“Breakfast Along The Trail” — Image by kenne
— kenne
Rock Creek Trail To A Series Of Little Lakes In Sierra Nevada– Image by kenne
Chasing Life’s Horizons
— kenne
I tried to identify this flower in fireflyforest.com, but no luck. — Images by kenne
Hiking down the trail before the rain
Caught in the rain on the way back up the trail, the colors jump at me. Water adds to both life and death. — Image by kenne
kenne
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
Oracle Ridge Trail, View South Toward Mount Lemmon (Since I Was Leading This Year’s Hike,This Is An Image From Last Year) — Image by kenne
Oracle Ridge Trail #1
Once a trail
through the Mount Lemmon Forest,
shaded by tall ponderosas
until the trail reached the ridge
where the only shade
was from large alligator junipers.
This picture made it a favorite
of many southern Arizona hikers,
till ten years ago
the ridge was charred
by the Aspen Wildfire,
leaving only minds eye images.
Now, ten years out
many blacken trees remain
as new aspen, pine seedlings
and New Mexico locust
bring back the green
to the ridge.
Always a moderately
difficult trail on the return,
the loss of shade
has made it less inviting
to those looking for
a cool retreat from
the desert heat below —
still #1 for some.
kenne
Short iPhone Video Clip At Dan’s Saddle Where We Rested Under Sparse Shade Before Starting Our Return Up The Ridge.
Phil Bentley Playing The Harp
While hiking the very dusty Aspen Draw Trail on Mount Lemmon I saw my first columbine flower of the summer. It was one of the few wildflowers currently blooming on the mountain. It is very dry in the Santa Catalinas. Much of the trail has a top layer of gray power dust. The summer rains are needed to help bring on the wildflowers. The few that have appeared are short in height and the blooms aren’t lasting very long.
Last summer this blog probably had too many columbine images because they are so irresistible. I hope I will soon be able to post a beautiful fresh-looking columbine.
Here are two links to posts last June:
https://kenneturner.com/2012/06/14/capturing-the-moment-golden-columbine/
https://kenneturner.com/2012/07/03/one-of-my-favorite-wildflowers-golden-columbine/
kenne
Images by kenne
Images by kenne
Slideshow of Monday Morning Milers Hiking The Bug Springs Trail (Elevation — 5,000 to 6,500 ft) — Images by kenne
Split Rock — Image by kenne
The Rock Cries Out To Us Today
A Rock, A River, A Tree
Hosts to species long since departed,
Mark the mastodon.
The dinosaur, who left dry tokens
Of their sojourn here
On our planet floor,
Any broad alarm of their of their hastening doom
Is lost in the gloom of dust and ages.
But today, the Rock cries out to us, clearly, forcefully,
Come, you may stand upon my
Back and face your distant destiny,
But seek no haven in my shadow.
I will give you no hiding place down here.
You, created only a little lower than
The angels, have crouched too long in
The bruising darkness,
Have lain too long
Face down in ignorance.
Your mouths spelling words
Armed for slaughter.
The rock cries out today, you may stand on me,
But do not hide your face.
Across the wall of the world,
A river sings a beautiful song,
Come rest here by my side.
Each of you a bordered country,
Delicate and strangely made proud,
Yet thrusting perpetually under siege.
Your armed struggles for profit
Have left collars of waste upon
My shore, currents of debris upon my breast.
Yet, today I call you to my riverside,
If you will study war no more.
Come, clad in peace and I will sing the songs
The Creator gave to me when I
And the tree and stone were one.
Before cynicism was a bloody sear across your brow
And when you yet knew you still knew nothing.
The river sings and sings on.
There is a true yearning to respond to
The singing river and the wise rock.
So say the Asian, the Hispanic, the Jew,
The African and Native American, the Sioux,
The Catholic, the Muslim, the French, the Greek,
The Irish, the Rabbi, the Priest, the Sheikh,
The Gay, the Straight, the Preacher,
The privileged, the homeless, the teacher.
They hear. They all hear
The speaking of the tree.
Today, the first and last of every tree
Speaks to humankind. Come to me, here beside the river.
Plant yourself beside me, here beside the river.
Each of you, descendant of some passed on
Traveller, has been paid for.
You, who gave me my first name,
You Pawnee, Apache and Seneca,
You Cherokee Nation, who rested with me,
Then forced on bloody feet,
Left me to the employment of other seekers–
Desperate for gain, starving for gold.
You, the Turk, the Swede, the German, the Scot…
You the Ashanti, the Yoruba, the Kru,
Bought, sold, stolen, arriving on a nightmare
Praying for a dream.
Here, root yourselves beside me.
I am the tree planted by the river,
Which will not be moved.
I, the rock, I the river, I the tree
I am yours–your passages have been paid.
Lift up your faces, you have a piercing need
For this bright morning dawning for you.
History, despite its wrenching pain,
Cannot be unlived, and if faced with courage,
Need not be lived again.
Lift up your eyes upon
The day breaking for you.
Give birth again
To the dream.
Women, children, men,
Take it into the palms of your hands.
Mold it into the shape of your most
Private need. Sculpt it into
The image of your most public self.
Lift up your hearts.
Each new hour holds new chances
For new beginnings.
Do not be wedded forever
To fear, yoked eternally
To brutishness.
The horizon leans forward,
Offering you space to place new steps of change.
Here, on the pulse of this fine day
You may have the courage
To look up and out upon me,
The rock, the river, the tree, your country.
No less to Midas than the mendicant.
No less to you now than the mastodon then.
