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Hike For September 28: Centella Point, Which Provides Tremendous Views
Of Most Of The Cave Creek Watershed.
Meet at the Silver Peak Trailhead at 8:00 am (AZ) / 9:00 am (NM)
Pat Owens 557-7722 rodeonm@vtc.net
Carol Simon 558-2433 casimon@vtc.net
Jonathan Patt 558-0152 jonathanpatt@gmail.com
The group at Red Rocks, with South Fork in the background, before splitting in two.
Report by Rolf, photos by Rolf and John Sumner
Three hikers joined the Chiricahua Wilderness Trail Crew, who regularly do trail maintenance under the guidance of the USFS. With all the deadfall following the Horseshoe 1 and 2 fires, some trail sections become nearly impassable. This crew has the training, expertise and equipment to deal with downed logs even two feet in diameter. In the wilderness, of course, they cannot use chain saws. One regular hiker was on the crew, which was camping for the week near the Crest Trail. The picture below, from earlier in the week, shows a section of the trail to Headquarters Spring; note the numbers and size of the logs.
On Thursday the hikers drove to Long Park, where they were met by members of the trail crew. After getting hand saws, loppers and hard hats, the hikers proceeded to Fly Saddle to meet the other crew members. The day was sunny and cool--ideal work conditions. Blue larkspurs and yellow composites complemented the greenery. We all set off along the Centella Point Trail, which had abundant deadfall in the half mile or so beyond Tub Spring. Working until early afternoon, we moved many small logs off the trail and cut the ones we couldn't move. Twenty-nine logs, like the one shown below, were large enough to require a cross-cut saw.
In mid-afternoon, we worked our way up the trail to Fly Peak, using hand saws to deal with a couple dozen aspen that had fallen across the trail, and loppers to handle intruding saplings and branches. When we reached a tangle of large logs near the top, the hikers bid the trail crew goodbye and returned to their vehicle, confident that the trail crew would clear the trail to the summit.
Hike For September 28: We will "enjoy the fruits of our labor" and hike to Centella Point, which provides tremendous view of most of the Cave Creek watershed. From Long Park, this is about 5 miles round trip and will be a good chance to enjoy Autumn in the high country.
Meet at the Silver Peak Trailhead at 8:00 am (AZ) / 9:00 am (NM)
The 62 Highest Peaks, Mountains, Hills, And Lookouts In The Chiricahuas
(Tabulated by Ray Brooks)
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Photo Gallery Of Hiking Club - Click On Any Photo To Begin. Use Arrow Keys At Bottom Of Slide (Or Your Keyboard) To Advance Slides
