| when | Trip Report : June 10, 2006 |
| where | San Francisco Peaks, north of Flagstaff |
| the hike |
When the Arizona desert begins to bake in triple digits, the San Francisco
Peaks north of Flagstaff are hard to beat as a cool and refreshing summer
retreat. Today we will be hiking two relatively easy trails through the
thick stands of pine, fir, spruce, and aspen groves that cover the southern
slope of the peaks. Our first hike will be the Veit Springs Trail, also
known as the Lamar Haines Memorial Wildlife Area.
This is an easy 1.8-mile loop trail that starts at 8,500 feet and remains
relatively level for most of its length. The trail passes by the remains of
the old Ludwig Veit cabin site, storehouse, and springhouse.
After this easy warm-up hike, we will head up the road for another three miles to the Kachina Trailhead. This trailhead begins at a lofty 9,200 feet, and the trail runs for over seven miles to Schultz Pass, dropping 1200 feet in elevation along the way. Our goal today, however, is to get only a few more miles of trail under our hiking boots before calling it a day. We will hike in only to the two or three-mile point, dropping about 400 in elevation along the way. In addition to the shady aspen groves and tall trees that characterize the Kachina Trail, we will traverse lush meadows of waist-high bracken ferns, colorful lupine, and Indian paintbrush. Somewhere near our turn-around point we will stop for a lunch and rest break, before returning to the trailhead. Please Note: Rain gear and a long-sleeve shirt or light jacket are highly recommended for this trip. Thunderstorms can move in very quickly at these elevations and drop the temperature 20 degrees or more in a matter of minutes. Required: • Sturdy hiking boots • At least 3 liters of water • Rain poncho • Hat, sunblock, sunglasses Recommended: • Lunch or snacks • Camera |
| distance | 6-8 miles round trip (depending on how far we get on the Kachina Trail) |
| time | 4-5 hours |
| EC | +-200' (Veit Springs), +-400' (Kachina) elevation change |
| elevations | 8,500' (Veit Springs Trailhead) to 9,200' (Kachina Trailhead) |
| on trail | 100% — Veit Springs Trail, Kachina Trail |
| rating | "C+" Rate yourself as a hiker. |
| dogs allowed | no |
| cost | Sharing gas expenses with the driver. The club also allows voluntary contributions of $5 per non-member. |
| weather | Flagstaff |
| meet | 7:00 AM in the Fry’s parking lot on the SW corner of I-17 & Bell Road. Park behind Denny’s, near the entrance to the Deer Valley Park & Ride. |
| drive | Take I-17 north to Flagstaff. On the north side of Flagstaff take U.S. 180 and drive for about seven miles to the Snow Bowl Road (FR 516). Exit here and drive north for exactly 4.3 miles to a small unmarked parking area on the right side of the road. This is the trailhead for Veit Springs, also known as the Lamar Haines Memorial Wildlife Area. To reach the Kachina Trailhead, continue driving north on the Snow Bowl Road for another 3.1 miles to the signed parking area on the right side of the road. The trailhead begins at the far end of the parking lot. |
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