Hike #32 - Shadow Mountain #2 Phoenix AZ

Hike #32

Date: April 16, 2014 

Location: Phoenix AZ

Hikers: Me & Tina

Directions:  

51 North to Greenway Parkway, Head West towards. take a slight left onto Greenway Rd. Turn right on 27th street and right on Acoma Drive.  There is a trailhead. Park in front of the trailhead. Neighborhood street area, park where permitted. Water and No Restrooms. 

Shadow Mountain/Lookout Mountain: 

http://phoenix.gov/parks/trails/locations/lookout/hiking/

Tina and I decided to fit in a hike after work.  I told her that Jim and I only did the North part of the mountain so we ventured off to either do the circumference or find some trails on the South.  We started at the same trailhead as hike #30.

We turned this little mountain into a gym workout.  It was about 90 degrees in the late afternoon so we were a little sweaty.  It was great.  The scenery is nothing to write home about but again we talked about how we can look at all the mountains to any side and we have hiked them.  Pretty Cool!

We headed straight South and through a wash then up the hill as far as the trail allowed us.  Then knowing from my last time here with Jim I pointed us East so we could pick up the side trail that I saw headed towards Thunderbird.

We travelled along 27th street side and did some up and down trails.  We followed one path that would have taken us to the neighborhood.  There was a nice bench.  No one wanted to stop an pose! :( (Jim is our strike a pose guy)

We stayed on the trail heading west and it appeared to end in someones backyard.  We looked up and followed what looked like a path.  This is not bushwhacking but the trails are not maintained, although there are a ton of routes.  Some have the lose rock and do not look like great choices.  We headed South and saw the other trailhead parking that I was aware of in a cul de sac.  No one was there. We had only seen one runner in the beginning of the hike. 

This was the view to the West.  The sun is slowly setting. It is hot for April.  We can see North Mountain and Shaw Butte.  We can definetly say we have hiked those more times than we can count. 

On the West side we were not 100 percent sure which path to take. We stayed low and then headed up the hill.  We saw a woman and her dog. 

We cut through trails that were in the back of the church.  This is the Phoenix First Church.  I don't know anything about what religion it is.  The church is physically huge and you can see it from miles away.  They have this amazing Christmas show.  You have to buy tickets in advance.  Camels and circus animals walk down the aisle.  It is like a broadway performance.

  Here is a video from their site. 

http://www.phoenixfirst.org/about-us/special-events

We climbed up the last hill to make it back near the water tank and headed down the hill. In the end we made it a great hike.  510 feet elevation gain.  Little over 3 miles in 1 hour.  

It was a fun hike on a hot afternoon.

And.....It was NEW!!  Hike #32 - Check it off. 

Hike #31 - White Tank Mountains - Mesquite Canyon Trail Phoenix AZ

Hike #31

Date: April 13, 2014 

Location: Phoenix AZ

Hikers: Me, Tina & Jim

Directions:  

101 (west side of Valley) to Olive Road. Olive Road west.  This road takes you directly into the Regional park.  Entrance Fee is $6. (We are still getting our money out of Jim's pass)  For this hike we parked at Ramada #7. Restrooms/Water/ Ramada. 

https://www.maricopa.gov/parks/white_tank/Maps.aspx
or
https://www.maricopa.gov/parks/white_tank/pdf/2013/white-tank-11x17-3d.pdf

We were supposed to be doing a 13 mile hike today at Skull Mesa but our plans changed.  We decided to head back to the White Tanks and do the other side of Ford Canyon.  It was a beautiful morning already about 70 degrees with a nice breeze.  There are many people already on the trail and someone right behind us, so it may be busier than hike #24 when we barely saw anyone.

Our hike started with Jim saving the wildlife.  We thought he was talking to himself in the bathroom. He was saving a bird that was stuck in there.  He will have to wait til we return to see if he was successful with setting the bird free.  He left the restroom door open.  I would have screamed and left the restroom.

