Friday Hike – Picketpost Circumference

Ben, Marilyn, Denise, Linda, Doug, Marilyn, and I hiked 9.7 miles around Picketpost Mountain.  Total elevation gain was 960 feet.  The trail is actually somewhat shorter than the distance we hiked; we left the trail briefly in a few spots to look around.

Last year, several of us went to the summit.  Click on the link to see those photos. While I really enjoyed hiking up to the summit, I think the views on the circumference hike are better and more varied.

We saw cows several times during our hike.

I used Topaz Impression on several of the photos in this set.

Several early morning views of Picketpost Mountain:

Weaver’s Needle (in the Superstition Wilderness) can be seen in the distance in this photo, below:

Another view of Picketpost Mountain:

 

New Mexico Thistle:

Saguaros on the Arizona Trail:

Hedgehog blossoms:

Ben, Doug, Marilyn, Linda, Marilyn, Denise, and Kevin:

More hedgehog cactus blossoms:

Desert Marigold:

This is a view from the trail south of Picketpost Mountain.  We thought the wall midway up the hill in the distance looked interesting.

We saw a calf on the ranch road that runs along the bottom of the southeast corner of the mountain.

This might be the calf’s daddy?

Another view from the road:

The road eventually runs into Telegraph Canyon:

This is one of the tanks from which the cattle drink:

Views from Telegraph Canyon:

Ben, Marilyn, Linda, Marilyn, Denise, and Doug:

I think this is Fleabane:

Nearing the end of Telegraph Canyon…

An interesting pinnacle near the end of Telegraph Canyon:

Ben, Marilyn, Doug, Linda, Denise, and Marilyn:

Another view of the pinnacle:

Globemallow:

The photo below is looking down the valley of Arnett Creek.  At this point, we hiked up a road which (eventually) gave us a view of Boyce Thompson Arboretum.

Looking back (from the road) at one of the large walls above Arnett Creek:

This is part of the wall above the creek to the northeast.

A sign at the “top” of the road leading up from the creek.  (It wasn’t really the top, but it felt like it because it abruptly leveled off.)

A view of Queen Creek, which is in the canyon immediately to the north of Arnett Creek:

Another view of the wall south of Arnett Creek.  Picketpost Mountain is at the upper right.

I walked up the road until I could see Apache Leap in the distance.  I think the caves at the left of the photo are part of Boyce Thompson Arboretum.  (The area is fenced off.)

Another view of Queen Creek:

The rest of the group had hiked part way down the road and were looking at the vegetation growing out of the sides / top of one of the butte to the northwest.

One of the many rock formations along Arnett Creek:

Looking back the way we came in Arnett Creek:

Looking southwest in Arnett Creek:

Ben, Marilyn, Doug, Marilyn, Linda, and Denise stand beneath another large wall near Arnett Creek.

A view of Picketpost Mountain from the Arnett Creek area:

Saguaro silhouettes:

Another view of Picketpost Mountain with perhaps a half mile left to hike: