Four hikers met at Aspen Corner on the Arizona Snowbowl Road, Sunday, May 30, 2021, at 9:30 AM.

We hiked north on the Arizona Trail beyond the Bismark Lake turn-off to a little-known trail that took us to the trail that led steeply downhill to Little Spring, where we enjoyed the peaceful setting. Here the naturalist C. Hart Merriam set up his base camp in 1892/93. It was here that the relationship between change in altitude and change in biozone was developed by Dr. Merriam.

After enjoying this beautiful setting, we ascended the trail back up toward Bismark Lake and then up to the junction with the Arizona Trail. From there the group headed south back towards Aspen Corner.

We decided to drop off the AZ Trail and bushwhack to Les’s mountain cabin on the return. After some picture taking at the off-the-grid cabin, we returned to the Arizona Trail and backtracked to Aspen Corner, where the group parted company.

All in all, the weather could not have been better! We enjoyed hiking on the San Francisco Peaks, at 9,000', for a total of 11.3 miles.