I had Hansel and Zana inside before leaving for the trailhead at 7:10am. I only wanted to bring one dog, not two, so I had to distract Hansel with a raw chicken leg.. Zana darted outside while Hansel was busy eating the chicken leg. He was so busy eating it, he never noticed that Zana and I had left quickly. I have to use raw chicken to distract the dogs every time I leave the house with one dog.
We had a high wind advisor again today, but the wind wasn't as bad as yesterday's gusts. It was breezy, yes, with a slight chill, but nothing that was a mission stopper. The breeze was 11mph at the start of the hike at 7:40am and 44F.
I was running a few minutes late again. Doug's hike description was right on, so it was easy to see where the hike would be. The hill where we started the hike was visible from Ash Canyon road, a near-perfect cone driving up from the east.. I parked in a turn-off but didn't see any other vehicles.
I was ready to walk down the road a bit to look for the others when Doug, Jim and Tatiana came walking down the road They had parked higher up on Ash Canyon Road and walked down another 0.3 miles where I was parked. We all walked together from here.
The start of the steep climb was another half mile down the road before we started up the steep ridge and bushwhacked, This was 1.73 miles to the high point of this hike. The higher we got, the easier the social trail was visible, but the high and thick Lovegrass and Feathergrass made the trail hard to find. Doug had done this hike before and knew what to look for.
We came across some migrant trash but nothing that looked fresh.
I kept a steady pace. I was worried I would get out of breath like I did last weekend, but today everything was easier. Everyone was going uphill very slowly due to the many rocks and boulders. The former boulders acted as steps as we gained elevation, traveling across high desert terrain of manzanitas, prickly pear, yuccas, agave and autumn sunflowers.
The grade varied greatly, from 9% to 46% in short sections. Sunflowers dotted the hills here. The highest point was 7367' as we sat on some warm mine tailings with an abandoned mine behind us, ate our lunch, and took in the views. We could see far south into Mexico. We could see the trails around us like the Bob Thompson switchback and the Lutz trail to the Crest Trail.
I could see the mining camp that Sadie and I discovered on our hike, and faint section of the now-abandoned South Fork of Ash Creek trail. The ascent took us 2:30 hours. We now had to descend.
The second section of this hike was the descent to the South Fort creek. We moved slowly through manzanitas and sandy, loose terrain.. I found the old trail and somehow got ahead of the others but waited for them at the second mine. Here we found an abandoned ore cart.
Once we got to the creek, the hiking went easier and faster. Terrain was now desert riparian with tall pines to shade us. There was water in the creek for Zana to cool off in. Our pace increased and even Zana was revitalized.
We walked right into the mining camp from years before. I recognized the stone wall, some crushed up metal, and later on the slide waterfall. I was now in familiar territory and it was all downhill from here.
The South Fork trail has become more overgrown since my last hike here, but Doug was able to guide us through the more difficult-to-follow sections. We were soon within view of Ash canyon road, but that last half mile was on a badly-rutted mining trail. Watching our steps was crucial to avoid slipping.
JimA had parked his truck at the trailhead.
Here is where I said good-bye to the group, thanked Doug for a fine hike, and walked the 0.3 miles with Zana to my Honda. I was back on the rutted road before Jim. We all went home from here.
Zana went straight to the water bucket when I got home, Hansel sniffed her down, and the other four dogs who were in the backyard did the same to Zana when I let them back inside.
Doug had spoken so much about Tatiana over the years and we finally got to meet. She is a strong hiker, loves dogs, and hails from Ukraine. She is a retired USArmy intelligence officer with Russian/Ukrainian language. We didn't speak about the current war in Ukraine with Russia, but I'd love to know about her life another time. She had been in Ukraine visiting family earlier this year. Zana and Tatiana hit it off right away.
