Elevation: 5840'
Significance: abandoned mining trails in the South Mule Mountains outside Bisbee, AZ. Gold was mined here early in the 20th century.
https://www.mapmyhike.com/workout/4068183805
Patio Peak is the name the Bisbee Muleteam hikers call this hilltop. I was curious about this peak as I had never heard of this hill before, and wanted to hike it. It was also my first time hiking with this bunch of hikers.
I recruited Steve and Susan to go with me. They both braved this trail, totally unknown to me in distance and description. After chatting with members at the meetup place by the old courthouse in Bisbee (we greeted each other by bumping elbows, thanks to the coronavirus), Susan drove Steve and me and Zeke to the trailhead in Bisbee-Warren. The trail starts at the edge of town off Yuma Trail, boundered by an old rusty concertina-wire fence one can open for access. I had been in this neighborhood a few years ago and saw the old mining trails, but always thought this was private property. The land is owned by Phelps-Dodge mining company, but locals are allowed to hike the trails as long as they don't hunt, camp, prospect or otherwise destroy the land. It's also open to grazing. I always thought these hills outside Bisbee-Warren were off-limits to hikers, so I appreciate the hike leader, Brad, for leading this hike. We were a group of 22 people and three dogs. The oldest dog, Sheila, is a 13-year-old collie, mellow in disposition and still strong enough to hike.
These southern Mule Mountains are low in elevation and mostly void of trees. Ocotillo dominate the landscape. A few oaks grow near drainages that still had water from recent snow melt and rains. We even walked past a stock pond which Trace and Zeke took advantage of.
The trail we took meandered over hilltops and vallies. One local in the group, John, born and raised in Bisbee, told us the history of these hills and especially Gold Hill, a prominent round hilltop near Patio Peak. There was enough gold ore in the area to sustain miners during the Great Depression, but the mines have long closed. We could see tailings in hill sides around us.
The trail wasn't too difficult at all until we hit the last steep hillside getting to Patio Peak, a steep and very rocky trail that exhausted both human and dog. The Muleteam hikers are a close group and they hike in a tight pack, making it more difficult to maintain one's own pace when hiking behind them. While Steve, Susan and I chatted a bit with a few of them, most seemed disinterested in talking with us because of our dogs, especially Trace, who exuberantly ran to and fro among the group to play with Sheila, who showed no interest in Trace's exuberance. One older man let me know he did not want Zeke near him smelling his food.
Steve was in the rear the entire time and fell back with another hiker, Bonnie. Steve and Bonnie did not make it to the peak. They opted instead to walk back to the cars together. The rocky slope to the last pass was too much for them. Trace, however, stayed with Susan and me. The final mile to the peak revealed views far south and east, revealing agricultural fields outside of Douglas, AZ and towns south of the border.
Patio Peak was our destination and lunch break. The peak was named that due to an old concrete top. The views in all direction were impressive. From the hilltop one can see how the open-pit mines dominated Bisbee-Warren.
The group gathered around the top to chat. Susan and I sat away from the group because of our dogs. We had to put Trace on Zeke's leash so that he didn't run around begging for food from everyone. Susan had packed cheese and cucumber sandwiches that we then shared with both dogs. We didn't stay long on top. We thanked Brad for leading this hike, then started our return hike to join up with Steve and Bonnie, who had gotten off trail while on their hike back to the cars. We were now out to find them. Susan had Trace on the leash at first, but once we were away from the group, he was off-leash. Trace walks very well on-leash, but also likes to dart into the tall grass looking for birds to flush.
It's easy to get disoriented in these hills without a GPS. Brad had marked the trail with orange tape, but they weren't always visible on the return hike. Luckily I still had enough phone power to follow the track I had on my GPS app. They had gone directly west at one point when they should have turned northwest; a convergence of unmarked trails confused us all. I was able to track the entire hike but turned off the phone when we were 0.3 miles away from our cars because I only had 2% power left. I probably could have managed keeping the phone on.
Steve and Bonnie stayed together and Susan and I stayed together in that last mile. We commented on the many hedgehog cacti along the trail, as well as an area where the scattered remains of a cow now lay. How had it died?
We were the first ones back to the cars, but the rest of the group quickly caught up to us. We stayed by our cars until the main group was back. This way the hike leader knew all of us had returned safely. The hike had taken us just under four hours. There was no invite from the group to join them for a post-hike meal. Everyone just drove off. I have the impression that the Muleteam hikers were not impressed with us three guests today. We will probably get dishonorable mention on their hiking blog, due to our "unruly dogs."
Susan dropped Steve and I off at our cars still parked at the courthouse. She went back home while Steve and I stopped by the Bisbee Brewing company. Business was thriving today. We sat on the sundeck in the shade against the wall and had two beers each. My first one was a Dunkelweizen (5.2% ABV) but I didn't like it. It was too sour and lacked body. My second beer was one of the flagship beers, the Pilsner. We also each had a bratwurst while the dogs rested. Both looked tired.
A meal at the City Limits Pizza House proved to be disappointing, as that place, it turns out, closed its doors in January. The place had only been open for 18 months! The new owners had invested heavily in renovating the interior and added a south-facing patio. They made tasty pizza. It was Kevin's favorite. The place always seemed to have plenty of cars in the parking lot when I drove past it, so seeing the closure now is quite surprising. I'm thinking the cost to renovate was more than the profits the owners got in the past year. What a shame. Bisbee needs a family-friendly sports bar.
We opted then to have a late lunch at the Morning Star Cafe, a family-owned dive in Palominas, where on weekends local musicians and poets perform their talent. (Tonight it was Warren Graves, belting out his country-folk songs on his guitar.) While the food is OK, it's the local ambiance that attracts people. It's the kind of diner I enjoy visiting while on road trips.
And speaking of road trips...the coronavirus is quickly spreading in the US. It's even making headlines on The Weather Channel. The first death was last weekend. We are now up to 19 deaths and over 444 confirmed cases in 28 states. I had planned on road tripping next weekend to California to see Eric again, as well as hike around San Luis Obispo. Eric has already requested the same week off. What if California decides to close its borders to prevent the virus from spreading, and I'm stuck there? I know, worse-case scenario and perhaps fueled by panic and fear...but I'm starting to wonder if I should worry due to my age. I'm no spring chicken anymore. We all are healthy until we get sick.
https://weather.com/health/cold-flu/news/2020-03-07-coronavirus-deaths-florida-united-states-cases-spread
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