10 miles of hiking • 2750' elevation gain •
Up and then down on switchbacks fun for mtbers, not hikers, and then up, up, and up past private property to the top of Coyote Wall, then down, down, down Coyote Wall, then down Little Maui, up Hidden Valley, then Indian Pits, then up and over the Catherine Creek syncline, then a bunch of off-trail wandering on that big flank-o-hill west of Catherine Creek. It was drizzling 84.7% of the time, but it was a great day to be in this area. Only saw one other person and their dog waaaaaaaay in the distance. The desert parsley is going gangbusters. The balsalm root is about 1-2 weeks away, the lupine is starting to burst in some places, and there are prolific shooting star colonies all over. Two more weeks! The dog only had 5 ticks.
