This article first appeared on The Trek on May 27, 2025.

Day 38: Zero Day in Flagstaff

Day 38 was a zero day in Flagstaff, we had resupply to do and some shopping to get out of the way. Lunch at a nice Mexican place in the downtown plaza, comparison shopping at just about every outdoor store in town (and there are around 5 or 6 at least). I realized when I sent my rain pants up to the end, I had actually sent my coat and kept the pants. Given the forecast was rainy, I had to bite the bullet and buy a new raincoat. I also decided to replace my shoes, since the grand canyon was not going to be easy on feet and the Lone Peaks were already feeling every rock on top of having lost most of their grip in 250 miles of AZT. Cheers and TC grabbed some freeze dried foods and new warm gloves. Our other hikers friends were going to a bluegrass concert that night and invited us but I am sorry to say us old fogeys lamed out. 

Watch Day 38 of Oliver’s Arizona Trail series:

Day 39: Back on Trail Toward Snowbowl

In the early morning we faced a dilemma as we tucked into a famous breakfast joint on Route 66: do we walk the blue line through town or Uber up to the red line at the edge of town? What ended up deciding it for us was the camping restriction. Flagstaff banned camping within 16 miles of town to prevent forest fires. We Didn’t want to chance running out of steam and breaking the law so we Ubered up to the red line. 

And immediately we were confronted with a mountain bike race taking up the trail. An hour of stepping out of their way every few steps and we began to get testy (well, I did anyway). Thankfully nothing lasts forever and we pushed up to Snowbowl. 

It was cold up there. We did see a few flakes of snow and the peak was socked in. But we kept going and managed to drop some to a warmer level, and set up camp at Kelly’s Tank, which features a bear box with a water Cache!

Watch Day 39 of Oliver’s Arizona Trail series:

Day 40: Across Babbitt Ranch

After descending from the heights, we end up on a gently rolling landscape with plenty of open fields: perfect cattle grazing land. Also home to Babbitt Ranch, we had a mix of easy road walking and easy trail, but mostly exposed. We were expecting weather and cool temps but they didn’t really materialize. Off and on clouds and wind and spitting rain made for a mostly good hiking day. We thought a storm was going to hit us at one point but the wind pushed the cell past us. Awesome water source for lunch, a pristine tank with a flowing spigot gushed clean water down a hill into a cow puddle. 

Camp that night wasn’t spectacular: the low trees widely spaced didn’t offer much cover from the wind but it turned out ok.

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Day 41: Trail Connections and Cache Encounters

Only a little moisture on the tent in the morning. Yay! We beat our feet across some more open fields, and watered up at a wildlife rain collector along with 6 other hikers, some of which we knew. It’s always fun to meet up and swap stories, enjoying moments of connection with other thru hikers. 

We would run into another water source party in the afternoon at a water Cache, and it was just as much fun if a trifle warmer and sunnier. Camp wound up being on a nice grassy spot adjacent to a gate. 

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Day 42: Coconino Rim and Grandview Tower

Two days forecasting miserable weather have not yet materialized. Would this be the day? We need to make 20 miles at least to position us for a nice easy coast into Tusayan and then Grand Canyon Village. Today featured our arrival at the Coconino Rim, a break of land on the East end of the Grand Canyon, our first glimpse of the “big hole”, and an old fire watchtower. 

The weather kept up its suspiciously variable conditions but little materialized… Until the end of the day. More on that in a minute. We arrived at the rim and it was lovely, we had lunch at a nice viewpoint. When we arrived at the tower, I decided to brave the iron grating stairs to see if I could access the top. Sadly the hatch was locked, but good views were had despite my fear of heights. When I returned to the ground we were surprised by Lisa from Germany who rolled up, we hadn’t seen her since the day before Flagstaff. 

As the day wound down the weather cranked up, and we decided to pitch a little before 5pm to dodge the weather. We were successful but the weather blew over we I think 30 minutes so it once again turned into a non-story. But we were only 6 miles from Tusayan so our plan was intact.

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Day 43: March to Tusayan and Grand Canyon Village

Up we got bright and early at 6am and my heart was set on a McDonald’s feast for breakfast. I packed up like lightning, only to find my companions sitting down to a breakfast of instant oatmeal. “What are you doing?” “Having breakfast…” “Well I’m having McDonalds. See you there!” And I hit the bricks, determinedly setting out alone for the wretchedly addicting home of the sausage McMuffin. 

