Bisbee hills

Distance: 5.7 miles
Elevation: 5210'-6245'
Elevation gain 1103'
Significance: abandoned mining roads that meander around hills; scenic views, isolation not far from town.

I didn't work today and was itching for another hike.  I was once again dressed for Carr Peak, but again the peak remained shrouded in fog and the wind picked up.  In the end I opted to hike in Bisbee instead, where the clouds kept clear of the hills.  It always pays to have a contingency plan! The overcast sky and the cool temperature lured me there.  I took Minnie and Zeke.  My plan was to hike the same trail toward Mural Hill, but to take a left turn instead of a right turn at the two-mile mark and explore where the other mining road leads that branches from that intersection.   I assumed it would loop back toward town and into Zacatecas canyon.

I didn't start my hike until after 2:21pm, a rather late start for a hike of unknown distance.  Just as I parked in front of the Old Bisbee Brewing Company to start the hike behind the building, JudyM texted me to let me know that her Golden Retriever, Apollo, died the day before of painful lameness.  Apollo was the dog that I helped transport to New Mexico several years ago.  He was an older dog (Judy's vet said he was more like eight years old) and was diagnosed with a disease that required life-long medication, but Apollo was such a sweet dog.  He rode in the front of my van like a champ, enjoying the ride while I held his front paws.  I would have adopted him myself if we didn't already have six dogs.  Judy gave him at least four good years.  Thinking  of Apollo soured the hike at first, but once I got on the unexplored trail, my thoughts went to the dogs as this overgrown mining road meandered northwest, offering views of the mining pits in Warren.

I never lost sight of the crosses on Youngblood hill.  The crosses make for a good landmark, as they stick out on the brown background as one continues on this overgrown mining trail.  The old road meanders off another bald hill for a good .8 miles, with Mural Hill visible to the east and Upper Brewery Gulch becoming visible.  We were higher here and exposed, but the hill side kept us from the blasting wind.  It was the wind I was concerned with.

Minnie did quite well.  I stopped at the 2.65 mile mark to give them water.  She was still in the mood to play fetch with a few burned sticks she found on the trail.   One got stuck in a poky shrub and she was determined to reach up and get it.  Mellow  Zeke was covered in soft seed heads as he took the 15 minutes to rest.

The trail got harder to follow by the third mile.  I lost it on the next hill, but when I found the old grade of the road and continued on that, it, too, faded off.  Had it been washed away in heavy rains?  Did it stop on this road?  It's hard to tell with all the overgrowth.  I came up to a wire fence with an opening to where a road could have been and went through it. I was still a mile away from Zacatecas canyon and it was all loose bushwhacking.  This part was the worst part of the trail.  I may have gone around the hill in the wrong direction.  We were facing Wildcat Canyon now to our north and the overgrowth was heavy with acacia, cholla, yuccas, agave and big, loose rocks.

The dogs now were doing better than me.  I'd get tangled in those thorny shrubs while they could sniff their way down a game trail without any obstacles.  I'd have to call them back.

The north end of Zacatecas Canyon burned in early October.  No structures were in danger so the fire was allowed to burn out.  I came across the boundary to that burn, then had to walk through it.  Burned yuccas and agave and thorny brush remain.

It was now 5pm and the sun was setting low.  I still had two miles to go.  When we reached the saddle to Wildcat Canyon, we were back on a formal trail and it was all downhill from there.  Both dogs were doing fine, and even chased four white-tail deer down into Zacatecas.  (That is when I realized that they were still full of energy).  The deer were easy to spot in the burned area, but it was also getting dark now that the sun had dipped behind the Mule mountains.  My one goal now was to get back into the Brewery Gulch safely.  Homeless people are known to camp in the lower canyon and have been known to harass hikers.

We made it out of the hills and back into town just in time.  There was water in the gulch and I let the dogs drink from it.  The last mile was now at dusk and it was quite cooler now.

Minnie was tired but did well to the end.  This cool weather was perfect for her. I let both dogs off leash until we got back to the Honda, where both dogs were glad to rest.  They stayed in the car while I stopped at the Old Bisbee Brewing Company and had two 12-ounce glasses of Holiday Ale, a tasty beer made with "100 pounds of apple".  I even had a bowl of chili.  That was my dinner tonight before driving back home.  The brewery was quiet tonight, as was the gulch, with just a few people at the bar.

I am glad I did this hike.  Now I know where some of those overgrown mining roads lead to, but this is a hike I will probably not do again because of the thick overgrowth in parts.   The hike was 5.75 miles and I should have started it at noon instead of procrastinating.

https://tucson.com/news/local/firefighters-halt-wildfire-s-progress-a-quarter-mile-from-bisbee/article_26de5d4a-c187-5014-856f-965e6e6ba7d4.html