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| Date | Title | Leader | Starting Point | Milegage / Degree of Difficulty | Hike Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| JAN 5 | Walk off the Holidays Cross the Preserve | Jim Grajek | Eagle Ridge | 6-7 miles/Moderate to Exhilarating. | Hikers may add in the Western Loop. The hike begins at Eagle Ridge and crosses the entire preserve. Hikers will need to arrange for pick up at the end of Golden Eagle. |
| Jan 12 | Butcher Jones Saguaro Lake | Annie Rollins | Protas Library (Car Pool) | 5.5 miles/Moderate | 200 foot elevation gain. This hike begins at the Butcher Jones Picnic Area winds along the edge of Saguaro to a fabulous view of 4 Peaks. Trail is fairly level except for a climb into and out of a wash. Need Tonto National Forest day or annual pass required for each vehicle. |
| Jan 19 | Early People | Len Marcisz | Eagle Ridge | 5 miles/Moderate | Learn about the Hohokum Tribe of Native Americans. You might be interested in how much history our Preserve has. |
| Jan 23 | Bushnell Tank, Hike to the swing (and maybe corral) | Pam Cissik | Library (car pool) | 3-5 miles/ Moderate | 4 hours; 250 foot elevation. On this hike we will follow a closed forest road, crossing 2 rocky stream beds (one of which is very likely to have water), to find an old swing hanging from a huge Sycamore Tree. The hike may be extended to follow the road further to an old corral. Hiking pole recommended to help with any water crossings (wet feet are possible). |
| Feb 2 | Dixie Mine | Steve Fleming | Golden Eagle | 5 miles/Moderate to Exhilarating | Enjoy learning about the mine and its surroundings (including a petroglph panel). This is a great hike. |
| Feb 9 | Mountain Bike clinic and Ride 9:30am | Dona Schallenkamp | Meet at Library for drive to Tonto National Forest (NEW LOCATION) | If you are new to mountain biking or need a refresher, this clinic is for you. Basic mountain bike riding and handling skills will be covered so that you will be comfortable riding on wide paths with gentle grades and few obstacles. The clinic will be held in the Tonto National Forest near Rio Verde and followed by a ride of 5 miles. Helmets are required. Call ahead to reserve mountain bike rentals from Bicycle Garage AZ (480-837-1413) at 11857 Saguaro. | |
| Feb 13 | Black Mountain and Deer/Rye Creek Indian Ruins Hike - Gisela | Pam Cissek | Library (car pool) | 2-4 miles/Moderate | 3-4 hours; 200 foot elevation gain to Black Mountain Ruins. This hike will take us to two unrestored Indian Ruins. We will see partial walls, footings of prehistoric buildings, pottery shards and trash mounds. For those that wish, we will drive a short distance and do a short steep hike to a ruin on top of Black Mt., which may have served as a lookout post. All ruins are protected by laws that prohibit digging, removing ANY artifacts, or damaging these resources. An Archaeological Site Etiquette Guide will be reviewed prior to departing for this hike. Hiking poles are recommended for the quite steep ascent to the top of Black Mt. |
| Feb 16 | Birding 7:30am | Kathe Anderson | Eagle Ridge | 2-3 miles/ Easy to Moderate | Kathe will share her knowledge with us on birding in the Preserve. |
| Mar 2 | Hike McDowell Mt. Park To Golden Eagle Trailhead | Jim Grajek | Golden Eagle(Car Pool) | 10.5 miles/Challenge | 5-6 hours. After dropping vehicles at the Golden Eagle Trail head, we shall carpool to the Trailhead Staging Area in McDowell Mountain Park. The hike will be at an exercise pace and will follow the Pemberton Trail, Coachwhip Trail and Dixie Mine Trail back to Golden Eagle Trailhead. $6.00 park entrance fee per vehicle. |
| Mar 16 | Photography | Marianne Jensen | Golden Eagle | 5 miles/Moderate | Marianne will share tips to take beautiful pictures in our Sonoran Desert and Preserve. Marianne has a Flora Photo Guide to Wildflowers that is excellent. |
| Mar 23 | GPS | Paul Appledorn | Eagle Eidge | 4-5 miles/Moderate | Paul will have a brief update on the workings of a GPS followed by a hike to the Preserve to hunt for geocaches. |
| Mar 30 | Ballatine Trail-Pine Creek Loop Hike | Annie Rollins-Protas | Library (Car Pool) | 3 miles/Moderate | 4 hours; 450 elevation gain. This is a clockwise loop starting at Ballantine Trail off of Highway 87 and intersecting with the Pine Creek Trail. With luck wildflowers will be in bloom on the return. Excellent views on this hike. The uphill portions of the hike are mostly gradual. |
| Apr 6 | Ride In | Steve Fleming and Carol Ayres | Eagle Eidge | Ride / Easy | Limited to 20 physically challenged people who require a ride to the preserve. Riders must preregister a week in advance with Carol Ayres at 480-837-8290 or quail10@aol.com |
| Apr 13-20 | International Trail Conference | TBA | Hikes will be offered all week. Details to be provided in Fountain Hills Times. | ||
| Apr 27 | Scat and Tracks | Ranger Amy Burnett | Golden Eagle | 3 miles/Moderate | Ranger Amy will show hikers how animals can be identified by their scat and tracks. |
• All hikes start at 8:00 AM , Birding starts at 7:30AM and the two Bike Clinics start at 10:00 AM. Each hiker must register at the start of the hike.
• For all hikes wear sturdy shoes and wear a hat (bike clinic- helmet) and bring water and snack.
• November 7, January 12, January 23, February 13, March 30: Meet at the South side of the Library parking lot. We will car pool to the hike site.
• April 27 MUST PREREGISTER
• Hikes begun from Eagle Ridge must start and finish with stewards as we cross private land
• Hikes begun from Golden Eagle require $2.00 charge for the Regional Park.
• January 12 hike require each vehicle to have a Tonto National Forest day or annual pass
• November 29, February 9 and March 2 hikes requires each vehicle $6.00 for McDowell Mountain Park.
For questions call or write: Carol Ayres, SCFH, 480-837-8290, Send Email