Aspen Trail On Mt. Lemmon — Image by kenne
“Autumn is a second spring when every leaf is a flower”
– Albert Camus
Archive for the ‘Aspen Trail’ Tag
Aspen Trail On Mt. Lemmon Leave a comment
Aspen Loop One Year Out After The Big Horn Fire 5 comments
SCVN Friday hikes on Mt. Lemmon have
Begun with more excitement than usual,
Last year’s hikes being a casualty of the
Big Horn Fire and the pandemic.
Marshall Gulch Parking Area
Leaving behind morning temperatures
In the mid-eights, we gathered at Marshall Gulch
To hike the Aspen Loop, combining the Aspen
And Marshall Gulch trails for a 4.3-mile hike.
Marshall Gulch survived the fire, as did
Most of the trail. But the Aspen Trail
Wasn’t so lucky with parts that burned
From the 1993 Aspen Fire burning again.
Aspen Trail (June 15, 2015)
Over the years, I watch aspens and pines
And many other native plants return
Among the charred remains of the Aspen Fire
Only now to experience that same fate.
Last year’s fires were followed by the driest year
On record, delaying the reclamation process
And trail clearing to provide for safe hiking
On the grayest powder covering the trails.
The mountain ferns were among the plants
To return only weeks after containing the fire,
Providing hope to those grieving over the lose
Of so much beauty found on these mountain trails.
Now so exposed, the trail seems longer
Each step requiring a watchful eye
For this out of shape hiker, navigating
The loose gravel and ankle turning rocks.
Just beyond the ridge, a line of trees
Was missed by the very erratic wildfire
As if it turned on a dime, redirecting
The firefighting crew from Montana.
Soon the trail turns away from the freshly
Scared land rambling among tall ponderosas
Shadows formed by the whole clear
Cloudless sky moving across the trail.
Images by kenne
I’ve hiked the trails on Mt. Lemmon
Now ten summers, where troubles cease,
untangled silent knowledge contemplating
A void in a world that exceeds stillness.
— kenne
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Hiking with Old Buddies 1 comment
The SCVN Friday Nature Hike was Aspen Trail, Marshall Gulch Trail loop,
which would provide an opportunity to see the beautiful fall colors on Mt. Lemmon.
The Aspen Trail has a grove of aspens, which I blogged in a previous posting.
After hiking through the aspen grove, I began to get out in front of the nature hikers.
With less fall color on the remaining part of the Aspen Trail I decided to pick-up my pace.
I knew from past experience there would be plenty of fall color on the Marshall Gulch Trail.
I was aware that my buddies, Jim Thompson and Tom Markey, were hiking the trail;
hence, I might be able to catch up with them.
I first began hiking with Jim and Tom nine years ago. They were part of the Monday Morning Milers (MMM),
the first hiking group with which I started hiking.
Most of the MMM were lifetime hikers in southeast Arizona, many of whom were in their 80’s.
Jim recently celebrated his 90th birthday.
While Tom is a youngster like me, he’s 79.
Images by kenne
It seems, as one becomes older,
That the past has another pattern,
And ceases to be a mere sequence —
Or even development: the latter a partial fallacy
Encouraged by superficial notions of evolution,
Which becomes, in the popular mind,
A means of disowning the past.
The moments of happiness — not the sense of well-being,
Fruition, fulfillment, security or affection,
Or even a very good dinner, but the sudden illumination —
We had the experience but missed the meaning,
And approach to the meaning restores the experience
In a different form, beyond any meaning
We can assign to happiness.
— from “Four Quartets” by T. S. Eliot
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Colors On The Mountain — No Words 2 comments
Mt. Lemmon Fall Colors — Images by kenne
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Hiking Through An Aspen Grove On Aspen Trail 4 comments
In June of 2003 for the Aspen Fire destroyed 85,000 acres on Mt. Lemmon,
located in the Santa Catalina Mountains.
Last Friday, we hiked the Aspen Trail,
part of which goes through some of the burned areas.
The aspens were among some of the first vegetation to return,
making these trees now about 15 years old.
Our hike was almost too late in the fall
since many of the aspens have already lost their leaves.
Quaking Aspens On Aspen Trail, Mt. Lemmon — Images by kenne
Swirling leaves,
Like erratic wings of butterflies,
shimmered, shook, slapped,
Simultaneously clapping as we passed.
Grace in the grove, the ticking,
whispering clatter of the breeze
Passing back and forth between worlds,
Spirit and sound merged together.
— from “Riding Through a Grove of Aspens” by Emily Dickinson
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Late Blooming Wildflower On Mt. Lemmon Leave a comment
Late Blooming Wildflower On Mt. Lemmon — Image by kenne
While on Mt. Lemmon photographing fall colors over the weekend,
I spotted this beautiful blooming plant.
— kenne
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Hiking The Aspen and Marshall Gulch Loop On Mt. Lemmon Photo Essay 1 comment
(Click on any of the images to see larger view in a slideshow format.)
