Best part of this hike: the backdrop, up against the base of Four Peaks (only one of which, curiously, is named). Some fantastic vistas over the first six or seven miles of both the mountains above us and the valley below. Nice cooling breeze, and wow, look at this, we're going down hill.
But as we all know, what goes down must come up. So, next best thing about this hike was that it mirrored the Grand Canyon in this small way...down first, then up. This hike was about 15 miles (compared to the Canyon's 25), so a pretty good training run.
Worst part of this hike: the uphill started at the bottom of a sandy wash. A really sandy wash. Imagine walking in the soft sand at the beach. But with no cooling waves. Up hill. For two miles. With no wind either.
After we topped out on the ridge things got better (trail firmed up, breeze returned). Glad that was behind us. But wait! There was another mile of the stuff right at the end, only this time the sand was softer and deeper. A cruel way to finish, but I'm glad we didn't start with it or we may have abandoned the trail (thinking it might be like that the whole way) and missed out on some great training.
But boy were my calves sore on Monday! Two more training hikes and then it's GC-Day!
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