[Day 15] Climbing & Cowboying

Arizona changes south of the Colorado Plateau. The state’s sky islands set the scene, high above an arid, hot desert below, Noticeably, leaving Pine, my footsteps have become more technical — loose footings, apple-sized ankle-twisting rocks fill trail, ascents and descents set the norm.

I kicked off the morning rolling through pines, hitting a few deep ravines before ascending into the Mazatzal Wilderness. Prickly-peared cactus quickly became frequent. And, apparently, prickly pear feeds the desert. Every scat I saw was purple and filled with cactus seeds, leaving little indication as to the animal.

I took lunch nine miles in — brisket, chicken, and pretzel roll leftover from yesterday’s dinner along with a carefully pealed prickly pear.

Not too long after lunch, in a open flat of dry grass, junipers, cactus, and volcanic rock, I sent a dog-sized creature grunting and charging opposite the direction of me. The hind quarters revealed the boar — a javelina. These little guys can be feisty and are often known to charge, especially in protection of their young.

Most of today was a long descent to the East Verde River. Nearing the river, the trail became steep with loose gravel and shale atop a layer of bedrock. It’s the type of trail where putting on the brakes leads to sliding out on your ass as skin is shredded from your hands. I caught myself, luckily, a couple times when I hesitated with my next footstep. My balance is quite poor, but I’ve become proficient in managing to stay on two feet, even in the slickest of conditions.

The East Verde River was a pleasant surprise at 18 miles into the day, and I took my time to water up and do my dishes, something I always forget to do in town. The haul out of the river was a climb. To my camp, it was four miles with 2,000 feet of vertical — not bad. I was moving at a nice clip, enjoying some uphill. That was, until, my ankle left me gimping. A soreness accumulated at the forefront of the joint. Footsteps had to land clean and flat for painless hiking — not a plausible task for any trail.

I limped my way up, screaming obscenities and damning myself every few steps. I called it a few tenths before 25 miles. Distraught, I threw out a quick cowboy camp and skipped dinner. The Mazatzal and Four Peaks Wilderness are known as a rigorous section of trail. Will I need to turn back to Pine? Will I grin and bear it to Highway 87? I am getting ahead of myself… Though, apparently, the pain is making me quite serious.

As I stared into the stars and the faint Milky Way, a resounding desire to be inanimate came over me. It’s a hard feeling to describe, and I’m not quite sure why I felt so. I promise — no drugs involved here. Pearl Jam’s song, “Wishlist,” comes to mind as capturing the emotion.

Cowboy camping is back in season.

Signing off,

Zeppelin

“Freak on a Leash”