{"id":31224,"date":"2026-05-17T20:57:51","date_gmt":"2026-05-18T02:57:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/maxcarmichael.com\/blog\/?p=31224"},"modified":"2026-05-18T07:40:48","modified_gmt":"2026-05-18T13:40:48","slug":"colors-of-springtime","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/maxcarmichael.com\/blog\/?p=31224","title":{"rendered":"Colors of Springtime"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/p>\n

The weather had cooled off a little, with high winds forecast in the afternoon, and not a cloud in the sky. Today’s hike starts on an old familiar wilderness trail on the west side of our high mountains, climbing up an outlying ridge then traversing down to the canyon bottom.<\/p>\n

Occasionally, I find another vehicle waiting in the steep, rocky parking area at the trailhead \u2013 but today, unlike last Sunday, I had the whole area to myself.<\/p>\n

\"Heading <\/a>
Heading toward the mountains <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Wilderness <\/a>
Wilderness boundary behind those trees <\/div> <\/div>
\"IMG_6077\" <\/a> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Traversing <\/a>
Traversing down into canyon <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Bunchgrass <\/a>
Bunchgrass seedheads <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>\n

About a mile in, the trail reaches the canyon bottom in a burn scar from our massive 2012 wildfire. The first creek crossing was dry, and I was surprised to find the creekbed lined with columbines. I usually find them farther upstream under the intact riparian canopy. Maybe their seeds washed downstream and germinated recently after our late rains.<\/p>\n

I planned to continue on the main trail for another mile, then take the branch that climbs over the ridge to the east. The creek was dry up to a few hundred yards below the trail junction, where I found stagnant pools and a trickle.<\/p>\n

\"Wild <\/a>
Wild rose in canyon bottom <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"IMG_6087\" <\/a> <\/div>
\"Columbines\" <\/a>
Columbines <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"IMG_6092\" <\/a> <\/div> <\/div>
\"IMG_6094\" <\/a> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Smooth <\/a>
Smooth sumac crowding trail <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"IMG_6098\" <\/a> <\/div>
\"Bigleaf <\/a>
Bigleaf maple <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"More <\/a>
More columbines than ever before? <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"IMG_6101\" <\/a> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Algae-choked <\/a>
Algae-choked pool <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>\n

The branch trail leads over the ridge and down the other side, into a big spectacular canyon, ending at an old miner’s cabin. The actual trail is completely different from the route shown on all the maps, paper and digital \u2013 it has over twenty switchbacks, and is significantly longer. I suspect it’s maintained by the old miner’s family, who seem to visit annually around Memorial Day.<\/p>\n

I was just planning to take it to the saddle on the ridgetop, and from there to the high point of the trail for a view over the big canyon.<\/p>\n

\"At <\/a>
At left, first switchback on trail to ridge <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"View <\/a>
View up main canyon from switchbacks <\/div> <\/div>
\"IMG_6109\" <\/a> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"IMG_6112\" <\/a> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Tarantula <\/a>
Tarantula hawk <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"View <\/a>
View north toward head of main canyon – when in shape I climb crest at right <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"View <\/a>
View back southwest out of main canyon <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Saddle <\/a>
Saddle on ridgetop <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>\n

Way up there, the breeze felt great. The burned slopes across the canyon had turned a vibrant green from Gambel oak, aspen, and bigleaf maple.<\/p>\n

\"Trail <\/a>
Trail of toilet paper in saddle – equestrians from Arizona? <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"From <\/a>
From a distance, I was sure this was a woodpecker <\/div> <\/div>
\"How <\/a>
How many pollinators can you see? <\/div> <\/div>
\"Past <\/a>
Past saddle, trail climbs another 50 vertical feet – at left <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"View <\/a>
View across big canyon, which drains from left to right <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"I <\/a>
I bushwhacked up 10,000′ peak in background, just left of center <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Today's <\/a>
Today’s route <\/div> <\/div>
\"Actual <\/a>
Actual trail with switchbacks, vs route shown on maps <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Previous <\/a>
Previous hikes in area <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>\n

With all the flowers and pollinators to check out, I’d stopped many times on the way in, and I tried to take it easy on the way down from the ridge.<\/p>\n

\"More <\/a>
More trash on switchback below saddle – really depressing <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"View <\/a>
View out main canyon, to mountains along Arizona state line <\/div> <\/div>
\"IMG_6150\" <\/a> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Back <\/a>
Back in canyon bottom <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>\n

Even in the cool of the morning, flies had started to bother me, and when I reached the canyon bottom in the afternoon they were getting nasty. I was also bummed to see trash in the canyon bottom, on the trail to the ridge, and in the ridgetop saddle. I couldn’t remember ever finding trash here before, and I wondered if it was from the people who use the cabin \u2013 descendants of the old miner. They’re from Arizona, and Arizona trails tend to be trashy compared with ours. They also visit on horseback, and I find that equestrians tend to leave more trash \u2013 they can’t be bothered to dismount if they drop stuff.<\/p>\n

\"IMG_6154\" <\/a> <\/div> <\/div>
\"IMG_6157\" <\/a> <\/div>
\"And <\/a>
And more trash on trail <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Swarmed\" <\/a>
Swarmed <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"IMG_6174\" <\/a> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Scruffy <\/a>
Scruffy butterfly was mostly a blur, lucky I got any photos of it <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"IMG_6184\" <\/a> <\/div> <\/div>
\"See <\/a>
See the little pollinator? <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"There <\/a>
There it is <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Sumac <\/a>
Sumac flower buds <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>\n

With all the stops and slow descent, it took me a little over 4 hours to go 6.4 miles. Definitely better than last Sunday, and in general I feel like I may be making progress \u2013 after two years of intractable injuries. Just gotta keep taking it slow and easy…<\/p>\n

\"IMG_6194\" <\/a> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Another <\/a>
Another sumac, the three-leaf <\/div> <\/div>
\"View <\/a>
View southwest from traverse out of canyon <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Cane <\/a>
Cane cholla <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Agave <\/a>
Agave in bud <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"IMG_6199\" <\/a> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Patch <\/a>
Patch of volcanic rock <\/div> <\/div>
\"IMG_6203\" <\/a> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Agave <\/a>
Agave blooming <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"IMG_6205\" <\/a> <\/div> <\/div>
\"IMG_6206\" <\/a> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Trailhead <\/a>
Trailhead parking <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The weather had cooled off a little, with high winds forecast in the afternoon, and not a cloud in the sky. Today’s hike starts on an old familiar wilderness trail on the west side of our high mountains, climbing up an outlying ridge then traversing down to the canyon bottom. Occasionally, I find another vehicle […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":31271,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[89,49,65,60,50,90,58],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-31224","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-animals","category-hikes","category-holt","category-mogollon-mountains","category-nature","category-plants","category-southwest-new-mexico"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/maxcarmichael.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/IMG_6150.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/maxcarmichael.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31224","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/maxcarmichael.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/maxcarmichael.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/maxcarmichael.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/maxcarmichael.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=31224"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/maxcarmichael.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31224\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":31303,"href":"https:\/\/maxcarmichael.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31224\/revisions\/31303"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/maxcarmichael.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/31271"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/maxcarmichael.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=31224"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/maxcarmichael.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=31224"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/maxcarmichael.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=31224"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}