Mesa Canals 15 (plus, an update of Mesa Canals 11): To Riverview Park and Beyond!

May 9, 2017

Today, to celebrate the end of my collegiate school year, I thought I'd finish scouting to see how far the Salt River/Tempe Town Lake trail had gotten.  I had also seen (about a month and a half ago) the way Mesa was building a route around the Mesa Country Club section of the canal route that I had documented in Mesa Canals 11 (Attempted Canal Route to Mesa Riverview).

What follows is a quick review of a canal-based route to Priest Drive in Tempe, using routes that I've described in Mesa Canals 3 and 11.  First, Mesa has undertaken to improve its street bike routes as well as the canal routes greatly over the past several years (thanks, Mesa!), so the routes that I did several years ago are now all paved (mostly concrete, but some asphalt), and the intersections are at least signed, but sometimes signaled as well.  The section described in Mesa Canals 3 has now been extended to Country Club; I got a preview (that is to say that the paths I took were signed as closed), so you will want to wait for a month or two before trying them.  They are installing signals at Mesa and Country Club drives, and have completed on-street bike lanes.  However, there are still protruding small standpipes in the center of the street-bike lanes that will have to be fixed before they open officially.  After crossing Country Club, the separated street lane continues down West Brown Road until 10th Street, where the route turns off.  At the 10th Street-Alma School Road intersection, a separated bike lane continues up Alma School to Bass Pro Drive, where there is a signal.

Go down Bass Pro Drive to the roundabout, then wind through the Bass Pro Shop parking lot, closest to the freeway.  Come out of the driveway to the Jimmy Johns exit lane, then straight up Dobson until it ends (it's a little freaky to cross the mouth of the exit ramp, though there is a signal).  On the river side is the entrance to the Salt River bike path.

From there on it's paved bike paths to Priest Drive.  The initial stretch (Riverview Park, Mesa to Tempe Marketplace) does not have any road crossings; the path takes some underpasses under the 202-101 interchange.  You will pass a Salt River bird refuge, some overflow (?) settling ponds from the sewage treatment plant near the new Cubs spring training ballpark, then under the various freeway ramps (very interesting to see one's commute route from a different angle).  The first street crossing is McClintock, at one of the entrances to Tempe Marketplace (it looks like an underpass is not planned for that area).

Once you pass McClintock, you're going past Carsten Golf Course, then past the newly constructed highrises near "A" Butte.  The view is impressive--Tempe Town Lake, spanned by bridges, an expanse of shining water, bordered by parks and tall buildings (with more on the way, judging from work that's taking place east of Rural).  Though the view is impressive, one still wonders about the lake and the development; there's something incongruous about a lake in the desert, which makes Tempe look a bit like the River Charles near downtown Boston.  That's accentuated by the tall buildings that obscure "A" Butte and Sun Devil Stadium.  Call me old-fashioned, but I did prefer the butte and the nestled stadium to a monument yard of concrete and glass blocks.  But, yes, I know that here is the only place Tempe can build upwards, without running afoul of the FAA and the Sky Harbor approaches.  But did they have to be almost as tall as the butte?

I digress.  The last few miles past the high-rises to Priest Drive start out scenic.  Note a few shapes drawn by my out-and-back route:  the paved path (I did use my road bike) is bordered by a packed small gravel path for runners.  It is not always clear where to make the switch when there are road crossings or access to buildings (magnify the section between Carsten and Tempe Beach Park).

Past the Tempe Center for the Arts and the bridge over the lake near the dam, a crew was working on what looked to be an underpass under Priest Drive on the south side.  The path was closed at this point.  Foolishly, the only pictures I took were right here (there are many more photogenic spots on this ride).

From here, I backtracked to the bridge, which I crossed, then checked the paved path on the north side that also ends at Priest (maybe some other time for the trip north on the Indian Bend Wash path).  The bridge is a great view both ways.

