Daily Miles: 15.6, Total Miles: 277.3 I slept very well on the sandbar last night and as a result, a bit later start. But first, I needed to do some repair work. I lost the button on my pants near the end of my hike yesterday and the built-in belt is now useless to keep my pants up. I’ve been carrying a safety pin in my kit for 14 years and now I really need it! I think it will…

Daily Miles: 19.6, Total Miles: 261.7 I got an Uber back to the Robbins Butte Wildlife Area. The only wildlife I saw were a few doves. After walking east through irrigated fields, I headed south to the Buckeye Hills. A 600’ climb got me over a ridge to the other side. The Sonoran Desert landscapes are still with me, rolling hills, wide-open desert vistas and rugged terrain. Next up, a long, x-country hike across the desert floor and drainages, first…

Daily Miles: 17.7, Total Miles: 242.1 Last night and early this morning I must have seen and disposed of 20 spiders crawling around my tent. Must be a hatch going on in this wash. I should mention my tent zippers have crapped out and I can’t completely close it up. Probably not the smartest move but I was up early, headlamp on, and bushwhacking my way up and over the North Maricopa Mountains near Margie’s Peak. I slowly got up…

Daily Miles: 20.8, Total Miles: 224.4 I had a strong enough signal last night to stream Saturday’s NFL playoff games – the Seahawks and Broncos are through. I still don’t know who won Sunday’s playoff games. I should have got further away from the train tracks by the highway, seemed like a train every half-hour. Good thing I have earplugs. Up early, I walked down the road initially by headlamp, eventually turning west up and over Estrella Benchmark on a…

Daily Miles: 16.8, Total Miles: 203.6 Still pretty good sleeping weather but warmest night so far. I rocked and rolled on primitive roads and x-country all day heading generally NW through the South Maricopa Mountains. By mid-morning I had reached another wildlife guzzler with two nearly full troughs, a bit green and full of tadpoles but filtered nicely. Lots of finches were taking advantage of the water source. It got real toasty in the afternoon, the reason early spring is…

Daily Miles: 18.5, Total Miles: 186.5 It was a dark, quiet night with brilliant stars. I set out on the well-marked Lava Flow Trail through a pretty sparse Cholla forest, my least favorite cactus for obvious reasons. Back on dirt roads and well-timed, I reached another wildlife guzzler with a full trough with quite clear water once the surface algae was skimmed off. The winter rains in early January are certainly appreciated! Still heading NW on a BLM road, I…

Daily Miles: 18.0, Total Miles: 168.3 Once again last night, I was serenaded by hooting owls and yipping coyotes. Shortly after leaving this morning, I left the powerline on a primitive road and entered the Sonoran Desert National Monument, established in 2001 and containing a whopping 486k acres. A few hours later I also entered the Table Top Wilderness, contained within the National Monument. Table Top Mountain is the highest peak in the area and the flat-topped summit of almost…

Daily Miles: 20.7, Total Miles: 150.3 Mrs Haze and Ellie walked aways with me on a cool, clear morning with a little breeze. Back on the trail and Buckeye bound! I headed west for the first 15 miles next to a large irrigation canal and some scrub desert but mostly agricultural use, primarily cotton and some vegetables, obviously tapping into the canal. The canal carries Central Arizona Project water from the Colorado River and maybe some treated Salt/Verde River water….

After my warmup and first leg on the Desert Winter Thru-Hike (DWTH) last winter, I’m ready to get back on the trail! Just back from a caching trip that hopefully will help see me to the end of this adventure. Caching on the DWTH is probably not completely necessary but 1) I live in Arizona so the route is more easily accessible, 2) trail towns for resupply are few and far between, 3) a lighter pack is most appreciated, and…