Raintree via North Loop - 8/1/13

Mummy's Nose from North Loop Meadow

 Lettie G. offers the blog entry for today. Mike OC also contributed one photo. The hike started from the North Loop Trailhead on Deer Creek Hwy in the Spring Mountains NRA.

Hanging Out at the North Loop Meadow

 Today's hike up North Loop to Raintree was also a birthday celebration hike for Paul and Doyle. As we drove up, we noticed that it was windy. But at the trail-head, the wind was not that bad. Fifteen hikers left the cars and quickly formed groups based on what speed was comfortable for them. We agreed to regroup at the meadow. Of course the lead group got the longest break but this hiker has learned that breaks make the restart more difficult so I snapped some photos and kept trudging up to the switchbacks. Shortly, the lead hikers passed me as we all made our way up the to the bristlecone forest at the top. 

Mummy's Toe from North Loop Trail

Finally, the downhill trail to Raintree, and now the wind was refreshing but much stronger. When we arrived at Raintree, the wind was howling. The lead group was bundled up and trying to find places out of the wind. It was so windy, we could not hear each other so most of us turned around and took a quick snack break in the forest out of the wind. What a treat to find shelter from the wind. Our coordinator, Chris, announced that we would regroup back at the meadow. Once we dropped down onto the switchbacks, we were protected from the wind. We leisurely made our way down to the meadow.

Familiar Faces

 Nearing the meadow we came across these riders. Many of us have seen the gentleman on this trail before. His horse has distinctive blue eyes that stand out on its white face. We took our break at the big dead bristlecone and were now able to remove jackets because the wind was refreshing again. We headed out once more going down Wild Horse Ridge. We took a breather as we started down the ridge above Deer Creek. It was now much warmer and the wind had stopped. Chris showed us a tick on his arm and then shared his tick story from when he was in the military. Someone noticed a hidden jug of water in the logs and we saw signs of a campfire. Hopefully, it is an old campfire and people are adhering to the "no fire" signs all over the trails. We saw many wild horse droppings but no horses. But the views along this ridge were great; from Creech Airforce Base to the Boys camp and beyond to Las Vegas.

Scrambling Down Off of Wild Horse Ridge

A welcome breeze began to blow again as we made our descent into Wild Horse Canyon near Split Rock. ~ Lettie G.

Birthday Celebration for Paul and Doyle