Hiking The Aspen and Marshall Gulch Loop (SCVN Friday Hike, July 15, 2016) — Images of hikers and guests by kenne
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Aspen Trail Through Young Aspens 2 comments
Aspen Trail Through New Growth of Aspens since the 2003 Forest Fire (Mt. Lemmon) — Image by kenne
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SCVN Leads Its Last Summer Friday Hike Leave a comment
Ed On Marshell Gulch Trail
Marshall Gulch Trail
Marshall Gulch Trail
Sunset Trail
Wilderness Rock Trail
Sunset Trail
Sunset Trail
Sunset Trail
Sunset Trail
Images by kenne (CLICK ON ANY OF THE IMAGES FOR LARGER VIEW IN A SLIDESHOW FORMAT.)
This past Friday (August 29, 2014), the SCVN guided summer hikes on Mt. Lemmon lead its last hike — a 7.5 mile hike on the Sunset, Marshall Gulch and Aspen trails. The fall Friday guided hikes will begin October 3rd.
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The Mountain Is Still Alive With Wildflowers, But Not For Long 6 comments
Wildflowers Along Carter Canyon Trail, Mt. Lemmon — Images by kenne
Related articles
- Southwestern Arizona Wildflowers (wingedbeauty.com)
- Arizona Wildflower & Fall Color Updates (naturalhistorywanderings.com)
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Hiking The Aspen Draw, Mt. Lemmon Trail And The Meadow Trail 5 comments
SCVN Friday Hike on Mt. Lemmon — Images by kenne (Click on any of the images to see slide show.)
Yesterday’s SCVN Friday Hike started at the Ski Valley parking lot where we took the Aspen Draw trail up to the top of the ski runs, then the Mt. Lemmon trail, looping back on the Meadow Trail. Combining these three trails gave us a six-mile hike with an elevation change of 1,200 feet. The hike included a stop of the Lemmon Rock Lookout.
The weather was great, so I was able to get a lot of photos, which I will be sharing, starting with the previous post and some others after this posting.
The SCVN summer hikes on Mt. Lemmon will conclude after the two remaining hikes (August 23 & 30). The SCVN lead hikes are part of our Public Interpretation program, which includes Walks, Hikes, and Demos, designed to help participants learn about and experience the wonders of Sabino Canyon, the Santa Catalina Mountains, and the Sonoran Desert.
kenne
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- Hiking The Aspen Trail Ten Years Out (kenneturner.com)
- SCVN Friday Hike On The Box Camp Trail (kenneturner.com)
- Capturing Many Moments On The Aspen Loop (kenneturner.com)
- A Visit To The Lemmon Rock Lookout In The Catalina Mountains (kenneturner.com)
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Capturing Many Moments On The Aspen Loop 6 comments
Having a snack at “lunch ledge” just off the Aspen Loop on Mount Lemmon as the clouds begin to build-up.
There wasn’t much time to relax before lightning and thunder began causing us to start moving quickly back to the train head. — Images by kenne
Be brave. Take risks. Nothing can substitute experience.
— Paulo Coelho
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- Capturing The Moment – “. . . Beings More Beautiful Than Words Can Tell.” (kenneturner.com)
- Capturing Moment – Thurber Cinquefoil (kenneturner.com)
- Capturing The Moment – “Buckets Of Rain” On Mount Lemmon (kenneturner.com)
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Capturing The Moment — Marine Blue Butterfly 2 comments
Marine Blue Butterfly — Image by kenne
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Capturing The Moment — Mount Lemmon Wildflowers 2 comments
Golden Columbine
Cranesbill
Aspen Fleabane
Bearded Penstemon
Wright’s Bluets
Macromeria
Western Sneezeweed
Richardson’s Geranium —
Hiking The Aspen Trail Wildflower Images by kenne (July 8, 2013)
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- Capturing The Moment – Wild Rasberries Along The Trail (kenneturner.com)
- Hiking The Aspen Trail Ten Years Out (kenneturner.com)
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Hiking The Aspen Trail Ten Years Out 3 comments
The Aspen Loop trail starts and ends in Marshall Gulch on Mount Lemmon. Part of this trail contains recovering forest from the Aspen Wildfire, which burned parts of Mount Lemmon ten years ago.
Before the fire, much of Mount Lemmon was a thick forest.
After the fire, aspen and New Mexico locust were quick to take over the forest.
When removing a fallen pine from the trail, one creative volunteer cut a seat for resting in the shade.
As the burned forest ages, each year the tall pines succumb to nature.
Volunteers are busy removing trail obstructions, which will include trees like this one
Hiking up the Aspen Trail.
Plenty of room to shelter.
Now ten years out, the slow-growing pines are becoming more established.
The signs of recovery are all around.
Images by kenne
“In climbing a mountain,
if we persevere, we reach the summit;
we get, you might say, to the point.
Once on the mountaintop
there is nothing to do but come down again. . .
Descending the mountain
we enter by degrees into a friendlier,
more comfortable, more human environment —
forest, rushing streams, sunny meadows —
and soon hear the cowbells,
see the villages and the roads,
all that is familiar and reassuring.”
— Edward Abbey, Desert Solitaire: A Season In The Wilderness
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- SCVN Friday Hike On The Oracle Ridge Trail #1(June 14, 2013) (kenneturner.com)
- Lemmon Rock Lookout As Soon From The WIlderness Rocks Trail (kenneturner.com)
- SCVN Friday Hike On The Box Camp Trail (kenneturner.com)
- Capturing The Moment – It’s All About Timing! (kenneturner.com)
- It Is Dry, Dry, Dry (kenneturner.com)
- Saving The Season By Capturing The Moment (kenneturner.com)
