Miller Peak

I survived the Zane Grey 50 mile race outside of Payson in late April - just barely. It took me over 14 hours to get the finish line about 3.5 hours slower than I was on this course 10 years ago. Now I am training for another 50 Miler coming up on May 17 in Los Alamos, NM. Should be a great course and I am looking forward to meeting my friends from Carson City NV for the race. I don't think I will go out fast from the start on this one - the trails might be much better than Zane Grey but the climbs and descents are longer and steeper.

I went up Miller Peak Friday afternoon - gets in 4000+ feet of climbing in a little over 6 miles. The aspen are greening up - there is a great section of trail that runs through the aspen. I decided to take illegal immigrant route for the descent. This route is more direct but being an immigrant route I knew there would be some brush and very steep sections involved. It was definitely steep but the route was very well used - even the trunks of the aspens were discolored from people grabbing on to keep from sliding down the hill. There was also a lot of trash - one pile just a 150 feet below the summit of Miller Peak - in an aspen grove and several others along the ridge line on the way down. I don't think I will get to these piles - out of site out of mind. It would be a tough haul to get the trash off the mountain.

Here is some of the trash - just below the summit is the pile seen on the right and further down is this pile on the left. About 2 months ago when I was up on the summit - I saw a few immigrants just below the summit. It is a long tough climb up Miller Peak from the south. I am guessing that the route is popular because the Forest Service land extends all the way to the highway within Hunter Canyon whereas some of the other canyons have a number of homes.

Below is a pic of the descent - note the aspens used as handholds for the steep descent. The Google Earth image shows the route up Miller Canyon and then back down the ridge line. The open space near the start is the Beatty property which has an apple orchard and at least one guest cabin - I would love to have this kind of running out of my back door. I guess I cannot complain too much about a 20 minute drive to the trail head.

Hauling Bags

I ran up Ramsey Canyon about 3 miles to get a trash bag I left during the clean-up weekend. I found that I can keep a decent downhill trot using two bags tethered on a branch across my shoulders - if only I could get paid for portering trash out of the mountains. My next run I was going to haul out a bag at the end of an 18 mile training run, but ran short on time. So I went back to Comfort Spring a few days later. This was an uphill haul that kicked my butt. Instead of making a short run in and out - I added extra miles by starting at Ramsey. The run in was fine but after hauling the bags 3/4 of a mile uphill I was spent and struggled on the 5 miles of downhill. It tells me that my 50 miler in two weeks should probably start out as a hike rather than a run. Between my back problems and being sick I missed about 3 weeks of training and have quickly realized I cannot pick-up where I left off.

On both of these runs I ran into illegals hiking out through Ramsey Canyon. Busy week on the trails - more trash accumulates.

Clean-Up Results In

The weather was fantastic and four of us made it to Bear Saddle - and what a bear it was. We started collecting some of the heavy trash - back packs and clothing - about a half-mile below the saddle. We got the bags to the saddle and filled some more. Bags were shuttled down to the spring and more bags packed on the way down and at the spring. In all 16 bags were left at the spring for latter pick-up by horses. The horse crew - led by Ron of Arizona Horse Back Experience in Sonoita spent a long day on Sunday packing the bags out. A few of ours were over stuffed so they ended up hauling about 20 bags out from the Spring.

Connie and Kevin collecting trash at the saddle. I think that Connie probably hiked two miles further than the rest of us - any bit of trash in sight was collected. Kevin found a number of unopened cans of tuna in back packs - as he put it the cats will be eating good for awhile.

Susan - my 98 pound sister making the saddle. She loaded up several more bags and then yoked two of the large green bags together across her shoulders for the trip down to the Spring.

Connie was the last out at 5:12 pm- not because she was hiking slower but rather because she filled one last bag on the way out and took some of the immigrant routes off the main trail on the way down. Here she is dumping that last bag.

Jeff, Pam, Jenny and Jeremy started out with us - they turned back before the saddle but did fill at least one bag with trash found around the Comfort Spring area.

