Today's hike was led by Jim A of the Huachuca Hiking Club. Ellen and I joined eight other members for this 9.5-mile hike. Weather was cool with slight overcast skies. Temperatures lingered from 40F-66F. We were a group of ten hikers: JimA, SteveS, SteveA, RodC, BillC, Barry, Doug, JohnS, Ellen and I with pup Hansel. This would end up being Hansel's first hike with a large group.
This was also Hansel's longest hike so far. While the first two miles with Hansel anywhere are of him running around sniffing everything, today his speed slowed down quite a bit by the third mile. His attitude went from "Ohboyohboyohboy!" to "ah shit, there is no end to this!" I kept him on leash to prevent him from winding in and out of people's paths, but he was so tired on the return hike, and the group widely spread out, that I could afford to have him offleash as he stayed close by
I always enjoy hiking in the Dragoons, and China Peak and the San Juan mines are no exception. The hike to the peak and mines is all on old mining roads, gaining 2366' in elevation by the time one gets to the peak, with a slow change in terrain and flora. The first 2.5 miles are exposed, with vistas to the west and Tombstone and catclaw and prickly pear the main flora. Once one walks through the notch, one enters a different ecosystem of junipers and oaks. The notch acts as a sort of portal to what once was a bustling mining area. The cement foundations to what once was Gorden's camp, aka China camp lure campers to the area, as here is where Chinese miners lived during the mine's operation, nestled among rock walls and trees. There are hidden mines in all the hillsides.
This was Ellen's first time in the area and she was excited to explore every crevice, every mine along the way. We briefly checked out the old camp. The spring by the campsites was dry, as was the first shaft we passed.
Ellen wanted to explore every mine along the way. I did, too, as did SteveA. Jim knows quite a bit about the layout of the mines from previous explorations. Most were dead-end mines while others were parts of a network leading to other shafts. Hansel didn't want to walk on a narrow plank over a shaft in the main mine, so I had to turn around and join the vanguard nearing the peak instead. Thus ended my mine exploration for the day.
It took me 2:10 hours to reach the peak. It was a bit chilly on the summit as we all found a calmer area on the north side of the peak, right below a US flag planted here since my last hike to the summit. Hansel had his lunch, I had my chicken pot pie, while SteveS went through the peak ledger that was tucked inside a tin cookie jar along with USB cables, energy bars, and money. The peak was our assembly point for our bushwhack loop to the last mine on our route. I had to keep Hansel onleash to avoid him sniffing other peoples' lunches or licking their faces. No one enjoys dog tongue.
Four men in a modified Jeep Cherokee joined us briefly as we were ready to descend. The trail to China Peak is popular with ATVers, and three more would follow on our return hike. The campsite was also slowly filling up with overnight guests.
Our bushwhack to the final mine on the return hike got us through an oak-covered ridgeline that wasn't too hard to follow. We had to walk single file here, up and down a narrow ravine, around oak trees and yuccas. The views down into the mines we had explored earlier demonstrated how extensively mined these hills had been.
Neither Ellen nor I though the bushwhack was that difficult, but that changed once we climbed down to the last mine tailings of the day. This old mine was on a steep, loose slope hidden by oaks. Getting to that mine made my feet hurt as they pressed against the toebox. The group rested here while Ellen and SteveA explored this mine. Hansel and I rested outside this mine. My feet were swelling up by now, making walking more painful for the rest of the hike.
The rest of this hike was back on old mining roads. We switchbacked down FR4390 to the main road, then just descended the same route we had taken earlier. We were all slowing down now and spreading farther apart in the last three miles.
We got back to our cars by 1:45pm. The hike was around six hours long with around 4:30 hours of that actually moving. Hansel plopped down in the back of the Honda, I sat in the driver's seat wishing I had Keen sandals to slip into, as I waited for the last of the group to arrive. My feet were swollen by now from all the hiking and not fitting too well in my Merrells.
This was my third hike up China Peak. Sadie, Minnie and Zeke have all been to this peak, but they are now slowing down. Sadie is retired from hiking and sleeps all day, Minnie is too arthritic to walk much, and Zeke lately hasn't been showing the enthusiasm for hiking as he used to. Jim told me that Hansel was a real trooper today. He hiked better than expected and he didn't pull too badly when on his leash. His biggest flaw today was digging up parts of dead deer he sniffed out along the trails and carrying the smelly parts in his mouth.
The official full moon was today at 6:57pm, but my feet hurt too much to go out for another short jaunt with the rest of the pack. I'll make up for that tomorrow.
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