I bolted down the trail and reached town, wandering through the campground and emptying my trash. I made my way across the backside of the buildings along the main thoroughfare and ran into something very curious: fire suppression goats! A herd of goats taking down the grass to prevent wildfire coming into town. It gave me pause but only delayed the inevitable: an egregious amount of McDonalds breakfast.

My companions caught up to me 15 minutes later, and together we hit the paved trail and matched into Grand Canyon Village. Our plan was to take a (very expensive) night in a hotel, expecting we would be coming in wet and cold, then take a zero  in the campground. Turns out we weren’t wet and cold but the room was paid for so we enjoyed one last comfy bed before our final match to the finish. 

Watch Day 43 of Oliver’s Arizona Trail series:

Video Links:

• Day 38 – Watch on YouTube
• Day 39 – Watch on YouTube
• Day 40 – Watch on YouTube
• Day 41 – Watch on YouTube
• Day 42 – Watch on YouTube
• Day 43 – Watch on YouTube

This article first appeared on The Trek on May 25, 2025.

Day 32 – Rest, Resupply, and Pinewood Tavern

This was a resupply day in Pine, and well deserved. We made som breakfast sandwiches in our VRBO then headed into town to enjoy some quaint shops before doing our resupply. Had an incredible steak salad at the Pinewood Tavern, then stocked up. Found out today that Vince is the guy if you need a lift around town. His info is on FarOut somewhere but it’s not easy to track down. We cooked supper at our house too, a vast amount of pasta that we could not finish. 

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Day 33 – Under the Shadow of the Mogollon Rim

Vince drove us bright and early over to the Pine trailhead, and we enjoyed the day hiking below the Mogollon Rim with beautiful views of their mighty cliffs to the north and to the south a vast forest. We set a lofty goal of reaching Washington Park, an area at the base of “the climb” to the top of the Rim. Unfortunately, camping spots were scarce and the night was chilly but we made it through.

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Day 34 – Prescribed Burn

The hike up to the top of the Rim was probably worth doing slower as there was tons of history in that beautiful vale. The headwaters of the East Verde River were gorgeous. Conquering the Rim was easier than we thought it would be, but we were in much better hiking shape. Getting up onto the plateau was a very dramatic shift, and welcome with lots of shade, gently rolling terrain, and not as much pressure on our legs and feet. 

In the afternoon, we spotted smoke. It wasn’t a concern until it was… The trail inconveniently turned and guided us straight towards it. We came down a hill to a front country campground and were met by some rangers in a truck who advised us that a prescribed burn was taking place over the trail and we needed to reroute. To soften the blow he mentioned that the ranger station nearby had cold pop and ice cream of we made it there before the end of the work day. We didn’t, but as staff trickled out they generously let us in to buy an ice cream sandwich for a buck! 

Deciding on what to do took some pondering. The smoke was blowing across the road, and also onto the reroute so we decided to camp and see if it was better in the morning. We found a spot adjacent to the ranger station because we wanted to be able to access the station’s pit toilets, picnic tables and water spigot in the morning. 

Watch Day 34 of Oliver’s Arizona Trail series:

Day 35 – Smoke, Storms, and 500 Miles

When we awoke, the smoke was no longer blowing over our campsite. However, fires were smouldering in the burn area still, and smoke was thick over the reroute. We decided to tough it out, and it took almost 2 hours to clear the smoke. 

As we approached lunch time a new challenge arose: storm clouds ahead. Little bits of precipitation started and the temperature dropped significantly. We set up a tarp in the boughs of a tree and had lunch underneath it as soft hail (or round snow) began falling. Thunder sounded in the distance but thankfully moved off. The cold temperatures continued as we forged on. We got to a cattle tank for water and found another hiker hiding out in her tent waiting out the weather. We decided to try pushing on, and finally pitched our tents around 6pm, eating a rushed chilly supper and jumping into our tents for the night. 

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Day 36 – Trail Angels and Digestive Troubles

Thankfully, the cold night was as bad as it got. We were coming into the Mormon Lake area, and there were several front country options for camping, and Cruisy ground in between. Unfortunately, my digestive system decided it didn’t like changing water constantly, and it was a hard day of confusing messages and wondering if I was going to poop or just fart every time my guts wiggled. As we reached Dairy Springs Campground, myself and TC ran to the outhouses hoping they had been unlocked. A cooperative custodian granted our wish and I dosed myself that night with Imodium. 