After backtracking, I took an alternate way out, through Riverview Park (see the tail on the Google Earth picture).  Take the right fork in the path west of Dobson; you'll find yourself in a parking lot abutting the sewer treatment plant.  After finding the path on the east end of the parking lot, cross the street and thread your way through the paved paths in Riverview Park to the intersection of Dobson and Rio Salado Parkway.  Either of those two roads will take you anywhere you want to go.

May 20, 2023

It has taken a long time to get back to this section. Technically, this is not Mesa Canals any more; when we hit Tempe, it's the Tempe portion of the Salt River Path, which is said to run to Central Avenue at the Salt River and maybe beyond (the Google Earth image is not completely clear). The approximately 2 1/2 miles more that we took past the closed Priest Drive underpass described above took us to approximately south of the terminal area of Sky Harbor airport, past the 143 Freeway. The trail to this point has been well-improved, with access points, underpasses and shade structures. We (Lex, Jeff and I) stopped at this point, primarily because the day was getting hotter, and we would have done 30 miles total for the morning. At some future point, we plan to start at Tempe Marketplace and try to complete the trail to where the improvements end, or to Central Avenue, whichever is farther.

The extension, May 20, 2023

Arizona Trail: Passage 5

On the way back home September 1 or 2, 2013, we went down Forest Road 163 (with a short detour on Forest Road 4085), to see Kentucky Camp on the Santa Rita Passage.  We hiked a short distance on the trail itself, and explored the mining buildings.  Some of the buildings can be rented, and while we were there, had occupants.

Here's the passage map:  https://aztrail.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/05_SantaRitaMountains.pdf

Arizona Trail: Passage 3

We first looked at the Canelo Hills West Section on our way to Patagonia from Parker Canyon Lake after starting at Montezuma Pass near the Coronado Monument on, probably, September 1 or 2, 2013.  As we passed down Forest Road 58 into Patagonia from Parker Canyon Lake, we passed the Harshaw Road Trailhead.

On October 30, 2022, Chris and I hiked the section from Patagonia to the Harshaw Road Trailhead, documented in the latest large-scale map book. This was the original trail alignment. The passage map below shows the revised alignment, with Harshaw Road as the connector to the Canelo Hills West section. Since I actually like the old alignment, I'll probably hike in/out on the Harshaw Road connector, to connect the Temporal Gulch Trailhead with Passage 3. Not much has changed at the trailhead as the picture below shows, as we hiked out via the road (which is scenic enough, but possibly somewhat hazardous, if there were higher traffic levels). Also interestingly, we saw several discarded camo jackets along the road. At first I thought "How strange that hunters would leave their jackets along the road . . ." then, "Oh . . . I get it." Yet another sign of border ironies: One can see in Sonoyta, Sonora the stands selling camo jackets for potential border crossers. This is where they end up when people discard them before entering town. It does make one wonder whether or not the Arizona Trail itself is sometimes a route.

The trail junction across Harshaw Road

Harshaw Road Informational Sign

Street crossing warning

Reroute Information

Here's the passage map:  https://aztrail.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/03_CaneloHillsWest.pdf

Arizona Trail: Passage 1

Here it is, passage 1.  I'm hiking down the trail from the roadside overlook, toward the Coronado Monument on the border.  Of course I don't get there.

This is the beginning of a series that I intend to finish by chronicling all my encounters with the Arizona Trail.  I've decided to go in passage order, for the passages I've visited.  Some, like this one, I've only sampled by driving through by car and stopping.  This stop was on September 1 or 2, 2013, as Chris and I returned from a wine-tasting weekend around Sonoita.  I had decided to take the border-paralleling highway East Montezuma Canyon Road, and we stopped at the overlook.  Though we didn't actually do much hiking, we stopped at a number of trailheads on our way back through Patagonia (Patagonia Lake, and Patagonia itself).  As I explore more fully, I'll enter more.

Here's the passage map:  https://aztrail.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/01_HuachucaMountains.pdf

Mesa Canals 14: Consolidated Canal to Coffee at Bergies in Gilbert

I can't believe that it's taken me almost two weeks to write this down:  I'll put it down to the flu (apparently, Arizona's the nationwide epicenter this week).  I also can't believe that this is the first Mesa Canals post in almost a year.

