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February 17, 2016
We are finally moving to execution!! It's been almost three months since our return from Spain and the Camino de Santiago. These three months have been filled with detailed preparation activities and it feels like a long time! I reminded someone we were having dinner with earlier this week that we will be hiking the trail for the same amount of time that we've been preparing for it - ouch! I'm already looking forward to a shower! The food is done, the body is as ready as it can be and we are itching to go. As detailed as the plan is - it doesn't matter anymore. The knowledge was acquired during the process of planning and both our body and the trail will dictate the way forward. |
Current Weather Forecast at our
First Food Drop Location
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One of 13 Wilderness Food (cache) Containers. Also, our SPOT and Garmon 62S.
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Some of you will have received a test email as we were setting-up our SPOT (Satellite GPS Messenger) and the tracking will be done with a few emails to specific people as well as on Simon's Facebook page (couldn't do Julie's at the same time). There is a tracking sight (it will accompany the posts) - http://share.findmespot.com/shared/faces/viewspots.jsp?glId=0ZTtGajEevuCRRK25TEtzXLktZl80dKze
We will likely connect a handful of times throughout the journey but our time will be limited and we're not sure how much we'll post on any of our social sites. It looks like we maybe doing a presentation at Robinson's Outdoor Store - we provided a synopsis of our AZT Trip and Gayle Robinson (the owner) was very interested to host a presentation. Likely sometime in the fall 2016. Of course we have to complete it first!! For now we say; so long, we will miss everyone during the next three months. If there is one thing we've come to really appreciate during the early stage of our sabbatical it's the wonderful connections, our family and the amazing friends we have. We expect to be socially starved upon our return - be prepared - we will need to be re-socialized! |
Keep in mind these two things:
1) If you're not living on the edge, you're taking too much space
&
2) Life begins at the end of your comfort zone
1) If you're not living on the edge, you're taking too much space
&
2) Life begins at the end of your comfort zone
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March 6th, 2016
In a nutshell, the fist segment (passages 1-3 of 43) of the AZT were tough but very rewarding. Scenery, wildlife, interaction with a few other thru-hikers, it's been very good. The three items worth outlining: 1) The body is happy, the training is obviously paying off. We planned this segment in six days and completed it in 4 1/2 days. We climbed over 6000 ft to 9200ft the first day and a half and hovered up and down to finally drop down to 4500ft in Patagonia yesterday. 2) The food is fabulous! Whether dhal, chili and spaghetti for dinner or eggs & polenta, granola - all has been great. |
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3) Finally, notch this to an experience... After being told by border patrols, park rangers and hikers that illegal immigrants don't use the park trails because there is too much traffic. You guessed it - at 2:45 am the first night Julie and I heard people on the trail (a few metres away). The awkward scenario followed:
Julie: "Hey I think there's people there!"
Simon: "Hello! (pause)... Hello!"
... longer pause ...
Someone: "No Problem?"
Simon: "No Problem"
Julie: "Hey I think there's people there!"
Simon: "Hello! (pause)... Hello!"
... longer pause ...
Someone: "No Problem?"
Simon: "No Problem"
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... they started walking and the last person of the group of 6 said with a very heavy accent: "Thank You My Friend".
Those last few words eased our minds and after a bit of chatting Julie and I fell asleep. Well, given sore fingers typing on my iPhone and the fact the we are taking a day off ... we carry on. When in your comfortable bed tonight think of Julie and I. The temperature at night is around freezing (30 celcius during the day). Cheer - Simon & Julie PS - not likely connected until March 12th or so. |
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March 12th, 2016
We are at the second resupply location (Colossal Cave) and we have a nice wifi connection... so! We completed the second segment of the AZT - passages 4 to 7. We left Patagonia and climbed into the Santa Rita mountains, the second 'sky island' of this Southern stage. btw, sky islands are mountain ranges where life is plentifull above 2,000 metres - large forests, etc. below that elevation it's pretty much desert, nice but still desert. We had been warned of a small storm and cooler weather for two days and they were spot on. We went beyond a tricky mountain pass the first day to camp in a lower canyon and a good thing we did. We awoke with 10cm or so of new snow with temp below zero. |
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We walked all day in cold weather to an old mining camp - Kentucky Camp - hoping to sleep there but we had to push on because it was a historic site (no camping allowed). It warmed up considerably the third day as we exited the foothills of the Santa Rita Mountains.
Aside from the small storm, it's been very dry and much warmer than usual (according to the locals). March 10th was a tough day, we had one water source and it was a (cow) pond. After both filtering and treating the water we continued hoping to get to Cienegas Creek... 33km and the little creek was an oasis which also offered a beautifull camping spot. It was surpisingly restful even though (to our surprise) we were camped under a train track...
Yesterday was an easier day, after 12 or 13 km we picked up our supply box from the tourist spot at Colossal Cave and had a cold drink and sandwich from their canteen.
Aside from the small storm, it's been very dry and much warmer than usual (according to the locals). March 10th was a tough day, we had one water source and it was a (cow) pond. After both filtering and treating the water we continued hoping to get to Cienegas Creek... 33km and the little creek was an oasis which also offered a beautifull camping spot. It was surpisingly restful even though (to our surprise) we were camped under a train track...
