April 28, 2022 My little space in the trees seemed home to the area’s Elk. All night, the creatures visited me as they arrived home… Read More »Arizona Trail Day 48 – Feet Pounding Roads | Average Hiker
April 26, 2022 There is not much to say about Flagstaff, mostly because I stayed in a Holiday Inn Express for two days on the… Read More »Arizona Trail Day 47 – Leaving Flagstaff | Average Hiker
April 23, 2022 The weather on the Arizona Trail makes it one of my favorite long-distance hiking trails. Throughout the entire hike, I had one… Read More »Arizona Trail Day 44 – Flagstaff, AZ | Average Hiker
April 23, 2022 Last night I checked my maps and realized I was only about seven miles from the cutoff to Mormon Lake. I was… Read More »Arizona Trail Day 43 – Mormon Lake | Average Hiker
April 22, 2022 On days I hike big miles, it is not usually because I choose to hike them. Instead, I am either motivated by… Read More »Arizona Trail Day 42 – Big Miles! | Average Hiker
April 21, 2022 I had woken up during the night with a giant rock on my head, so I had dosed up on some more… Read More »Arizona Trail Day 41 – The Plateau! | Average Hiker
April 20th, 2022 I groaned as I woke up hacking this morning. My head cold had settled in and was kicking my butt! I took… Read More »Arizona Trail Day 40 – Up to the Plateau | Average Hiker
April 19, 2022 We had an 8 AM shuttle, so Cricket and I were up and hiking by 6:00. Even though we only had 2.2… Read More »Arizona Trail Day 39 – Payson | Average Hiker
April 18, 2022 I was hiking by first light. The snoring last night was synchronized and non-stop, with one person starting as soon as the… Read More »Arizona Trail Day 38 – Oak Spring | Average Hiker
April 17, 2022 My sleepy mind acknowledged the whisper of a tarp dropping softly to the ground. I rolled over and cracked my lids to… Read More »Arizona Trail Day 37 – Way, Way Down | Average Hiker
April 16, 2022 My eyes slowly opened with the first distant lighting of the sky. I usually settled to roost when the last light rays… Read More »Arizona Trail Day 36 – New Friends | Average Hiker
I was up and out of camp early this morning, yawning as I stumbled up the trail. Wearing my earplugs had not dulled the snoring… Read More »Arizona Trail Day 35 – Early Stop | Average Hiker
Cricket and I slept in this morning. I woke up and wrote until I heard her stirring and then lay watching and harassing her from… Read More »Arizona Trail Day 34 – Phoenix Resupply | Average Hiker
April 11, 2022 It was only about seven miles to Sunflower, where Cricket and I would get picked up for resupply in Phoenix, so I… Read More »Arizona Trail Day 31 – Run for Food! | Average Hiker
April 10, 2022 I tried to get as much of the soot off this morning as possible but I still had a slight grey cast… Read More »Arizona Trail Day 30 – There is Always Life | Average Hiker
April 9th, 2022 I would be climbing up into the Maztzals, another section ravaged by wildfires in recent years and, like the Superstitions, also being… Read More »Arizona Trail Day 29 – Sleeping In Ash | Average Hiker
The Hidden Valley Preserve in Connecticut includes approximately 17 miles of trail through various terrain. This was a summer hike for me on the first… Read More »Hidden Valley Preserve – A Little Gem! | Average Hiker
April 8, 2022 I was up before the sun rose and sat on my sleeping pad, wiping the sleep from my eyes and watching the… Read More »Arizona Trail Day 28 – Roosevelt Lake Marina | Average Hiker
The section from Pie Town to Grants was primarily long road walks, interspersed with a crazy cow and distance wild fires.
Today was a tough day of hiking, but the beauty I was rewarded with at the end made it worth the effort. Most days are… Read More »Arizona Trail Day 27 – Stunning Sunset | Average Hiker
April 6, 2022 I woke up at 5:15 and immediately remembered that Jalapenos opened at 5:30 AM for breakfast. Cricket was sound asleep with a… Read More »Arizona Trail Day 26 – New Life | Average Hiker
It was still dark as I watched headlamps bob past our campsite, pausing to flash across our shelters. Hiking starts early in the desert. I… Read More »Arizona Trail Day 25 – Superior | Average Hiker
The desert had begun to heat up, so we were moving early this morning. The cool, crisp desert morning did not last long as the… Read More »Arizona Trail Day 24 – Superstition Mts. | Average Hiker
I can only describe zero days 21 and 22 as mind-numbing – so devoid of any activity that I can honestly not remember much of… Read More »Arizona Trail Day 23 – Mind Numbing | Average Hiker
March 29, 2022 Like lightning, she was off! It was a town day, and Cricket was a woman on a mission. I left about a… Read More »Arizona Trail Day 20 – Kearny, AZ | Average Hiker
March 29, 2022 My knee was stuck to my quilt when I rolled over, and I winced as I pulled it loose, repeating what I… Read More »Arizona Trail Day 18 – Antelope Tank | Average Hiker
Today I invented new knee protection – the Knee skirt. A patent is forthcoming. It is a buff affixed above the knee with Leukotape. The… Read More »Arizona Trail Day 19 – Knee Skirt | Average Hiker
March 28, 2022 The view from the front stoop of our Casita was breathtaking. I crept downstairs and past Cricket’s bed to watch the sun… Read More »Arizona Trail Day 17 – Tough Fall! | Average Hiker
March 27, 2022 I was very quiet when I woke up, quietly packing and creeping around my bedroom. No noises were coming from the house,… Read More »Arizona Trail Day 16 – High Jinks Ranch | Average Hiker
March 26, 2022 Looking through the woods towards the mountain’s east face, I saw the sun was beginning to peek over the horizon. Gold and… Read More »Arizona Trail Day 15 – Trail Angels | Average Hiker
March 24, 2022 Cricket and I caught an Uber back up to Molino Basin Campground on the Catalina Highway, where we had hitched the previous… Read More »Arizona Trail Day 14 – Mt. Lemmon | Average Hiker
March 24, 2022 I tossed and turned in my tarptent reading for about an hour. Birds chirped, small animals skittered through the grass, and Cricket… Read More »Arizona Trail Day 13 – Back in Tucson | Average Hiker
March 23, 2022 I had thought the night before was windy, but last night was amazing! We must have been camped in a natural wind… Read More »Arizona Trail Day 12 | Average Hiker
March 22, 2022 Today proved to be a logistics challenge due to Saguaro National Park. I had tried to get a reservation at Grass Shack… Read More »Arizona Trail Day 11 | Average Hiker
March 21, 2022 Cricket was asleep when I slipped out of the hotel room door to run a few morning errands. Her feet needed their… Read More »Arizona Trail Day 10 | Average Hiker
March 20, 2022 The snores of a deep exhausted sleep kept me up most of the night, but I did not mind. The night skies… Read More »The Arizona Trail – Day 9 | Average Hiker
March 19, 2022 I don’t know how I deleted the notes from this day, but I still have the pictures, and I do remember some… Read More »Arizona Trail Day 8 – Cooper’s Dad | Average Hiker
April 18, 2022 Cricket headed out about a half-hour before me while I poked around camp and did a little writing. I enjoy hiking as… Read More »Arizona Trail Day 7 | Average Hiker
April 17, 2022 I was at Fresh Grounds when they opened at 7 AM. Cricket was sleeping, but as I left, she sleepily mumbled she… Read More »Arizona Trail Day 6 | Average Hiker
Breakfast started at Gathering Grounds, which was crowded with hikers and bikers. The food was excellent, and I rolled out ready to go shoe shopping… Read More »Arizona Trail Day 5 | Average Hiker