Arizona Trailblazers Hiking Club
Merritt Canyon/Houston Brothers Day Hike

when	Trip Report : August 17, 2013
where?	Mogollon Rim
the hike	This is a loop hike on the cool Mogollon Rim. Part off trail, old roads and part of the Houston Brothers Trail. We will be hiking through beautiful pine forests and green meadows. Start out off trail and hike down a steep slope into Merritt Canyon and then back up on a ridge that parallels Merritt Canyon. We will drop back down into a beautiful meadow surrounded by Ponderosa Pine and Blue Spruce. Then head South along the meadow following a fence line and at the end of the meadow turn West. After a short ways we come to a nice little meadow with some rocks for sitting and taking our lunch break.     After our snack we head up an old Forest Service road. Keep your eye out as there are a lot of fossils along the road. We cross FR139 and go a short way off trail to join the Houston Brothers trail which we will take North. This section of the trail is a beautiful mix of Pine, Spruce and Oak. After about 2.5 miles we will go off trail to hike back to our cars.
distance	6.6 miles
time	5-6 hours
EC	+-500' elevation change
elevations	7100' to 7600'
on trail	60%
rating	"C"     Rate yourself as a hiker.
dogs allowed	no
cost	Sharing gas expenses with the driver. The club also allows voluntary contributions of $5 per non-member.
weather	Happy Jack
meet (west valley)	For hikers located in the West valley Sandy Dwyer will be the co-leader. Meet at 7:00 AM in the Fry’s parking lot on the SW corner of I-17 & Bell Road. Park behind Denny’s, near the entrance to the Deer Valley Park & Ride.
meet (east valley)	For hikers located in the East valley Eileen Root will be the co-leader. Meet at 7:00 AM in the parking lot of the Target Center on the south side of Shea Blvd., about a mile west of Highway 87 (Beeline). For those leaving their cars behind, please park up against the northwest curb away from Starbuck’s. Please note the new meeting location at the Target Center on Shea Blvd. Instead of meeting opposite Target, we are now meeting opposite Starbuck’s.
drive	•  West Valley group will take I-17 to Camp Verde then the 260 across to Hwy. 87. Go North (left) on Hwy 87 and about 9 miles past Clints Well. We will stop at the Blue Ridge Ranger Station to meet up with the other group. There are facilities at the Ranger Station. • East Valley group will take the Beeline Hwy (HWY 87) thru Payson, Pine and Strawberry. Go about 9 miles past Clints Well and stop at the Blue Ridge Ranger Station to meet up with the other group. • From the Blue Ridge Ranger Station, turn right onto Hwy 87 and then almost immediately, turn right onto FR 95. • Take FR 95 for about 9 miles to the junction with FR139. • Turn left on FR 139 and drive about 3.8 miles. • Just before the cattle guard, park on the left side of the road.

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