Wednesday

A Trip to Paradise

Just before Christmas the Portal Rodeo Hiking Club weekly hike was a trip to Paradise.  Starting at the old corral on FS 42 (1 mile past the research station on the right) 10 hikers and 2 dogs headed up a ridge on the south west side of Silver Peak for a trip to Paradise AZ. Cutting cross country the group eventually found the trail and headed up the drainage toward the ridge top.  Passing a number of old gabions placed for erosion control the gentle incline made for easy walking.  Upon reaching the ridge top and passing through a gate the group headed down hill to eventually meet FS42B just outside of Paradise.  The return trip followed a slightly different route with a side trip for lunch on top of a knoll just below the Elephant rocks.  Following the main drainage and trail the group ended up in a large meadow before returning to the cars.  Covering about 6.4 miles with less than 500' of elevation gain an easy outing for a nice winter day.  The map of this hike may be found here.

Old corral in the Chiricahua mountains





Gabion in the drainage
The Chiricahua mine above Paradise

2 comments:

  1. Great picture of the corral! This was a nice hike that anyone would enjoy!

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  2. I agree, and it was a pleasure to find the big meadow at the base of Silver Peak on the return portion of the hike. Open expanses of meadow seem rare at low elevations.

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