I had scheduled a Meetup hike for 4:30pm at the Carr Canyon Road lower bridge. The plan was to hike up the road for four miles, turn off at FR 5793 (a once-popular ATV trail)and hike that last mile to the overview. It's a hike I led last November and three others joined me.
Eight people had signed up but two were AWOL. Nina arrived late, as usual, so that made us six at the start: Bob, Eric, Nina and older couple George and Jill. All of them are day hikers with Nina's Tuesday group.
I brought Sadie, as she does so well around other people. George and Jill stayed in the back holding hands the entire time, then decided at the two-mile mark to turn around and hitched a ride down with a pick-up.
I was glad we didn't have much vehicle traffic now that the road is open for the season to motorized vehicles. There was no other traffic once we got past the upper falls. (People were leaving the falls as we were coming) One odd-looking VW bug came tumbling down and the passenger yelled at us that they didn't have any brakes, that they were going downhill using the emergency brakes. The guys surely made it down safely, as we didn't see any carcass on the return hike. The car didn't look road safe just from the looks of it. The headlights were too dull.
Nina has been walking this road every week since November and has gained much strength in her legs. We didn't have to slow down at all for her. I figured it would take us two hours to hike the four miles on the grade, with a short break at the two-mile mark and the upper falls. I was right about our timing. We all hiked at about the same pace.
We didn't take off until 4:42pm, and those extra 12 minutes are what got us late for the moon rise over the Mule mountains. Moon rise was slated at 6:36pm with 99.8% illumination. I got to the overlook first, but the moon was already losing its reddish glow and rising fast. And oh my, how cold and windy it was on the exposed top! My hands were so cold, I could barely get my camera settings set.
It was so windy, I couldn't get any decent photos. I took too may blurry shots. Why didn't I bring my gorilla pod to give my camera a steady hold? The lights of Sierra Vista were glowing yellowish. One can't but be in awe of the view from that vantage point.
The upper trails were still a little wet from the rain earlier in the week. The falls were flowing nicely, and there was water for Sadie in the gullies, even though I had packed enough water and treats for us both.
The sun had set at 5:52pm, so by the time we left the overlook for the return hike, we were in the dark. The moon hadn't risen high enough to cast its light on us, but when it did, WOW did the road light up. The moonlight against the rock outcroppings, and our bodies casting long shadows against the terrain brought out the kids in all four of us. It was quiet here, with just the blustery wind whistling around us. This was Nina's first night hike and she was loving it.
Nina stayed with Eric and I was with Bob on the return hike. Bob and I waited for the other two at Nina's Ford Escape; once they were off it was just Bob, me and Sadie for the last two miles. We got back to our cars at the lower falls at 8:20pm. My legs felt tired but I'm so glad I hosted this hike. I plan on doing more full-moon hikes, with the Meetup gang or even the hiking club (or both!)
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