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Day 37 – Record Miles and Chinese Buffet Dreams

Our initial plan today was going to do some big miles and set ourselves up for a good Near0 in Flagstaff, strolling into town on Day 38 after a handful of miles. But by lunchtime we were feeling good and had about 13 miles in the bag, so we agreed: let’s push for a record day and do 32 miles, and finish at the Chinese buffet! Considering our previous best was only 24 miles, this was a huge reach.

It was not without obstacles. I was disappointed that some selective logging dominated about 5 miles of trail, scarring the landscape. But worse, when we were about 10 miles out, the Cruisy, soft dirt trails were desecrated by hoofmarks: after the last rainstorm some horseback riders took their steeds out for a ride and their hooves turned some of the best, smoothest trail into a rough, broken mess. Our ankles took a huge beating for about 7 miles and I hope the AZTA makes clear to horse riders in the future not to use the trail after precipitation, to let the trail dry first. 

The trail down the blue line into Flagstaff was very pretty though. Especially the narrow canyons. We pushed out of those and onto some rising and falling pine knolls, and the sound of the distant freeway was heard through strange echoes that encouraged us. Sadly it wasn’t that close but when we finally reached the overpass, our sighs of relief were palpable. With our last reserves of energy we hiked up to Route 66 and into the Chinese restaurant just as the sun sank below the horizon at 7:10!

Watch Day 37 of Oliver’s Arizona Trail series:

Video Links:

Day 32: https://youtu.be/mbh3dOtPZbs
Day 33: https://youtu.be/9ct6WCNVCzw
Day 34: https://youtu.be/e9bM4IVNXi
Day 35: https://youtu.be/eQDmVvC8CPE
Day 36: https://youtu.be/mWKXf3dLyZk
Day 37: https://youtu.be/jfydIdX3N6Q

This article first appeared on The Trek on May 8, 2025.

So I ended my last post half way through the day… We didn’t stop at Roosevelt Lake but climbed right up into Four Peaks Wilderness, or at least the beginning of it.

Day 25 Continued – Climbing Into the Four Peaks Wilderness

After grabbing lunch and a few things in Lake Roosevelt, we road walked from the marina along the highway over a couple of bridges, and got a great view of the dam. The weather was sunny but not too hot, and with a full belly we started the notorious climb out of the bottom and up into the Four Peaks Wilderness.

For some reason I had a ton of energy and set a torrid pace up the climb. Great views of the dam and other lakes abounded, and we also observed a rainwater collector across the valley. Four Peaks loomed in the distance, taunting us. We pulled up at a trailhead 7 miles deep into the back country but because Take Charge had texted the Angel responsible for restocking the water, there was a cooler full of cold pop and beer waiting for us!

Watch Day 25 of Oliver’s Arizona Trail series:

Day 26 – The Big Climb Around Four Peaks

We said goodbye to a couple of hikers (Olivier and Enduro) we had been seeing on and off since Superior and left early, feeling like we needed a big miles day to get us on track. What we didn’t realize was this would be the day with the single biggest total ascent of our entire hike so far! Battling with a staggeringly long Sidehill around Four Peaks, then chugging up and down an old access road only usable by heavily modded 4x4s or UTVs, we fought hard for 21 miles to camp at water. 

Watch Day 26 of Oliver’s Arizona Trail series:

Day 27 – Down to Sunflower and a Tough Resupply

Coming down out of Four Peaks to Sunflower, the trail got really enjoyable as it meandered alongside of a scenic wash. We had a brief rest under a shady tree, then made it to a lovely flowing creek with tadpoles and minnows flitting through the shallows and lovely pools which we used to do some laundry (downstream of where people would get water of course). Laundry in the creek was necessary because we were not planning to hitch up to Payson, but instead we were to meet Cheers’ parents for resupply at the highway. So things were going to get a lot dirtier before they got cleaner.

It was a little frustrating getting from the trail over to the pull off were the car was. And the pull off has zero shade or amenities so we baked in the sun while scarfing down Subway. Our resupply in order, we crossed the highway to pound our another 6 miles or so. 

We found it fascinating how as soon as we crossed the highway the terrain, the character of the trail, the rocks and trees even seemed markedly different. We were somewhere new. Much shadier, much more comfortably meandering. We carried on to a water source at a nameless wash and set up camp. Unfortunately, one of our number got food poisoning that night from their sub, which made the evening a little difficult, but he felt much better in the morning. 

