Hiking, web development, best practices, and general awesomeness
On the southern edge of the Mazatzal Wilderness is a little hiking loop made up of access roads, the Arizona Trail, and an old ranching single-track on top of Black Ridge. I've been wanting to take the kids on this loop for a while and, once I felt confident in their endurance, we headed out on a…
There is a set of waterfalls in the Mazatzals that, for as many times I've adventured in the wilderness, I had never seen. They are somewhat popular on social media sites, even though they are deep enough in the mountains that many visitors opt for overnight trips. There is even a convenient, if…
On New Year's Eve a storm rolled across central Arizona. In Phoenix, the valley of the sun, we saw intermittent rain under gloomy skies, though the mountains surrounding our valley were dusted by a more wintery mix. When I woke up on the new year and saw white on the upper portions of Superstition…
Waking about an hour before sunrise, I was initially slow moving under the dark sky. As soon as I was dressed and heard the pitter-patter of raindrops on my undersized tarp I sped up, though, worried about my quilt and other gear getting wet. Once everything was protected I began making breakfast,…
Bull Spring Trail passes through three drainage basins after it leaves the AZT. With each basin it swings north to avoid losing too much elevation, though there is always some drop, and then it crosses a rocky bed before climbing up the other side. The first one is Red Metal Canyon and it looked…
This morning started like so many of my Mazatzal adventures: pitch-black sky, frigid air, and a stumbling gait towards semi-familiar lands. There was something different about it, something that I tried to ignore, lest I jinx the whole outing. If I succeeded in this overnight loop then I'd finish my…
Crisp November air swam around me, filling my chest with each breath and nipping sharply at my nose. It felt delightful to be cold on an Arizona hike, even if that had meant waking up shortly after midnight and driving for hours in the dark, all to get a predawn start in low temperatures. My long…
Ten miles sat between me and the trailhead as I began my descent from the unplanned bivouac site. My original plan, which had started yesterday, was to do the Midnight Mesa Loop, a 36 mile adventure in the central Mazatzal Wilderness, in a single day, and I would have made it if it wasn't for some…
Hopping across Wet Bottom Creek was lovely, clear water trickling around the red rocks in the most scenic of fashions. On the far bank was a large cairn and wide path, an open invitation to continue forward on Midnight Trail on my long walk around Midnight Mesa, and yet I paused. It was just after…
Sheep Bridge towered above my vehicle, steel foundation rising dimly in the starry sky, a stoic sentinel guarding passage across the Verde River and into the wilderness on the other side. I shuffled humbly underneath its watch, collecting my gear and checking everything twice, more in an effort to…