Thanks everyone for you hard efforts - four of us did a great job cleaning up a remote area along the Arizona Trail. Getting the trash out of the spring will sure make it a more pleasant experience when I run by it next time. Please inform me of any future efforts by others- I will be happy to come out and to help get the word out.

Below is a picture Connie took of the bags at the Spring

Saturday April 5th Clean-Up

Meet at 7:00 am at the Lone Star Cafe 7216 S Hwy 92 -- it is located near the intersection of Hwy 92 and Hereford Rd. We will meet in the dirt lot just outside the Cafe. If you want breakfast at the cafe, you can arrive earlier - it opens at 6:00 am.

There will be a sign-in sheet and we will discuss the plan. After that we will drive (can carpool if you like) to the top of Carr Canyon - the Comfort Spring Trail Head. The hike in is just under 4 miles to the Saddle.

Updates:

• Trash Bags will be hauled out by horse at a later date - Great news for our backs!
• We will need to carry bags a half mile down to the spring - staging area for horses.
• Weather forecast looks great - bring some sunscreen it is exposed at the saddle.

Not everyone has to haul bags to Bear Spring so if you have a bad back or other concerns you can load the bags and others will hike them in to the spring. I am going to bring rope and a larger pack to try tying bags to the pack for the half-mile hike but you can also sling two tied bags over your shoulder if you prefer - I will have plenty of rope and duct tape!

Clean-Up Day

A few updates regarding April 5th:

• Meet at 7:00 am at the Lone Star Cafe on Hwy 92
• Drive up Carr Canyon to Comfort Spring Trail Head
• Hike down to Comfort Spring and then up Wisconsin Trail to Bear Saddle (about 4 miless)
• Clean-up area around saddle, Bear Spring, and another area just to north on Crest Trail
• There is a link to the new clean-up flyer on right side of this page

Some most excellent news is that arrangements are being made for someone to haul the bags out by horse. This will save us time - I was not looking forward to carrying the heavy bags out. I will post later this week when this arrangement is finalized. Looks like we will be able to leave the packed bags at Bear Saddle or a nearby location and the trash will be hauled out a day or two later.

Picture of Bear Saddle: The trash density is similar to this and extends a quarter of a mile down from the saddle. There is another area about three quarters of a mile north that has some piles of litter.

Bear Saddle - Ida Canyon

I threw my lower back out about ten days ago - during my Spring Break. That stunk! I had just got in my first 70 mile week and had big plans for the break to continue with high mileage and some great runs on the trails. Maybe it was the 70 mile week but the back went out when I bent over to take something away from my daughter before she threw it at my son - "Daddy has to go lie on the floor now." The back is better now - I couldn't wait to get out for a longer trail run.

Friday morning I got out for a 15 mile run and managed to complete a loop down Ida Canyon and up Oversite Canyon. Last time I attempted this I ran face-to-face with a large group of illegals and decided to turn around and go back. Great run - I am going to include this loop in longer training runs as it makes for a tough climb 2800 feet up to the Carr Peak Saddle. This was my first time running Ida Canyon and I was surprised to find the trail in great condition. On one section the trail was a bit overgrown and faint - this is where the illegal cut a long switch back and go straight up the ridge.

There is a spring about a half a mile down from the saddle. It was flowing but unfortunately there was trash littered in the waters and around the area. If there are enough volunteers next weekend - I hope to clean this area up along with the area at Bear Saddle. This spring is the headwaters for a favorite swimming area in the valley below. I take my children swimming there in late summer when the water is flowing after the summer monsoons.

Bear Springs

Crowded Trails this Morning

I was running up Pat Scott Canyon Trail to the Crest Trail this morning and stopped at the trail intersection to catch my breath. I looked down the other side of the ridge - towards Mexico - and saw a train of illegals hiking up about 100 yards from me. They were headed north (makes sense) and I was headed south. I stayed to watch - over 30 people and the last guy was dragging a sleeping bag behind him - I am guessing to cover the tracks.