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Day 28 – Into the Mazatzals

I managed to rip my stuff sack for my 7 year old 1st edition XMid, so sad. I also accidentally left my short spool of Paracord at the camp and didn’t notice until I was 10 miles away at the next water. Rough start. But we cracked on and really enjoyed the superior trail design and beautiful landscapes in the Mazatzals. Certain sheltered sides of mountains sheltered us with looming trees, which was so great after weeks of desert. Water was becoming more plentiful. It truly elevated our experience.

We met a hiker called “Sinbad” at a water source, who has been hiking since mid March. He had lost over 30 lbs and was inspiring in his perseverance. We encouraged him to come camp with us, and surprise surprise he did make it after all as we would see him again the next morning as we pulled out. Hope he goes all the way. 

Watch Day 28 of Oliver’s Arizona Trail series:

Day 29 – Snow on the Horizon

Another awesome day, great trail, good energy, though all of us were beginning to flag since it was now day 8 since our last town day and we would not be in Pine until Day 30. The trail got rocky in sections, which took a toll on our feet and our speed. But our camping spot was just at a lovely overlook and our dinner was perhaps one of the more scenic. What also made the day special was glimpses of a snowy peak far to the north: Mount Humphrey already beckoning us onward. I hope the snow is gone by the time we get there.

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Day 30 – Crossing the East Verde Rivery

The land began to fold before us, as it made space for the East Verde River. Our ups and downs continued to be intermittently rocky which challenged us, and when we began our descent to the river, we found ourselves in almost full sunlight, pounding us like a hammer though the heat was not nearly as oppressive as the desert. We met another hiker on our way down (he was coming up) and had decided to wait out the sun under some shady bushes. We pressed on hoping for respite at the river.

The river was… Disappointing. The deep spot was knee deep and muddy bottom, and we forded there anyway because just wanted to cool our feet, despite there being some easy rocks to hope upstream. We met “Sunshine” from Germany, and she went for a swim as much as she could while we filtered water out of two fast flowing tributary streams, clean and pure.  And then it was onward we went, knowing Pine was only a few miles away.

Unfortunately the folds grew more challenging, causing us to ascend and descend rocky gravelly trails. One sustained climb to a plateau followed an old road and it was steep and tough. But we found cruisy flat ground at the top and made good distance for a while. Our camp spot that night had a wonderful view though.

Watch Day 30 of Oliver’s Arizona Trail series:

Day 31 – Finally Reaching Pine

The hike into Pine was actually quite nice with good trail and great weather. We tried hitching into town after the cost and wait time for Lyft was ruled out (don’t waste your time). Our VRBO was very nice but a little out of the way … That night we walked 35 minutes into the County Inn restaurant, home of a wood fired pizza of some reputation. A section hiker named Chipper (from England) joined us for the meal.

Watch Day 31 of Oliver’s Arizona Trail series:

Video Links:

Day 25: https://youtu.be/fbJcVoQNts4
Day 26: https://youtu.be/X-4HlllvIEo
Day 27: https://youtu.be/bBZ0vxWvxG4
Day 28: https://youtu.be/yyTPYLN5lJY
Day 29: https://youtu.be/zdd9KSnZLe4
Day 30: https://youtu.be/A6Hual_ljCM
Day 31: https://youtu.be/64FoXqkTqUY

This article first appeared on The Trek on May 23, 2025.

Thanks for following along! When last I posted (Day 21), we had just rolled into Superior for a Zero. My hiking tramily drove off to hang with family in Apache Junction while I stayed at MJ’s in Superior, an experience I was deeply looking forward to. Firstly because MJ is an incredible person who bends over backwards for hikers in ways that are just astonishing. Secondly because it is a whole different experience to hang with hikers on a zero, to hear the life stories, to experience their personalities when not driven by the trail, to talk shop, collect Intel, and even give back a little.

Day 22 – Comfort and Camaraderie at MJ’s

My first night at MJ’s (day 21) featured a Swiss doctor cooking up an authentic Gruyere fondue, which I ate entirely too much of. The second day I teamed up with him to become “The Two Olivers” and we cooked up a sausage and risotto feast. I also opened up my own resupply box which contained my duffle and five dehydrated meals I had brought with me from home to supplement my resupply (they are quite scarce on trail outside of Tucson, Phoenix and Flagstaff) and a new pair of shoes! 