Yesterday was an easier day, after 12 or 13 km we picked up our supply box from the tourist spot at Colossal Cave and had a cold drink and sandwich from their canteen.
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All this said, we are now two days ahead of schedule even after taking a day off in Patagonia. We reached the rangers at the Saguaro National Park and we are able to change our reservations... we are taking today off and will hit the trail tomorrow - the park was fully booked all weekend.
The next 9 or 10 days should be spectacular with two 'sky islands'; Saguaro National Park with Reef Rock at above 3000m followed by a small pass (Italian Trap) and back up to Summerhaven with Mt Lemmon also above 3000m. We should be in Oracle in 9 days to rest and set-up our middle stage. We are doing well and the freakiest aspect is by far the water situation and the possibilty of not having enough... drink my friends, we are lucky to have plenty of water! Cheers, Simon & Julie |
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March 20th, 2016
After 330km we are in Oracle resting for three days. Our hosts at the Oracle Chalet, Marnie and Jim, are very involved with the AZT. They are true trail angels. We took two days off (in Patagonia and Colossal Cave) and are still 3 days ahead of schedule. The plan was conservative but mainly we are walking 9+ hours a day, we hadn’t planned that much. It’s pretty simple, there isn’t much else to do but walk!! Our days are split between walking, filtering water, eating and resting. We spend about 11 hours a night in our bivi sacks looking at the stars, talking or sleeping. |
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Sorting our 400 lbs of stuff in Flagstaff
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During these three days off, we have much preparation to achieve. We are revisiting all of our food and supply boxes and removing excess weight. The days of food will also be reduced because of our longer daily distances – all of which means less weight (yeh!!). Once realigned, we will drop our supplies on the way to Flagstaff and leave our car there. We also re-scheduled our shuttle from Flagstaff back to Oracle for March 22 – to continue our journey.
Now for the first stage… We provided small blog posts in Patagonia and Colossal Cave so we won’t dwell on those passages but the entire first stage progressively got better in all respect. The first week or so was all about getting the body used to the work, the weight on our back, the elevation gain/lost, etc. |
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On the landscape side, the first stage was all about the four ‘sky islands’. These are mountain ranges that have lush vegetation above 2000m (6500’). Quite the opposite to our world (in the North). Here, the higher elevation supports a lush environment because of the weather at high elevation (snow, more humidity, cooler temperatures, etc.). Therefore the higher you go the taller the ponderosa pines – even at 3000m (9000’) the trees are massive! The Huachuca, the Santa Rita, the Rincon and the Santa Catalina mountains were the four ranges they call ‘sky islands’ which all reach well above 3000m (9000’) of elevation and yet are all very different. All in all we estimate our total elevation gain during this first stage to be around 13,000m (40,000’).
After Colossal Cave we crossed a valley, 30km East of Tucson, and entered in the Saguaro National Park. We were able to move our reservations and spent three days crossing this spectacular place (in the Rincon Mountain Range). The snow we encountered the previous week still provided clear flowing streams. The Thru hikers ahead of us share their intel on water sources as they pass them so we have a good idea of what’s available. |
Saguaro N.P.
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After coming out of the Rincon (and Saguaro) we headed to the Santa Catalina Mountains where folks from Tucson enjoy skiing a few months a year at Mt Lemmon – due to the hotter weather the ski season ended in February this year! For both of us this was the nicest (and hardest) area yet. In particular the rock formations of the Wilderness of Rocks (see pictures). We stopped at Summerhaven for a meal and a resupply. Folks were curious about our attire and backpacks. We even had a guy stop his car and come out to ask questions about the hike. We walked just past town and slept on a very windy ridge. Finally we had the most brutal of all downhills from Mount Lemmon along Oracle Ridge – a long 23km winding trail losing around 1600m (5000’) elevation on loose boulders and gravel.
The most common sighting... a horny toad
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Lots of animals but nothing too scary yet… aside from the Western Diamondback Rattlesnake Julie spotted along the trail – “snake, snake, snake…” was the reaction! After an Arizona stand-off and some rattling, the snake slowly meandered into a bush. We also encountered a Coatimundi which was more impressive because of its size and agility (after seeing him leap from ground to vertical rock to branch like a panther). Oh yes, as I mention a panther… there were several sightings of a jaguar in the Santa Rita the week we went through, no luck spotting it! BTW – the Mexican Jaguar looks like a black panther but in fact has spots like the jaguar – they are just very dark and hard to see. I researched it to know how to behave if encountered…
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Lastly, we didn’t really know what to expect from this journey, spiritually. The reality is that this is a mountaineering expedition, where you focus on needs and safety – i.e. where is my next water source as well as constantly looking and concentrating on the placement of your feet. That isn’t to say that the mind doesn’t wonder, it’s just jarred back to the present constantly. It’s a very satisfying experience – living in the present moment. We both realize that to be successful, this expedition will require some luck but most of all our resolve.
Cheers for now, Simon & Julie (ONE OF THREE STAGES DONE - YEAH!!)
Cheers for now, Simon & Julie (ONE OF THREE STAGES DONE - YEAH!!)
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