As I went my way, I wondered what I would do if I came face to face with a large group like that on the trail. I figured I would use an "Ola Amigo", make a friendly gesture and go on by the group. I did not have to wait long to test my plan out. After reaching Bear Saddle, I headed south down the Ida Canyon Trail and planned to loop back to the Crest Trail. This was a new trail for me - I had started down this way once but the downed trees and lack of time turned me back after a quarter of a mile. Today I had the time and looked forward to completing the loop. About three-quarters of a mile down I came face to face with a group - the leader was about 30 feet away with the others (I could see 7) further behind.

I said hello and motioned that I wanted to go on by - he did not say a word but only nodded his head. He also had one hand behind his back and never did show the hand. I looked at him, looked at the others behind him and said Adios - I don't want to take the chance. I turned and ran the way I had come. He never did say a word to me - and in that hand was it rock, stick, or gun? I did not care to find out. He had a look of all business - with paying clients behind him.

I decided to head along the Crest Trail out to Miller Peak and back - this is familiar territory. I ran a side route that stays high to see how much litter had accumulated in an area I cleaned up last spring - quite a bit. About 10 minutes later I came across another group of about 20 people - this time the lead man responded with a hello and the nature of the area allowed me to give them a wide berth. I continued on to Miller Peak. At the top I stopped to enjoy the view and just below the peak was another illegal immigrant in the brush - he was a bit surprised to see me but did say hello. There was at least one other person in the brush and I did not care to go snooping around so left a short time latter.

The rest of the run was uneventful - made a side trip up Carr Peak and headed back to the car. This last bit - a much more popular route - I came across three hikers enjoying the day. It was incredible how many illegals I saw today - in the past I have encountered a few here and there but over 50 in one day and 4 separate groups?!! May have been that with the high winds the coyotes know that the Border Patrol helicopters are grounded and they take the opportunity to make the trip. Now I can say for sure that I have seen many more illegal immigrants on the trails in the Huachucas than other hikers or runners.

Busy Morning on the Border

It is finally getting light enough to run my 6.5 mile loop in Coronado National Monument in the morning before work. The early morning air inspired me to charge up the hill - as I crested the top and started down I was in for a suprise. I came around a corner and a border patrol agent was running towards me - we both stopped about 10 feet apart and he asked if I was a US citizen to which I replied, "of course." He let me know that I was pretty close to being tackled on the trail - too bad it would have made for a more interesting story. He radioed the others to let them know the suspect ID'd as a citizen.

There were about 5 agents prowling around - apparently a group of illegals had scattered in the area earlier that morning. The skinny agent was out front pounding the trail and the others were working their way around off the trail to close in on me. I'm glad they do not carry batman nets - I'm sure the agent would have fired a net at me if he had it.

I did suprise a small group of illegal immigrants in Ash Canyon last year - I came charging around a corner and they immediately left the trail and ran off into the brush. All part of the fun in running along the border.

Early Morning Run

I ran the same 15 mile route as last weekend - was not quite as magical without the full moon and clouds but I did take a camera this time to capture a few pics. I finished the initial climb about the same time as the sunrise. The peak on the horizon is San Jose Peak which is just across the border in Mexico.

At the Miller Peak Junction I stopped and poked around to see how much rubbish was in the area. I saw a suitcase - usually it is just backpacks. Yes - I did open it and no, there was not stacks of money inside only some peanut butter sandwiches. This area around Miller Peak is heavily littered - even the top of the peak is littered. The summit is another half of a mile from this junction but I did not go on up - the trails were rather icy so it was slow going in this area.

There are great views to the south and west near where the crest trail meets the Carr Peak trail. In the distance you can see a small lake - this is Parker Canyon Lake. Sometime this Spring I hope to convince my wife to load up the four kids in the mini-van and pick me up at the lake. I would run from the house to the lake - probably about 30 miles if I take the hard route up and over these mountains. When I lived in Carson City, NV I could run from my house up and over the Carson Range to Lake Tahoe. It was only about 17 miles to Sand Harbor - a great beach to meet at. I could soak my legs in the cold water and the kids loved swimming in the lake and playing in the sand. I would do this several times a year with friends and on my birthday each year - it was my day - so I would run to Tahoe and family would meet me there for a picnic on the beach.

