Aspen Draw Mt. Lemmon

Weather:  63º, sunny

About this Hike:  Last July we did an impromptu weekend Tucson trip.  It was not so different from what we've done this year over Memorial Weekend.  After exploring a lower-elevation trail on Mt. Lemmon, we drove to the summit at Ski Valley.  We explored a trail on the side of the mountain that went thru a burn-scarred area.  As daylight was running out, we discovered Aspen Draw and knew we'd come back.

Aspen Draw is about three miles steep out-and-back thru dense forest.  We opted to park at Ski Valley again and hike down then back up, although this can be done with the ascent first by parking near Iron Door Restaurant. 

At the bottom of Aspen Draw, we did a brief jaunt on the road, and then joined the Red Ridge Trail. Red Ridge is largely burned-out area as well, with one thick grove of relatively young recovered aspens. It was a steep descent, and we didn't go far before turning back on the not-so-scenic trail. 

I had hoped to start down Mt. Lemmon Control Road (the unpaved back road) and explore Oracle Ridge as well, but my hiking partner had had enough for the day.  While not long by miles, Aspen Draw is very steep and a definite workout. 

Temps were chilly at the summit, and it was a great day to get out of low-desert heat.  The crowds on Mt. Lemmon were surprisingly light for a holiday weekend and parking was never an issue.  I only wish Phoenix had an easily accessible respite like Mt. Lemmon. 

Madera Canyon Springs

Weather:  79º, sunny

About this Hike:  Lockdown is over and Arizonians are like bats out of hell.  Memorial Weekend is always a stampede up to the high country, but this year more so than ever.  All the valley rats are headed north to trash the forests and then incinerate their trash with illegal campfires.  Can you tell I feel a little cynical? 

Anyway, we headed south to Tucson for the weekend.  After all, who wants to go south where it's still nearly as hot as Phoenix?  This was a theory that proved correct.

Tucson has easy respites within 30 or so miles.  We spent the afternoon in town at a museum and then decided to do a late-day hike at Madera Canyon.  We parked at Bog Springs and made it up to Sylvester Spring before turning around.  Back at the parking area, I saw my first ever coatimundi up close.  He was raiding a picnic site that picnickers had left unsupervised.

The big takeaway here is that while I've been to Madera before, I never appreciated it so much as I did today.  There are a lot of trails with lush forest and flowing springs in that area.  It's a nice alternative to Mt. Lemmon when you want to get out of the Tucson heat.  

Pinal Peak & Telephone Trail

Weather:  73º, sunny

About this Hike:  Just about a year ago to the day we parked at Icehouse CCC and hiked up Pinal Peak via Sixshooter Trail 197.  We enjoyed beautiful wildflowers, a flowing stream, and changing flora with the elevation gain.  This year we opted to drive FR 651 to the summit of Pinal Peak and work our way down. 

With the summit campgrounds being closed right now, we found minimal traffic on the winding, but well-maintained FR 651.  I parked the truck in the shaded pines at Pinal Campground, and we set out for an adventure. 

The thought was to do Telephone Trail 192 and then loop back up on Icehouse 198. This appeared possible on the USFS map. While the trails are well signed, at least one junction sign was uprooted and propped against a tree in the wrong location.  We ended up doing Telephone as an out and back.  At least I think it was Telephone.  It could have been one of the other aforementioned trails.  For next time, I have a map with GPS loaded to a hiking app on my phone for more accurate results.

And speaking of that map, it fell out of my pocket about halfway down the trail.  Thankfully with towers atop Pinal Peak, I had perfect cell reception and downloaded a new copy of the USFS map.  Even better, I found my paper map littering the trail on the way back up and grabbed it.  Leave no trace.

In addition to magnificent trees and cooler temps, we enjoyed views to the south of the Catalina's in not-so-distant Tucson.  There also is a small neighborhood of privately-owned cabins on Pinal Peak with some fascinating history 

The original plan for Pinal was to camp there.  We may try this again when one of the many area campgrounds re-open.  There are a lot of trails in the Pinals, and I'd also like to visit the fire lookout on neighboring Signal Peak.  Overall, this sky island just south of Globe delivered a better-than-expected day hiking in the pines.