165 miles completed as of July 2010
I began section-hiking the Grand Enchantment Trail on February 17, 2010. For information on this trail that goes 730 miles from Phoenix to Albuquerque go to http://www.grandenchantmenttrail.org
I am hiking the Grand Enchantment Trail to benefit Wildlife Rehabilitation in Northwest Tucson, run by Janet and Lewis Miller. The Millers have run the center out of their house for 15 years, and pay for everything out of their pocket, at a cost of over $10,000 a year. They rely on a dedicated group of volunteers and get small donations from time to time from individuals who drop animals off. I have been volunteering with them since June 2009, and it is a really rewarding experience. They deal with mostly birds of all sizes, from hummingbirds to hawks, but they also get skunks, squirrels, rabbits, bats and other mammals that need rehabilitation.
Here are links to my journals:
Segment 1- Superstition Wilderness
Segment 3- White Canyon Wilderness* Part 1– Part 2– Part 3
Segment 4- Tortilla Mountains* Part 1– Part 2– Part 3
Segment 5- Antelope Peak
Segment 6- Aravaipa Creek
Segment 7- Aravaipa Canyon Wilderness
Segment 8- Santa Teresa Wilderness
Segment 10- Pinalenos
*Hiked in 2008-2009 during Arizona Trail hike
August 2011 update: As much as I have enjoyed the Grand Enchantment Trail, now that I have hiked to Safford, it is very time-consuming to set up shuttles and the like. I would love to finish all the way to Albuquerque, but it will have to wait until I can take a bunch of time off of work and finish the trail in several large chunks, rather than section by section.
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Sirena, I love reading about your hiking travels. I would like to know about your backpacking equipment and the stuff you would recommend to pack out on southwest trails. Thanks so much.