The shoes were a huge deal. I started the trail with the Saucony Excursions I had worn on my section hike of the AZT in spring 24. They had been fine back then when they were new (and I was doing 10-15 miles a day). But this time, putting 15 to 20 miles up and having already been broken down a bit, they had been making hamburger of my feet, squashing my pinkies and just not stopping any of the punishment the rocky sky islands had been dishing.

My new shoes were a pair of Altra Lone Peak 6’s. The spacious toe box and perfect fit, plus the padded forefoot completely transformed the trail for my feet. Ah, I now know the joys of new shoes on trail!

I went a little heavy on the resupply, winding up with a little more than I needed, but sometimes that just happens. I also was asked by MJ to take her car and pick up hikers coming into Picketpost, which I really enjoyed, being able to assist her operation even if it cut into my R&R time. I also shuttled a sick hiker into Apache Junction for some extra care. Never did hear how she turned out…

Watch Day 22 of Oliver’s Arizona Trail series:

Day 23 – Back into the Superstitions

Back on trail! My tramily returned and picked me up super early and we set out from Picketpost north into the Superstition Wilderness at 6am. I began saying goodbye to the delights of desert heat and cacti. We encountered the corpse of a fox on trail, and wondered if this had been one of the reported rabid foxes some people had encountered earlier in the year. We pushed up to a wash and bedded down for the night.

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Day 24 – The Reavis Ranch Storm

You would think by day 24 my trail legs would be in. In the morning, absolutely. By close to midday we had reached the Reavis Ranch area which was a dream to saunter through. I’d like to come back in the fall to try some of the remaining apples from trees that were not destroyed in the fire that wiped out the ranch. But by afternoon, more punishing declines and inclines over rocky terrain had me tapped right out. We camped on a lower saddle hoping the winds wouldn’t be that bad. The forecast was mixed, but we had no idea what was to come. Because of my experience last year on a Ridgeline in a storm, I put every peg I had into the hard soil and pitched my tent parallel to the winds and next to a tank, hoping shelter from one side at least would give my tent a fighting chance.

At 8pm the fight began. A windstorm and rain blew in and began battering all our tents. I saw lights come on as some of my fellow campers scrambled for rocks to pile on their stakes. I thanked God that the winds were hitting the narrow ends of my tent instead of broadside but still despite my low pitch dust was being thrown in and coated my hair and my quilt. The pounding continued until 10pm when finally the wind and rain subsided, and with my tent still standing I finally drifted off to sleep.

Watch Day 24 of Oliver’s Arizona Trail series:

Day 25 – Prayer, Patterns, and a Change of Pace

When I got up in the morning I inspected my tent. One groundhog stake had worked its way to be 3/4 of the way out. I was that close to having a tent failure in that storm. Prayer works, friends! We would later learn that storm hammered a group on a higher ridge with hail and put 8 inches of snow down from Pine north to Flagstaff. 

I came to a realization on trail that there was definitely a pattern to each day. The morning was cool and I had tons of energy (especially since I had learned how to hydrate myself properly on trail: my method was to always have at least 3L of water on me at all times, and to drink big every time I felt thirsty – 250mls at a time). Lunch would rejuvenate for a couple hours, but every afternoon from 2:30 on to when we stopped I would feel rough, just gutting it out till we camped. Now, it had changed for the better with my new shoes … I wasn’t limping into camp anymore, and when we took breaks I didn’t have to limo for 5 minutes until the compression of walking reduced swelling in my painful toes. 

But this day the pattern changed. Coming down to Lake Roosevelt, it put a big disruption in the pattern. We reached the marina by 1030, and we lounged around the hiker shack where donated resupply and a charging station were there for our convenience. Other hikers dried their wet nylon tents (I love my Durston XMid made of silpoly, it doesn’t hold water!) and by 1130 the diner opened, so we had big burgers for lunch. But the plan was never to stay so we pushed on after lunch to ascend into the Four Peaks Wilderness! I’ll leave that for my next update!

Watch Day 25 of Oliver’s Arizona Trail series:

Video Links:

Day 22: Arizona Trail Series – Day 22
Day 23: Arizona Trail Series – Day 23
Day 24: Arizona Trail Series – Day 24
Day 25: Arizona Trail Series – Day 25

This article first appeared on The Trek on April 25, 2025.

