2021 promises to be an interesting year. To pull ourselves out of the pandemic rut, Jack and I have decided to take up a challenge. Well, it was more my idea, but Jack is my shadow and will go where I go. I conceived of this idea many years ago, but never had the time nor resources available to execute my plan. Well this year is going to be the year. The challenge: to hike a new trail every week for the entire year. That is 52 different hikes throughout the wonderfully diverse State of Arizona.
Our first hike was on South Mountain. South Mountain is a large municipal park in South Phoenix that consists of 16,000 acres, three mountain ranges and 50 miles of hiking trails. Many of the trailheads are located in neighborhoods, so parking can be a bit dicey.
We decided to go up the Mormon Trail to see the Natural Tunnel and Fat Man’s Pass. The way up to the first trail junction can be a killer if you are new to hiking, or conversely don’t have the energy of a seven-year old. I, personally was encouraged by the sight of mountain bikers carrying their bikes up this portion of the trail. If they could do that, I could surely make it to the top.
At the saddle, the trail splits in two. goings to the left takes you up the Mormon Loop trail, but we decided to continue on straight (downhill!) to get to the Natural Tunnel. Once past the saddle you descend into the heart of the park and can no longer see Phoenix, but that is where the mountain bikers begin to show up in earnest. Most were pretty good about sharing the trail though.
The hike to the tunnel was fairly easy compared with the climb up the mountain. Jack enjoyed climbing, looking at the petroglyphs and exploring the area. Although Fat Man’s Pass was less than a 1/2 mile away, we never quite made it that far. The thought of missing his playdate with his best friend got the better of him and we turned around and headed back to the trailhead. The lesson here: what I thought was a motivator to finish became a nagging reason to turn around. Oh well.
