West Goldfield Vista; Goldfield Mountains, November 7, 2019  Trail Map 

Although I’ve done this hike many times, I always see something new. This time it was berries. The washouts on this part of the Pass Mountain Trail are still there, but some steep places were easier to get around than I remember. Some were harder.

Had the Usery Pass Trail to myself (not surprising if you start at first light) but as soon as I got to the junction with the Pass Mountain Trail I started seeing people. Two dozen in all: hikers, runners, and bicycle riders. A couple needed directions, which I provided.

Thanks to my daughter Clara for dropping me off at Usery Pass Trailhead after we left my car at Meridian.

profile
Profile of Sonoran vegetation in the pre-dawn light.  Four Peaks in the background.
profile
Profile of Sonoran vegetation in the pre-dawn light.
saguaro
“See, it’s this way.” 		quartz
Where there’s quartz there might be gold.
peak
Thompson Peak catches the first rays.
peak
Stewart Mountain in the early morning sun.
peak
Lone Mountain basks in the early sunshine.
arch
First view of the Dragon’s Kiss, approaching NW Lookout. 		view
On the other side of the lookout, sunshine.
view
Ocotillos, backlit.
fine
Intricate patterns in the vegetation. 		three
Three heads are better than one.
trail
The ancestral Pass Mountain Trail took a lower route.
view
Looking out over the Bush Pediment.
rock
There once was a bird on a bough ... 		cactus
Dairy Queen saguaro watches over Teddy Bears.
Teddy
“Won’t you hug me?”  “Not by the hair on my chinny chin chin!”
rock
Pudding stone. 		red
Isn’t this the berries?
3004
Peak 3004 is dark and rugged.
view
Looking back at the Pass.
dead
Hoooo! 		arroyo
Sand Canyon is an arroyo at this point.
purple
Purple mountain majesties, the Superstitions.
  This hike is described in Goldfield Mountain Hikes by Ted Tenny, pages 22-24.
  More Hike Pictures updated November 7, 2019