Anyhow, this is a great trip that I realize I haven't documented anywhere in this series, though it does intersect with Mesa Canals 10:  the Sun Circle Route for the last westbound mile.

First, this is the Consolidated Canal, which runs northwest to southeast roughly paralleling Gilbert Road.  I'd ridden this canal route before it was paved, and before the installation of traffic lights at most of the major street intersections.  Before these improvements it was iffy, and now it's approximately 8 miles of ease between 8th Street/Adobe and Bergies Coffee on Gilbert Road in downtown.  Almost the whole of the distance is paved, and almost all of the major intersections have special bike-pedestrian lights.  The two that don't (on the southern end of the route) are a little concerning, but can be used with care.

It was also a great morning, though it turned out to be unseasonably cold (probably the last time anyone will say that this year, though here's hoping).  It was a post-race warm down for Monster Media rider Beth Everhart, her Fasturdays and life partner Steve Cullen, cousin Yancy Everhart, friend Adam Burleson and me.  The East-coasters turned out to be more thin-blooded than one might think, but the sun was warm and the coffee was great!

P.S.  Beth took 3rd in the Senior Women Valley of the Sun Stage Race GC!

2015: Reflection

Here I am again, at the beginning of the new year, expecting to go back to work on Monday, January 4.  Again, as usual, the holidays got away from me (maybe a bit more than usual) and I'm posting this as a substitute for a normal Christmas card, for those who care.  It's also nice to reflect on the things that made me thankful most last year.  Here are some highlights:

We began last year with the family at home, celebrating a just-completed kitchen remodel.

We've enjoyed this remodel ever since, especially since it brings to an end all the major things we had to do on the house.  Now, we've got a resort backyard and a remodel of the interior that's done in all major aspects.

During the summer, I had the special opportunity to hang with Beth at the Cascade Classic, based in Bend, OR, in which she competed.  I helped with driving, fetching, and some lifting, but it was great to just be with her for a few days before driving down to pick up Steve in San Francisco, and down to Redondo Beach to see Nate and Tana, a few days before her (Tana's) delivery (oops, spoiler alert!).

Oh, just as a footnote, on our way back we stopped at Crater lake.  Very scenic.

OK, the big thing--I'M A GRANDFATHER!  (I've even got the Grandfather t-shirt--looks like the Godfather poster)

Otherwise, work continues to be a process of change, and I remain very busy.  Grand Canyon University is not recognizable as the small failing school of 10 years ago--we now have 15,000 students on campus, and several new buildings going up as I write.

So, many things to be thankful for, including my purchase of a new bicycle:  titanium, with top-of-the-line componentry.  It has certainly energized me to exercise more, though I did not reach my stated goal of "160 by 60."  (That is, be down to 160 pounds by age 60, which I turned in October.)  I'm also thankful for the continuing trip tradition with Richard and Maxie:  we've transitioned to static camping at trailheads and doing day hikes from there.  This last year was the Eastern Superstitions, near Globe.  We camped at the Miles Ranch trailhead, and fanned out on the several trails that left from that point, over three days.

Our fall has been taken up with trips to California to see the grandbaby; we've just gotten back from Redondo Beach over Christmas, where 4-month-old Emma has enthralled the grandparents with enjoying reading and singing!

This is definitely a year to count blessings:  new life, continuing happiness with those we love, the place we live (both small-scale--home, and large-scale--the state and country).

Mesa Canals 13 (more info on Mesa Canals 4)

Waaay back in Mesa Canals 4, I rode the Eastern Canal from where it crosses Gilbert Road to where it crosses University Avenue.  At the time, I was interested in distance, but when I rode it yesterday, I discovered a little nugget, on the west bank of the canal south of 8th Street/Adobe.  Easily reachable from the canal path, just north of an apartment complex is a small park, with synthetic climbing rocks.  It's just big enough for smaller folks, and not too hard to climb (unless you're wearing cleated shoes).  Right, see my detail map to the park in Google earth, and, below, a picture of the climbing rocks themselves.  Kudos to the city for this park!