which contoured through the forest. The rest of the afternoon was spent following a well marked (either blazes or rock cairns) trail, although it circuitous nature made for some frustrations. It is always hard to hike in an area that is obviously being worked for new trail tread, as you are never certain when the trail crew decided to stop...so off you go following blazes and cairns, trying to keep an eye on the map and keep your bearings squared away, conscious that you may be following trail to a dead end when the blazes runout. An easy way to strand yourself and force an inconvenient backtrack.Anyway, it seemed like the blazed trail went in every cardinal compass direction, without ever deciding on a bearing to follow. We were definitely at the mercy of the blazes and cairns for our route, which is never a good feeling. We eventually crossed under some power lines, which gave us comforting landmark to get our bearings back in check. We hiked a little while longer as dusk settled in and camped above Bargaman Park, a large open meadow. I think Amity and I are anxious to get to Pine and beyond...we need a change of scenery! Ponderosa forests are beautiful, but it will be great to see some other landscapes that Arizona has to offer. Quick health update: thus far into our hike, Amity has gotten only 1 blister, and been subject to some foot tenderness. I've had 3 blisters, some big toe joint trouble, and a nagging case of tendonitis on my left achilles. Other than those few ailments, we are feeling great and no tears have been shed.
Total hiking time:~8.5 hrs. A good day at the office.
October 20th
Brian:
Got out from beneath the tarp a little late this morning, despite warmer than anticipated morning temps. Breezy all night long and the new day looked to be no exception. Following some jeep roads, we made our way east, and then south eventually contouring around Pine Mountain. The trail was a mix of jeep roads, single track, and well-marked cross country hiking throughout the day.We noticed a bunch more Alligator Juniper along the trail today as well, named so because of its barks appearance. We saw a few mule deer in the morning, a tarantula, and listened to some hunter's poor imitations of elk bugling into the afternoon. We did put our bright orange packcovers on our packs at one point for safety, but overall limited gunfire today on the trail.
The skies were finally not entirely overcast, as it seems we have hiked our way through and past a low pressure cell that was causing some cooler temperatures.
We spent some of our day discussing how nice it is to be hiking a trail that has limited offerings in the way of on-trail data. Mileages are really approximates, and no real landmarks are present to gauge time versus distance travelled...good for hikers like ourselves who have a hard time stopping, or have a tendency to equate a successful day with the distant walked. Generally our distant for the day is determined by water availability or when the daylight runs out. Other than that, we really do not take the time to be more specific.
Our strategy of walking "faucet to faucet" has worked beautifully thus far. I think we've only filtered water 5 times the entire trip, and on average are carrying ~1.5 gallons of water from each faucet. Not too bad! We'd rather carry the weight than have to stop and filter from the myriad cattle tanks along the trail...many of which appear relatively full, but are not worth stopping at in our opinion.
Camp tonight is nestled among some fragrant Ponderosa. Again the elk are quite talkative tonight and the Orionids Meteor Shower has been enjoyable to watch as the moon sets. Total hiking time:~9 hrs.
October 21st
Amity:
Yesterday on the AZT was so many things that I'm not sure where to begin. My interest in the trail was renewed considerably as it became true trail, winding up and down into washes and then began to follow General Springs Canyon. The creek through the canyon formed by the springs had a bluish green milky clearness and had we needed water it would have been a very good source. There were even waterfalls and with the maples and oaks made me think I was out east following the gorges of Appalachia not in Arizona.
The descent off the Mogollon Rim was spectacular and invigorating with gale force winds, grey billowing sky, a bit of rain and views south, a more distant horizon than we have seen for a long while.With the afternoon, low and dark ominous clouds rolled in and stayed with impressive torrents of rain and gusting wind. The trail quickly became very slippery with waterways coursing everywhere. Where to camp became a question and Pine, 10 miles away, began to seem like the only solution. We made an attempt to get to town hiking into the dark, were defeated by soaking rains and cold after 6 miles and ended up making an impromptu and rather wet and muddy camp.
This morning, thankfully, was not rainy or windy although somewhat grey. The sun is making valiant efforts and with a visit to the Pine laundromat, cleaner and drier, I can say that I'm ready to continue this little jaunt southward.
Brian:
Awakening to overcast, yet warm skies, we hit the trail and began some very wonderful walking. Much of the day was spent along well marked single track and my legs were happy for the break from rutted, rocky roads.We descended and then climbed out of East Clear Creek, just a gravelly dry wash this time of year. Crossings some flatter sections, we then dropped into General Springs Canyon. A nice rivulet meandered through the drainage, and we followed it up canyon along sandy trail, through maple, oak, and ponderosa. Towards the head of the drainage, a few small waterfalls cascaded trailside. Eventually we passed by an old Forest Service Cabin and dropped off the Mogollon Rim. It was fantastic to finally have some views southward to the landscape to come.
The wind was blowing quite strongly as we descended from the rim, and a light rain began to fall. The vegetation was noticeably different which was a welcome and exciting change. The storm grew in intensity and we were quite wet and slipping and sliding along muddy, mucky, shoe-sucking glop through the afternoon. With only a few hours hiking to Pine, we figured we would try to make it there for the evening, but with continued rain, dropping temperatures, and a fortunate dose of common sense, we were convinced to stop for the evening and make camp beneath some soggy junipers. I feel fortunate to be hiking with Amity during such conditions as she has a bundle of experience to draw upon, and her decision making is sound.
Anyway, we slept OK despite the impromptu site and hiked into Pine this morning for our re-supply, laundry, and other town chores. On a side note, if ever doing laundry in Pine, be sure to bring your own quarters as the locals seem unwilling to "sell" you any of their own.
Heading south today into the Mazatzal Wilderness and hopefully sunnier skies.