This poor Canadian knew it might get hot, but there really was no way to prepare for it with snow on the ground. Day 1 on Miller Peak was warm, but nothing like this stretch! Yet the rewards were tremendous. 

Day 14: Red Ridge Reroute and a Hard Lesson in Heat

We set out to descend Mount Lemmon. After a stiff climb, we anticipated a leisurely saunter downhill all day into Oracle. It was a nice temperature for Summerhaven, but that in retrospect should have been our warning: it would only get hotter.

First shock: the AZT had been rerouted from Oracle Ridge to Red Ridge. We didn’t really think about what that meant until we’re on it. First, it lengthened the road walk to the trailhead, but that was minor. Then it sent us downhill very rapidly through an old burn, which increased our exposure to the sun early and started taxing our hamstrings (and Cheers’ knees). The reward was a nice stream of flowing water at the bottom and a bit of history with an old mining camp we passed through. 

The punishment was we had to climb back up to Oracle Ridge, nearly undoing all the descent. 

The rest of the day became a slog, as we tried to conserve water and make it to a cattle tank at t end of the ridge. The sun was descending rapidly, and we began to grasp at ways to shorten the day: Hi Jinks Ranch had water but was unavailable for us to stay as the owner was out of town. We managed to stumble down to American Flag Trailhead and called a local trail angel for a lift to El Rancho Robles, which turned out to be a solid choice. One massive burrito later, we went to sleep in a bed for the second consecutive night full but tired. 

Watch Day 14 of Oliver’s Arizona Trail series:

Day 15: Through Oracle State Park

We still had all of Oracle State Park to do, and our initial instinct was to just take it easy after two punishing days in a row (well, more like 6, of we include everything back to Colossal Cave, our easy day after the Tucson Zero). But we ended up marching in hot sun through the park to the underpass, up to Tiger Mine trailhead, then out to the first wash for the night. We camped with an experienced hiker there named Mud, from Hawaii.

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Day 16: Siesta Strategy and the Ant Invasion

Today was all about going from water source to water source. We knew our options would be limited and the weather would be hot so we decided to make sure when we stopped we could drink as much as we needed to rehydrate. Our first goal was Mountain View Tank which we made by 11am. We elected to siesta there and wait out the hottest part of the day. The shade of the tank was better than the feeble shade provided by desert shrubs.

We got going again around 3pm and hiked down to Beehive Well, which was set in a sheltered bowl. Dusk was falling fast, but I had a heck of a time siting my tent as ant nests were everywhere. About a hundred ants came over to investigate my camp stove, so as soon as I finished cooking I broke my cardinal rule and are inside my tent to escape the ants. 

Watch Day 16 of Oliver’s Arizona Trail series:

Day 17: Night Hiking to the Wildlife Tank

We set out as early as we could, planning to get in some good miles before the heat and knowing we would siesta again to avoid the worst of it. We made it to Freeman Road water collector before 10, and settled in. Luckily the ground was comfortable around the collector and the bees restricted their patrols to the spigot itself, and were calm enough when we filled our bladders. We were joined by GoPro and Deadpool for most of the afternoon, who regaled us with stories of the joys of night hiking. We knew we would have to do a little because it would be a 10 mile push to the wildlife tank and leaving at 4 would mean an arrival 3 hours after sunset. 

That is exactly what happened. The moon was almost full, but I have no idea how GoPro was able to see so well without a headlamp. I definitely needed it. Even with it I was stepping on rocks and stumbling around. And we felt like we missed out on the beautiful terrain: we knew we climbed through a pretty canyon but never saw it because of the darkness.  We reached the tank and went straight to bed, planning to fill up on water in the morning. 

Watch Day 17 of Oliver’s Arizona Trail series:

Day 18: Tortilla Mountains and True Trail Magic

The wildlife tank was interesting to see and explore in the daylight. Early in the morning one night hiker cowboy camped nearby and another went by us, so for those who wanted to do big miles on the heat they were becoming night owls. But we did not like it and resigned to finding other ways to cover the hot miles.

We descended into some arroyos and found some good water from a spring that was dripping into a blue barrel with a spigot before filling a cow trough. A young guy named Parakeet showed up there, he had an interesting setup and seemed a little inexperienced but he had enough water. 