We plan to take the Mesquite Canyon trail today. We are going to travel for one hour and then turn around. We know we do not have enough time to do the loop that picks up Ford Canyon but we will go as far as we can in an hour.

The trail immediately starts with an incline.  We commented that we thought it might be flat.  No!  Nice switchbacks with signs not to bushwack.  I don't know why you would want to.

These were definetly sweeping switchbacks.  It was beautiful.  We were mostly in the sun but there were a few spots of shade.  There were a couple runners that past us and a few hikers behind us.










This is a switchback that is behind us.  We are on our way up.  We had a great conversation today.  We were all over the place in topics.  We laugh because we know that we took the Hikers code not to share these conversations.  They are hiker secrets.  LOL

 We made it to the top of the switchbacks. This area was very pretty.  Jim remembered his poles today.  Yeah!  I would recommend poles if you do not like the rocky paths.  It helps make it easier especially on the way down.

We head down the trail where we will soon hit the juncture of the Mesquite and Willow Canyon.  We have hiked about 35 minutes at this point.  As we head down the trail started to look like the other side of Ford Canyon.  You can see where the water would flow down the canyon.

Tina was my model to show how the rocks changed as we headed up.  It was very pretty.

We hit the juncture faster than we thought but we decided that we would head back at this point.  It was Sunday and we would have to drive 35 minutes back towards home after so we flipped here along with the couple that had been hiking behind us for most of the trip.

Once we turned around Tina noticed this cactus.  There was something blue that stuck out. It looks like a bug.  My zoom is limited on my iPhone but it looks pretty cool. I googled it and found the Mexican Cactus Fly.  Yup that is what it is.  Oh and by the way if you don't like bugs don't google bugs.  GROSS!

Speaking of bugs.  Jim kept telling Tina and I that there were bugs flying around us and to make sure they did not bite us.  We could not see them but later we saw them on the ground. I started to research them but stopped. Again...don't research it.  You may think they will kill you.  Ha!  We did not get bit.







The path heading back down was very nice.  I really like this area and hope to come back before the heat hits and do the entire loop.

We did not see the pool of water on the way up but it caught my eye on the way back.  Just like the other side there was one spot that held the water.  March 1, 2014 was the last time it rained and that had been after a 70 day drought.  So it is pretty cool that there is water standing. 

 Two random cactus at the top of the hill before we head down the switchbacks. 

We made it back to the ramada after 1.5 hours.  We traveled 4 miles today. Little less than planned but a great hike.  One thing I notice as a see the pictures is the blue sky.  I think we often take for granted the great weather.  This is a typical spring day.  Not too shabby.

The ramada area at #7 is very nice.  When we arrived back the parking lot was packed.  Oh and good news the bird in the bathroom was gone.  Jim saved a life!

 This hike had good elevation for 4 miles.  It was 814 elevation.  

Hike #31 is complete!  We are in the 30's.  

Check it off!!

Hike #30 - Shadow Mountain - Phoenix AZ

Hike #30

Date: April 12, 2014 

Location: Phoenix AZ

Hikers: Me & Jim

Directions:  
51 North to Greenway Parkway, Head West towards. take a slight left onto Greenway Rd. Turn right on 27th street and right on Acoma Drive.  There is a trailhead. Park in front of the trailhead. Neighborhood street area, park where permitted. Water and No Restrooms. 

Shadow Mountain/Lookout Mountain: 

http://phoenix.gov/parks/trails/locations/lookout/hiking/

Today is a quikie hike.  Tomorrow we plan a longer hike so we are going to hit Shadow Mountain that is next to Lookout (our old favorite). We have never hiked Shadow.  There is a circumference trail but from what I read there are alot of side trails that you can zip around for a short hike.  This is part of the Phoenix Preserve.  It is in the middle of the valley.  They say the rocks are similar to the White Tanks but the mountain has been pillaged of all the cactus and vegetation.

