Elephant Head mountain bike trail (Santa Ritas)

Both Kevin and I were up before sunrise again.  A 22-ounce can that once contained Pedigree Chopped Ground Dinner with Chicken for Dogs was lying in the hallway, a three-inch round hole exposing the inside of the can.  Both top and bottom lids were still intact.  Which dog risked its teeth to open and consume the contents?  Most likely it was Sadie, as she has a chicken addiction. This is the first time I've seen a tin can be destroyed by the dogs. Normally they sacrifice aluminum cat food cans for their discreet 2am meals.

My original plan for today was to drive out to Mount Wrightson and bag the peak.  Today was "Fee Free" Saturday, at least on the Coronado National Forest website in honor of "National Public Lands" day.    I didn't leave until 10am, though, so that I could help support the Buena Football club's car wash at the Arby's in Sierra Vista this morning.  Both Kevin and I were there at 7:30am and volunteers were still waiting on a hose, and then again at 9:40am when I came around a second time for my Ford Escape.  The same four JV players were there, along with JV coach Hernandez and two parents.  I was surprised only one of my JV players in my Engish class was there, and he had been washing cars for almost four hours.  I was disappointed to see so few students volunteering for their own benefit.

This three-hour delay, of course, later affected my hike with Zeke in the Santa Ritas.  I arrived at the Mount Wrightson trailhead just before 11am.  The parking lot was not packed as I had expected for a Fee Free Saturday.  I noticed fee stubs in windows and on dashboards.  Was Mount Wrightson not part of the National Public Lands?  People around me whom I asked weren't sure.  To play it safe, I drove down the mountain and instead opted to explore a mountain bike trail that skirts around the famed Elephant Head rock, a place I've yet to explore!  I pulled off the paved road to continue westward, following the main dirt road past a displaced campground until that road ended in a dead end.   There was no "Fee Area" sign her so I parked the truck, continued on the road that crossed a dry wash, opened the gate with a trailhead sign, and continued on the trail that meandered around mesquites, prickly pear, oaks and tall grasses at the end of their seasonal life.  I could see Green Valley in the distance and Elephant Head ahead of me.
https://www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/coronado/recarea/?recid=25450

My one obstacle was the mountain heat.  Despite a warm breeze, the ground was warm and the sun unfiltered by any clouds.  Zeke panted behind me the entire time, only once getting sidetracked by a wily desert hare that enticed him with a fleeting jump across the mesquite-dotted landscape.

Elephant Head slowly came in front of me, but I must have lost the trail.  There were so many crisscrossed trails, either biking trails or well-worn cattle trails, that confused me.  I only saw one trail marker.  Another was stomped on the ground and a second one leaning against a mesquite.  I should have read up more on the trail description before attempting this trail.  On a cool day this would be a lovely trail just to the big rock outcropping, but even I felt the heat.  I stopped at least three times to let Zeke rest, who was clearly warm and needed all the gallon of water I had with me.

I ended up getting lost and climbed up a rise to find the trail, but then just used my GPS app to get off the rocky hill cluttered with prickly pear and ocotillo.  In a lower elevation mesquite grove, I found a rusty name tag for "Anita Woodward, G.V.H.C" which I know is the Green Valley Hiking Club.  (Turns out Woodward and her husband Jim write trail reports for the Green Valley News; her last one is dated 2015) How long ago did she lose her name tag, and what was she doing in this grove away from the trail?  Was she lost, too?

I found the main trail again and decided I would hike 20 more minutes south on it.  I was now just below Elephant Head along a level plain and it reminded me of Half Dome, where Ellen was this weekend with her friend Anna.  But my attempt was quickly halted by an angry cow and her calf, whom she was protecting right on the trail under a mesquite.  Zeke ran toward the cow, I yelled "NO!" (as if Zeke would listen) and when the cow stomped the ground a few times before lunging toward me, I knew I was better off getting out of her area and turning around here.  Obstinate cows are not written in the official trail description and there were plenty around me watching!

I now returned the way I came, this time making sure I didn't lose the main trail.  We stopped two more times for Zeke and water.  We were in the sun for 2:20 hours and only hiked 5.6 miles!  I do want to come back here in the winter and explore the area.  One of these days I can claim Elephant Head as one more peak I have bagged.  Today was not the day.
http://www.mapmyhike.com/workout/2496450755

The official trail is 13 miles long, but I know members of the Huachuca Hiking Club have done this hike within the past year and it was more like nine miles.  Perhaps they shuttled this hike, or they bushwhacked across the poky terrain for the rock summit.  I was alone on this trail today, with no visible recent use of the trail.  The beauty around me and the mystery of Elephant Head, however, are already calling me to try this hike again.
http://www.gvnews.com/sports/great-hikes-devil-s-cache-box/article_b483dc5c-0059-11e3-a22c-001a4bcf887a.html