Hugh Norris to Wasson Peak

After Saturday's epic twenty mile hiking event, I needed something a little shorter to end my season. Having already established a tradition of hiking Wasson as a first and last hike to bookend my annual hiking season, I chose the Hugh Norris Trail to Wasson Peak. This beautiful little hike, which I had never done, accomplishes a similar elevation gain as Saturday's hikes at nearly 2,500 feet, yet it manages to do so in half the distance. My Michigan pal Jack joined me on this last outing.

The trail itself was a real surprise. This out-and-back gets way less use than the King's Canyon Loop or the Sweetwater approach, and the trail was in great shape. What we found really striking is the high level of craftsmanship in the construction of the granite stairs, of which there were many—a whole mile of them to start. 

The weather was overcast and 60º-70º, and the light eerily beautiful. Very little wind until the return, when it picked up a notch. Saw a few other fellow hikers, almost all of whom were from the Upper Midwest, which has freakily been having similar daytime temps.

Curt (Michigan), Jack (Michigan), and Jeff (Wisconsin), photo taken by two young hikers from New Hampshire.

A rare glimpse of sun toward hike's end.

One last task is to clean the boots from any invasive hitchhikers.

 

Tortolitas and Catalinas—M.O.V.E. 2024

Today, Misty and I participated in the 12th annual M.O.V.E. in Two Ranges hiking event, where participants hiked in the Tortolitas near the town of Marana, then hopped in a car and drove 25 minutes to Catalina State Park in Oro Valley to hike another stretch. As best I can determine, MOVE stands for Marana Oro Valley Event. There were four challenges in the event, with their alliterative names as such: Mighty (8 miles); Major (10 miles); Mega (16 miles); and Massive (20 miles). Of course, we did the massive event, consisting of 13 miles in the Tortolitas and 7 miles in the Catalinas. Quite a challenging event, mostly because of the heat after 11:00 am or so, with temps reaching 81º.

Misty kept her hiking app on a single recording just to
see how AllTrails would deal with it. This is how it
split the maps up.

My recording inadvertently stopped about ¾ of a mile from the finish in the Tortolitas, so I ended up a little shy of 13 miles.

Hit the trail a little after six. We both left our headlamps at home (duh), but managed to follow a couple of hiker who had theirs. Luckily, the Tortolitas hike starts out in a sandy wash. We were able to finally see without lights about 6:30.

A rare crested Saguaro.

The Catalina State Park leg started out on a bridle path.

View from the Sutherland Trail.

After party with Dragoon beer and food. Quite a nice little fundraising event for the Oro Valley and Marana parks and rec.

M.O.V.E.

My hiking partner Misty convinced me to sign up for this annual hiking event in December, shortly after I arrived in Tucson. There will be four challenges: Mighty (8 miles); Major (10 miles); Mega (16 miles); and Massive (20 miles). Naturally, we tacitly agreed we would be signing up for the Massive hike as that is just the way we roll. 

This Saturday (February 24) is the 12th annual M.O.V.E. Across Two Ranges. Not exactly sure what the acronym M.O.V.E. stands for, but I can surmise it stands for Marana Oro Valley Event or some such as it is a joint venture of the suburban cities of Marana and Oro Valley.

Normally, I prefer hiking solo or with a partner or two, not with a hundred other folks, but what the hell. You only have this single life to live, might as well live it exhausted and irritated (I kid the other primates🙂).

It should be quite the event, with over three hundred total participants across four challenges. Plus, it is sponsored by the Dragoon Brewery, maker of my favorite local beer, Dragoon IPA (reminiscent of my favorite Iowa beer, Des Moines IPA, from Confluence Brewing in Des Moines).

I  have hiked more than once in the Tortolitas range, including all of this route as part of a longer 16-mile hike. And the Catalinas are quite simply my go-to range in Tucson, where all my favorite hikes reside. While I have rarely hiked a mere seven miles there, after thirteen miles already under my belt in the morning, a mere seven more will be just dandy.

The first thirteen miles will be in the Tortolitas, on a trail I have hiked at least twice, as part of a longer hike called the Superloop, most recently in December, 2022. It is one of the few long (over 10 miles) hikes I feel comfortable with hiking solo.

The only part of the Catalina hike I have previously tackled is the short section of the Sutherland Trail, that as part of the 18+ miles of that strenuous hike. That I did five years ago in epic, scary fashion.