It was enjoyable run - when I dropped of the ridge a helicopter was hovering around one canyon over. It did not look like the usual helicopter flown by the Border Patrol but I am guessing it was BP - they spent quit a bit of time closely observing a ridge. Here is the route as pictured in Google Earth - Looking from the South with Sierra Vista on the other side of the mountains.

New Route - Oversite Canyon Trail

I dropped off the south side of the crest trail down Oversite canyon in a run this morning. This is the first time I have run all the way down to the forest service road that runs along the south side - just a few miles from the Mexico border. The accumulation of trash along this trail is very heavy. At the bottom of the canyon there is a creek - with plastic bottles and food wrappers floating in it. It is overwhelming how much trash litters the Huachucas - pick a new route and you are bound to find heavily littered areas. I also noticed a lot of new trash along the crest trail near the junction with Lutz Canyon - a trail descends from here down to Ash Canyon which is also is/was heavily littered. I say was because someone told me later in the day that there was a clean-up effort in Ash Canyon last week that hauled out 50 large bags of trash!

Apart from the depressing amount of litter - it was a beautiful morning to run. I took advantage of the full moon and got a 4:30 am start. I almost turned the alarm off and went back to sleep when I heard the wind howling this morning but the full moon, clear skies and mild temps beckoned me to the trails.

The sunrise began as I neared Carr Peak trail and about the same time a cloud was blasting across the ridge - I would look left and see a glimpse of the full moon then look right and see the brilliant orange of the sunrise in the distance. And then as I dropped off of the ridge to the south the wind let up and I made my way down finally breaking through the cloud. I wish I had one of this wee digital cameras to capture some of these moments.

The only down side of the run was a tumble I took - I was enjoying a new trail and the fact that it was very runnable. Other trails dropping to the south have a maze of downed trees from a fire a few years ago that make running impractical. Anyhow, I was in the moment and then took a face plant on the trail. Bruised my chest and opened up an wound on my hand again - not too bad this time as I was at least wearing gloves. After sitting in the dirt for awhile to make sure the important parts were all good, I got up and continued with greater focus on the terrain.

It was a tough 15 mile run at about 3.5 hours - but I do plan on this one again. Eventually, I plan on zippering the ridge line on 30+ mile training runs and getting in plenty of tough climbs. Great Wasatch 100 mile training!

Snow Day

Great afternoon run in the snow Friday. I have been consistently working a route in Coronado National Monument for a year now - Joes Canyon trail up to the Montezuma Pass and then pound the dirt road back trying to keep the average pace around 5:30 on the downhill. Makes an old guy feel fast. My best yet is 5:06 pace on this 3 mile mostly downhill portion - it drops over 1200 feet in elevation. With the snow and memories of face planting on this route 2 weeks ago, I backed off the pace a bit this week.

Two weeks ago I turned an ankle on the downhill -looked over my shoulder at a truck coming up behind me and took a good tumble. Nice flapper on the hand, scrapped knee, twisted ankle and plenty of blood. The guys in the truck gave me a lift back to my car and shook their heads.

I have been running down some very technical trails in the Huachucas but my two worst wipe outs are on this well graded dirt road. I am too stupid to give up this workout - I love pounding the downhill.

Flyer - click image to view full size

Wasatch 100 Mile

I found out last weekend that I made it into Wasatch 100 mile. For those of you not familiar with trail running - many of the 100 mile races have lotteries for entrants. I put in for Hardrock in Colorado and Wasatch in Utah. I am looking forward to Wasatch - the terrain and climbs of the Huachucas should be good training grounds.

Trash at Bear Saddle

I am planning a clean-up day at Bear Saddle along the Crest Trail of the Huachucas in early April. I going to do my best to round up a few volunteers. I will get the word out among local trail runners, co-workers, and my church. This area has one of the higher concentrations of litter that I have seen on my trail runs. It is remote - over 4 tough miles and 3000 feet in elevation from the closest road.

There are a few other areas nearby with a high density of rubbish that will can be cleaned up on the same day. More info to come on this event. I have about 8 other littered areas tagged as high density - and I am sure that there must be many more as I have only run maybe half of the trails in these mountains.