The trailhead is handicap accessible.  There is a ramp before you hit the trailhead.  I wonder why there is a ramp.  I googled the area to see if there was something about it.  Nothing!  I wonder if it is a neighborhood thing?






Below is the view up to Shadow Mountain. The elevation is not great.  This is not a trail if you are looking for a butt buster hike.  It is just a nice hike!

 There is a water fountain just beyond the trailhead.  Strange that it is located into the trail.  Must be a reason for it.  We did not check to see if it worked.  The view back to the north shows the mountains that we have hiked in the Sonoran preserve.  It is nice to drive by all these mountains knowing that we have put our tracks on them.

We headed to the west on what I think is the circumference trail. There are no markers so far.

We then headed up.  (we tend to do that).  This took us up to a water tower.





If we were planning to do the circumference this is where we took a wrong turn.  We should have stayed low and west.  This was cool though. We headed up slightly.  Jim came me the history of water towers and why they are now sealed.

At the top of the hill we finally see a trail marker.  With no information.  So we headed East and took another loop down.

 We did a few ups and downs on the east side.  Since we were waiting for Jim's car to be serviced we decided to stay on the north side and just zip around, then hit the street back to the car.

These steps took us to 27th Street.  There are very nice homes in this area.  We hit the road and took it back to acoma.  Got the call that Jim's car was ready so it was perfect timing!   

 Very quick hike. Less than 2 miles for 33 minutes.  Hey it is new though!! Hike #30  Check it off!

Hike #29 - Scenic Trail - McDowell Mountain Regional Park - Fountain Hills AZ

Hike #29

Date: April 6, 2014 

Location: Fountain Hills AZ

Hikers: Me & Jim

Directions:  
101 to Shea Blvd to Palisades. Take left on Palisades. Follow towards town. Take left on to N Saguaro Blv. This will turn into East McDowell Mountain Road.  Turn left into the Park.  $6 entrance unless you have the County park pass. Water and Restrooms. 

McDowell Regional County Park: 

https://www.maricopa.gov/parks/mcdowell/ or
https://www.maricopa.gov/parks/mcdowell/pdf/2014/mcdowell-8x11.pdf

Today is a mystery hike.  We are back at the McDowell Mountain Regional park but we are at the main entrance.  I have looked at the map and circled a couple hikes.  I am relying on Jim to pick the hike because he has been here before.  He suggested the Scenic Trail which is one I had circled.  It will be about 4.5 miles. We are taking the trail to the south and then will hit the Pemberton trail to get back to the parking lot.

The Trail Expert

 There is a very nice restroom and pavillon area here.  Lots of mountain bikers. The Pemberton trail is a 15 mile loop that is very popular with the bikers.






The trail starts out very flat.  It is quite different from the West side of the McDowells. Flat and has rolling hills.  Very pretty.

 We stopped for some bikers.  We thought they were talking about Beer but they said they were talking about Geers.
This rock structure was in an open area.  Witchery!! Jim told me what this is. I can't remember though.

We hit a junction and continued up a hill on the Scenic trail. 

Our view was amazing. It is very different from what we are normally see.

This was the sunrise to the east.  This is 4 Peaks to the East.

At the top of the hill there was a bench.  Jim joked that we needed someone to poise.  I told him to strike a pose. He said...you won't put this on your blog.  I said SNICKER...of Course Not. :) He will do anything!!

A Small Cairn at the top of the hill in the middle of the field.

 Oh Look Another Bench at the end of the Hill!  Jim - Strike a pose.  

Beautiful shot to the West. You can see Marcus Landslide from here. 

This is the intersection of the Pemberton trail.  You can see a couple bikers heading out on the trail.  We will take this trail back to the parking lot.

 Alot more people since we started the hike.  Mostly bikers!  This was a nice hike. I enjoyed the scenery and the company.  Last hike of the 20's.  30's here we come! 

Hike #29 - Check it off!