Our day got tougher as we had to ascend ” the big hill” and traverse the Tortilla Mountains. This would prove to be the hottest day of this stretch, and the most shadeless. We tried to have lunch in the shade of a Palo Verde but it was very little help. My appetite disappeared and I developed rather explosive um… Rear issues. All I wanted was water and electrolytes. Coming down from the mountains we just focused on Florence Kelvin  and the water Cache there. My thermometer hit 104 degrees. Our water in our bottles was so hot it tasted like hot shower water. When I got to the cache I just laid out my foam and sipped the slightly cooler water from the cache. My friends caught up and we were so spent we decided to forego the 2 more miles to Gila Trailhead. Just then the first true trail magic of our journey happened. A head popped out over the bank and said “Hey you guys hiking the AZT?”

“Yeah…”

“Want a cold beverage?”

The look on our faces could never have been replicated. A guy named James gave us cold drinks and took us to Buzzy’s for burgers, then dropped us at Jeff and Que’s for the night. Jeff gifted me with a wooden AZT “challenge coin” which is amazing. Most people don’t understand, but as a member of the military, I know how special this is and will display it with pride when I get back to work.

Watch Day 18 of Oliver’s Arizona Trail series:

Day 19: Along the Gila River

No rest for the wicked: we jumped back on trail early with help from James again, and attacked the hottest passage on the AZT: the Gila River. Stunning views were on display all day as we wandered up and down the hillsides above the Gila. The lush valley contrasted sharply with the desert sometimes only separated by feet. Many rumours have been floated this year about Norovirus from the river, but we drank from it (through our Sawyers), bathed our feet in it, and rinsed our clothes in it and suffered no ill effects. A rattlesnake sauntered by one of our watering points on the river but we didn’t question him so he had nothing to say to us. At another water stop a steer strolled up, had a drink, then disappeared whilst we siesta’ed. We finally set up camp on the edge of the river just past the low point of the AZT, so we could stage for the hot, dry climb up out of the valley to Superior the next day.

Watch Day 19 of Oliver’s Arizona Trail series:

Day 20: Climbing Toward Superior

Our day started out strangely: with a voice from across the river trying to figure out if it was safe to cross. The river was extremely muddy so we were concerned it was not safe, but the hiker ultimately resolved to try since backtracking would have added 24 miles to get to where we were. Luckily, the river was only thigh deep and we left them secure and ready for a nap since they had stayed up all night. 

We all had lots of energy this morning, especially myself as the heat had subsided somewhat and I recovered my appetite the night before. We covered the first five miles of ascent easily then slowed down to admire the most stunning terrain (in our group’s opinion) on the trail so far. The sculpted rock, dramatic cliffs, perfect morning light all combined to take our breath away as we went.

Our goal was to reach the water collector at mile 10 of our day but we reached it around 1130 so we took a few hours to avoid the hot sun and considered our next move. We knew we were going to zero when we reached Superior but we thought rather than push and get into Superior late, then having to do everything in one day, to camp 5 or 6 miles out and then have an easy morning in, gaining an extra afternoon of rest. This turned out to be a great plan and we got to see more Gila monsters and several new varieties of cattle on the way to camp. A young hiker named Sleeves joined us that evening and we went to bed anticipating our rest (and the new shoes that awaited me in Superior).

Watch Day 20 of Oliver’s Arizona Trail series:

Day 21: The 300-Mile Mark and a Superior Zero

Went exactly according to plan. An easy saunter into Picketpost Trailhead. Met my hiking partners’ parents. Brunch at Jalapeno’s in Superior. Dropping me off at MJ’s (the Trail Angel of the Year last year for good reason!). A shower, a resupply, helping MJ by driving the pickup car for some other hikers, then enjoying a Swiss Fondue feast prepared by a hiker from Switzerland for the 11 of us staying with MJ! What a finish to this brilliant, yet challenging section!

Watch Day 21 of Oliver’s Arizona Trail series:

Video Links:

Day 14: https://youtu.be/jb__Psi8cpU

Day 15: https://youtu.be/ZwMoz9ytibU

Day 16: https://youtu.be/3SUqUIA32lg

Day 17: https://youtu.be/Ki6f634pOBk

Day 18: https://youtu.be/l4rPAs2-kIQ

Day 19: https://youtu.be/LOMIfW2zxsI

Day 20: https://youtu.be/oVbmH_8Bw1Y

Day 21: https://youtu.be/8_01l4oWfAU