Encounters with Stupidity

Today I attempted an Epic. An Epic is a big undertaking -- the kind of adventure you remember for years, if not the rest of your life. Climbing the 6-pitch route "Moby Dick" -- my first multi-pitch climb -- was an epic. Hiking Tanque Verde Ridge with Casey, Brant, and the late Robert Fromm was an Epic. We Walked dawn to dusk, covering about 25 miles. I like doing Epics because they stick in my mind and give me a long-term sense of accomplishment. I don't usually remember the details of 5- or 10-mile hikes in the Catalinas. They occasionally pop into my mind when something reminds me, but on a typical day I don't think much about my hikes along Crystal Springs trail, or Butterfly, or even Oracle, Red, and Samaniengo Ridges.

Today's failed mini-Epic was to be a ~15 mile hike in the Santa Rita mountains, 35 miles SSE of Tucson. We (Tess, Erin, Sabkha and I) planned to hike up Florida Canyon to the main ridge of the 'Ritas, then up to Mt Wrightson (the high point of the 'Ritas) and down Madera Canyon. We stashed a mountain bike at the Madera Canyon trailhead, intending to ride the bike about 8 miles to Florida Canyon and retrieve the car. This "bike shuttle" can be pretty useful, avoiding non-scenic multi-mile hikes along roads (ugh).

We dropped off the bike, locking it to a handrail outside the pit toilets at the tippy top of the revamped Madera Canyon parking and picnic complex. Then we drove over to Florida Canyon. Unfortunately, the entire area is closed due to the large fire that burned in the 'Ritas earlier this the summer. It is not clear why the trails are closed. The typical rationale I hear is: "to protect visitors from falling branches and unstable trails". Uh, ok... hiking is inherently risky, so what's a slight increased risk of falling branches to worry about? More important, since when is it the federal government's job to worry about my personal risk-taking behaviour? To continue: so I can smoke, hang glide, drive a car, but I can't hike under some charred branches -- oh no! Disgusted with the USDA, we returned to Madera Canyon and found that virtually all trails in the central and eastern Santa Rita Mountains are closed. This includes both trails to Mt Wrightson (Super Trail and Baldy Trail). The trail to Aqua Caliente Saddle was open, so we started up that direction. The rain poured down, it got cold (at least I got cold) and we turned back, covering perhaps three miles round trip. Sabkha had a good time as usual.

I'm leaving Tucson (for good) in under 1.5 years -- my goal is to be out by Christmas 2006. So I begin to think of what Epics I'd like to remember Tucson by. I've got a cache of ideas. One long-standing Epic idea of mine is "Door-Mount Lemmon-Door". This would involve stepping out my front door, hiking to the top of 9300-ft Mt Lemmon in the Santa Catalinas, and returning to my door. A long slog, and about 15 miles of it would be through the city (from my house north to the mountains). Total round trip would be around 50 miles, with over 15,000 feet of elevation change! Even an ultramarathoner would probably have difficulty doing that trip in under 24 hours. It's probably not a realistic Epic for me in the next 16 months. A better one might be: stash bikes atop Mt Lemmon. Hike door to Mt Lemmon, ride bikes down.

Other Epic ideas include:

1) Rillito-Tanque Verde Wash Walk (up the Rillito to Tanque Verde Canyon, a favorite spot of mine). This would check it at about 45 miles round trip (but mostly flat).

2) Catalina Bike Circumnavigation: ride bikes through Oro Valley and Oracle, up the Control Road, and down the Catalina Highway. Mileage: around 100. Probably do-able in 24 hours, but very challenging.