I was fortunate that my friend Josh Sagraves was in Tucson when I flew in. He generously picked me up from the airport. Even better, he drove me to the trailhead. As the crow flies, getting from the airport hotel to the Arizona Trail on top of Mt. Lemmon seemed simple enough. In reality, it was a long, twisting drive taking at least 90 minutes. Fortunately, Josh is a patient and forgiving friend
The Arizona Trail (AZT)
The AZT is an 800 mile north-south trail running the length of Arizona between Utah and Mexico. The obvious highlight for a hiker would be the Grand Canyon crossing. A less obvious highlight is that the best times to hike are early spring and fall. I am only using a portion of it, 45 miles. As you might imagine, one of the biggest challenges of this trail is hydration. Fortunately, the volunteer organization that maintains the trail does a great job supplementing natural and man-made waters ources with caches that are stocked with water for hikers.
My impression of the AZT is that it is a great trail. My theory on why this is true? Arizona is chock-full of retired Mid-westerners. Bored with golf and pickleball, they direct their volunteer energies to community service. Indeed, even some places along the route offer services like potable water (i.e., the High Jinks Ranch).
I only spent three days on this trail, but it was great. A wet spring truly elevated the quality of the desert this year. Tons of blooming cacti. I admit I had some challenges getting my hydration right (wicked muscle cramps at night) and getting my pasty white Minnesota body used to heat.
Other than a single crabby rattlesnake, the AZT was a breeze. I did meet two other hikers that were trying to complete the whole trail. I met several cows, too.
backpacking over the hill 