Part 24 - Douglas Springs Trail...Again.
For those of you keeping up with us...you are correct. We did just visit Douglas Springs in the last episode of the blog. If you remember though, there was ZERO water in Bridal Wreath Falls when we arrived, so we vowed to come back. After being treated to a rare Winter snow storm, we decided to make the trek up there again in search of flowing water.
First, we thought we should add a few pictures of the RV Park. This is what we woke up to, and we wanted to be able to share. So we leashed up the dogs and went for a walk to get a few pictures.
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| I'm dreaming of a White Christmas. |
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| Deja vu of Saint Louis. Hard to believe this is the SW. |
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| Memories in snow, already melting away. |
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| Purple Fish Hook Barrel Cactus |
We set out around 10am. Since it was a weekday, we didn't expect too much traffic. We were wrong! Everyone in town was there. The parking lot at the trail head was full. Cars were lined down the side of the road. Hikers, spectators, and amateur-photographers congested the trails surrounding the trail head.
We belonged to all three of the aforementioned classes of park visitors we encountered that day. We were different, though. Our antisocial traits and desire to actually spend time in nature, led us deeper into the wilderness, and farther away from the throngs of people. Those "nature-lovers" were already dreaming of their heated car seats as they followed their footprints back through the snow. We were rewarded for our efforts with views like this:
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| In the bajada, shortly after starting our hike. |
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| It's too cold out for this. Where's the elevator??? |
By the time we reached this sign at the junction, we could already feel the difference in temperature. You could look down at the lower elevations and tell the snow was melting. Up here, most of the snow seemed to still be sticking around. Lets hope we get to see some water this time.
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| 2.5 miles in so far... |
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| Somewhere near Bridal Wreath Falls. |
On the Bridal Wreath Falls Trail, you will eventually come to a set of bars embedded in the ground. If you are on horseback, tie your mount up here and walk down into the canyon. At this point, we could hear the water from the falls above.
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| Canyon pool just below Bridal Wreath Falls. |
As you climb up toward the falls, make sure to stop at the boulder pile at the top and look out towards Tucson. On a clear day, you can see the city of Tucson's NW side and part of the Pusch Ridge.
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| Rocky outcropping at the base of the falls. |
Mission Accomplished! This was more water than most Tucson residents have seen in this waterfall, unless they have been here in Monsoon Season. We got out our Thermarest Z Seats, plopped them down in the snow, and sat down at the foot of the falls to eat lunch.
We stayed at the falls for about a half hour after finishing up our food. The Z seats kept our backside warm and dry, even after virtually sitting in the snow. This is one piece of backpacking gear I try to never leave home without. Great for sitting on cold rocks, sharp rocks, hot rocks, hot sand, wet sand, wet chairs...you name it. Pick one up here on Amazon:
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| Bridal Wreath Falls is actually falling. |
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| The obligatory selfie with a waterfall photo-bomb. |
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| The descent. |
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| Near the bottom. Only snow left is in the shadows. |
This is such a great hike for all skill levels. It is not handicap accessible, however, and the stairs would be a challenge in warm weather. The trail is really well maintained though, in fact, we saw workers on the trail a week before the snow storm hit.
It was a rare occasion to get to see the desert mountain wilderness covered in snow. We felt vindicated in our first quest for water at Bridal Wreath Falls. We hope you have enjoyed the pictures and the video.
Until next time, here is a link to our last article:
The next article will be posting sometime in the week of September 9th.
Watch this for some FIRE if you're cold now:
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