Bog Springs, Kent Springs Loop Hike

Some rain moved through the Santa Ritas during the night and clouds still linger as I pick up a hiking friend and we proceed to the Bog Springs trail head where we are to meet approximately 20 other hikers.

Wow!!!  A turkey!!!  Hard to see but in there it is, along with two baby turkeys.  Because we are considerate hikers, we made the effort to arrive on time.  By 8am, there are 8-9 of us....tick, tock....  By 8:30 a car load arrives then another and we are hiking by 8:55.  So annoying.  I'll never understand why, fortunately, a very few hike organizers give so much consideration to the late arrivers while those of us who made the effort to be on time are inconvenienced.  Most organizers, I being one of them, don't enable the lazy people who can't get their act together.  For most, at 8:05am, we are hiking, not waiting. 

It is a new trail for me and I was glad it was not the typical, boulder/rock strewn trail but instead a relatively smooth one.  We were headed first to Bog Springs then on to Kent Springs and returning back to complete a nice loop.

The forest is thick with trees which provide good cover on this day where the highs would reach 100 degrees in the valley but much cooler here in the Santa Ritas.

The climbing would be steady for most of the roughly 3 miles to Kent Springs with the aforementioned Bog Springs thrown in there too.  I had intended to hike with the group but then a large guy passed me and then I began wondering if there was a Strava segment on this climb so with the bit now firmly in the horse's mouth, off I went and.....

….how about that for the 1.25 mile climb to Bog Springs where I paused my efforts and regrouped.  I turned off the after burners and happily jumped in with the others.  The climbing......

….continued.  So much so that it appeared we would be climbing in the clouds but with around only a few hundred of vertical feet to reach the clouds, the trail flattened and we dropped.....

...to Kent Springs where some of us had to touch the running water.  It felt great then someone found a huge tree angled over the gorge and so....

...some of us climbed that too.  Note the shirt hanging so far from my core makes me look really fat...well...it's not an illusion.  I'll be so glad when the heat subsides and I can emerge from the early morning and too brief hiking/cycling periods.  It could be a whole bunch worse, it could be winter in the Midwest.  This is the off season and what a wonderous off season it is.

The group gathers for the obligatory group photo in front of.....

….Kent Springs which has a cement tank full of water as well.  From this point, the trail descends steeply at times and very rocky to the trail head.  Several hikers slipped including.....

….John who may have ruined a good shirt.  Other than scratches, all were fine.  Finished with 5.3 miles and 1700' of climbing.  Well, got in a couple of rides following this hike and tomorrow, I drive to Wilcox for the Wilcox Flyer bike event.  More to come.