Here on the pulse of this new day
You may have the grace to look up and out
And into your sister’s eyes,
Into your brother’s face, your country
And say simply
Very simply
With hope
Good morning.
These images represent the last of several postings containing photos taken during the March 18th,
Monday Morning Milers hike on Italian Springs trail inReddington Pass. Images by kenne
Snow Off The Desert Trail — Image by kenne
Just as the snow was melting,
I stumbled upon a desert trail
Free of snow-covered brush.
A trail beaten by foot and hoof,
Warmer than the air above
A winding path near the wash.
Providing a picture of contrasts,
To which the passing eye catches
Creating an image for the painter.
kenne
At the end of one of our naturalists training sessions last October, Phil Bentley said he would be hiking Blackett’s Ridge late the following day to see the sunset and the full-moon rise on top of Blackett’s Ridge in Sabino Canyon, then hike down in the moonlight. Cool idea, I thought. As it turned out, I got the gathering time wrong, so Phil and I did the moonlight hike, but not together. It was a gorgeous moonlit night. (Click here for posting on last October’s hike.)
Since October, we have talked about doing the moonlight hike again. Last week we agree to do another moonlit hike, this time together, with an invitation being sent to all SCVN.
Debbie and Jerry
At the gathering time in the Sabino Canyon’s center parking lot, with Phil as our leader, Debbie and Jerry Bird, Tim Ralph and I set off to see another beautiful sunset to the west over the Tucson Mountains and full-moon rising over the Rincon Mountains.
With the skies partly cloudy, we couldn’t help but ponder the “what if’s” of more clouds moving in. The sun continued to occasionally peep through the broken clouds to the west, but the clouds to the east were minus the “broken” adjective.
The amount of clouds created a photographic challenge, but not to be daunted, I persisted capturing a few photos, all be they are dark and ominous — probably of things to come.
Phil playing his harp and Tim taking photos — Images by kenne
With the sun setting, and minus the expected moonlight, darkness was coming on quickly. Having a bite to eat and some water, while Phil serenaded us on his harp, we decided to start the hike down the ridge. The return pace was slow, as we stepped carefully down the steep slopes and navigated the many trail switchbacks. With little light, at times the footing was treacherous, and as fate would have it, on one of steep slopes, while placing my right foot on solid rock ground, I place my left foot on what turned out to be loose gravel — down I went, quickly pulling my camera to the front of my body. Because of the downward angle of the trail, it was a short fall on my butt. However, my backward momentum carried me into a large prickly pear cactus, an encounter not expected. Even with three layers of clothing, many of the prickly pear spines penetrated my upper left arm. I’m now award that this cactus comes armed with two kinds of spines; large, smooth, fixed spines and small, hairlike prickles called glochids. Removing my wind-breaker removed many of the glochids, but most of the large spines remained in my arm, since our only source of light was a flashlight. So, the spine removal task became Joy’s upon my return home. What’s the saying, “There’s always a first time for everything.” So be it! In case you are wondering, we are already considering another moonlit hike.
kenne
Checking Out The Canyon Below (Rick) — Image by kenne
Since hiking the Wild Burro Trail in the Dove Mountain area last Friday, I have posted four blog entries, making this number five.
https://kenneturner.wordpress.com/2012/02/08/i-am-the-rock/
https://kenneturner.wordpress.com/2012/02/08/wild-burro-trail-petroglyphs/
https://kenneturner.wordpress.com/2012/02/05/panorama-view-on-the-wild-burro-trail-in-the-tortolita-mountains/
https://kenneturner.wordpress.com/2012/02/05/old-stone-line-shacks-along-the-wild-burro-trail/
This is an impressive trail has a lot of beautiful vistas, leading up to Alamo Springs. Click here to see a slideshow of photos taken on the hike.
For more information on this trail and others in the Tortolita Mountain trail system, I have providing the following links:
http://dovemountaincivicgroup.org/hiking.htm
http://www.kvoa.com/news/hittin-the-trails-4-you-marana-s-new-wild-burro-trailhead/
http://www.heritagehighlands.com/hiking.htm
http://trails.sierraclub.org/trails/default.aspx?name=Wild_Burro_Trail_Ariz_
Seven Falls in Bear Canyon — Images by kenne
Last Friday we hiked to Seven Falls in Bear Canyon. That evening we went to see the movie “The Way.” Both are recommended highly.
If you have already seen the movie, then you recognize the backpack image.
kenne
“The Way” Movie — Source: Facebook
Related articles
Gathering Outside the Sabino Canyon Visiters Center to Hike Blackett’s Ridge — Image by kenne
Give Me Blackett’s Ridge
Give me Blackett’s Ridge, give me its majesty;
Give me a crisp desert morning , with a gentle breeze;
Give me naturalists, eager to share Nature’s splendor;
Give me a hiking trail, with a steep switchback climb;
Give me a ridge separating canyons, with a siren’s song;
Give me the secret to the song everyone would like to sing;
Give me birds singing background vocals, with a sound of their own;
Give me a haze-covered sun to break the chill;
Give me adrenaline strains to always follow her song;
“Give me Nature – give me again, O Nature, your primal sanities!”
kenne
. . . with apologies to Walt Whitman, Leaves of Grass — “Give me the Splendid, Silent Sun”
Louise Kaufman and Debbie Bird Arriving At The Top — Image by kenne
Arriving at the trail’s end. Sabino Canyon is to the left, Bear Canyon to the right. — Image by kenne
Image by kenne
Going Down Blackett’s Ridge Trail — Image by kenne
Becoming is Superior to Being 