HIKE OF THE MONTH

T E X T B Y L A W R E N C E W.C H E E K P H O T O G R A P H B Y R A N D Y A.P R E N T I C E From the March 1996 Issue

	Blackett's Ridge Gets Top Marks for Humbling Hikers with Mind-boggling Scenery
	I'm crawling on a windy spur of rock shaped like a lumpy anvil and not a lot larger. At my left elbow is a 1,500-foot plunge into Sabino Canyon. At my right elbow is a 1,500-foot plunge into Bear Canyon. Straight ahead is ‹ well, another plunge, and I'm not going out to the prow of the anvil to report its precise character. According to the topo map, it is only 160 feet. I have more than a touch of acrophobia, and the terminal aerie of this hike has triggered it. No, a phobia is an irrational fear, and there's nothing goofy about this high-elevation agitation. Even Betty Leavengood's definitive Tucson Hiking Guide is less than intrepid here. "Extreme caution must be exercised in this area," she wrote. "A misstep could be tragic." This is Blackett's Ridge, and among the scores of spectacular hikes in the mountains around Tucson, it is tops at making the hiker feel both awed and humbled by the surrounding scenery. There's no cause to be scared except for the final 30 feet - but these last few steps lead to the overlook that makes it most worthwhile. The trail climbs 1,500 feet from Tucson to the narrow saddle separating Sabino and Bear canyons in the Santa Catalina Mountains, traversing a desert forest of saguaro, ocotillo, and agave. It's a short hike, 3.1 miles one way, but the climb is relentless, and it mounts several pseudo summits, each one raising false hopes. Students of wildlife can observe hawks cruising at eye level, scanning the mountainside for breakfast. Students of urban sprawl can watch Tucson expanding literally by the minute, as ant-size bulldozers make new subdivisions at the mountain's foot. In winter Blackett's Ridge is sometimes shrouded in drooping clouds, and a hike into them is a foray into a wet, gray-white nebula where the desert plants fade in and out like silent ghosts stranded in a bizarre alien world. But the overlook from the lumpy anvil is the raison d'etre of this trail. You stare across the gap of Sabino Canyon at the main body of the Santa Catalinas, eye to eye with the mountain, and you see its immensity and power in a new way. From here the mountain is not a geologic incident but a force of Nature. Not a stage set designed for a city but something that was here 15 million years before Tucson, and which will survive our ruins by millions more. We've done some damage to this mountain: mined it, carved roads into it, extinguished the native grizzly on it. But from here I feel renewed confidence that it will abide; outlive our carelessness. The converse, though, is another story. Which is why acrophobia is actually an advantage for an Arizona hiker. It enhances the drama of places like this and keeps one from pushing too far. The mountain, too, can be careless.
	The preceding was published as the "Hike of the Month" feature in the March 1996 issue of Arizona Highways. For full details on the monthly hikes, subscribe to the magazine by calling (800) 543-5432.
	For directions to the Blackett's Ridge Trailhead and a map of the area, click here. Now that you're in Arizona, come hike the ... Bassett Peak Trail -- From the January 1997 Issue Goat Camp Trail -- From the December 1996 Issue Romero Canyon Trail -- From the November 1996 Issue Black Canyon Trail -- From the October 1996 Issue Gadsden Trail -- From the September 1996 Issue Weatherford Trail -- From the August 1996 Issue Col. Devin Trail -- From the July 1996 Issue Nelson Trail -- From the June 1996 Issue Turkey Creek Trail -- From the May 1996 Issue Frye Mesa -- From the April 1996 Issue Blackett's Ridge Trail -- From the March 1996 Issue Lutz Canyon Trail -- From the February 1996 Issue Charlie Bell Pass -- From the January 1996 Issue Brown Mountain -- From the December 1995 Issue Table Top Mountain -- From the November 1995 Issue Silver Peak Trail -- From the October 1995 Issue