Getting New Boots and a New Hydration System at REI
This past Saturday, April 27th, I drove back down to the Phoenix Mountain Preserve and hiked the Voaz MTB Loop.
Why did I hike the Voaz MTB Trail?
Like I mentioned in previous posts, I recently exchanged my size 10.5 Zamberlan Vioz GTX Hiking Boots for a pair at size 11W at the REI in Paradise Valley in eastern Phoenix. Since the Camelbak hydration system that I used in Iraq back in 2006 has recently started leaking, I picked up a Gregory Nano 22 H2O Hydration Pack - Plus Size. Lastly, since the weather is starting to get warmer, I went ahead and bought the Sahara Sun Hat with Cape by REI. I already had a sun hat for hiking that I bought from Amazon a couple of years ago, but "Why not?" I reasoned.
As a result, I was itching to hit the trail.
Deciding on a Trail to Hike
In my previous visit to Dreamy Draw at Phoenix Mountain Preserve a couple of weeks ago (the subject of a future post here on my blog), I had a rough time using Google Maps to navigate my way on the Perl Charles Memorial (1A) Trail. The information for Dreamy Draw on Google Maps was spotty and incomplete. This time, I was going to use the All Trails app on my cellphone.
Before going to bed, I spent nearly an hour of time looking at all of the trails for the Phoenix Mountain Preserve on All Trails.
My main criteria for choosing a hiking trail was a hike that would be about four or five miles in length. I wanted to give my new hiking boots a good workout, but I didn't want to go on a seven or eight mile hike just yet. I just wanted a medium-length hike without too many issues. I also wanted to try out my new Gregory hydration pack and sun hat.
Since we are at the end of April, the temperatures in the Phoenix area are already in excess of 90 degrees Fahrenheit. Checking the weather forecast, I noticed that the temperature for Saturday, April 27th, was predicted to be in the low 80s due to a storm moving through central and northern Arizona.
With all of that criteria in mind, I decided upon the Voaz MTB Loop.
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| Map of the Voaz MTB Loop |
The Voaz MTB Loop isn't an official trail on the City of Phoenix Parks and Recreation website for hiking trails. The Voaz MTB Loop is a combination of several trails, the VOAZ Trail, the Perl Charles Memorial Trail, and the Dreamy Draw Nature Trail. According to All Trails, the Voaz MTB Loop has a length of 4.1 miles and an elevation gain of 793 feet.
Returning to the Dreamy Draw Trailhead
With all of that in mind, I managed to go to bed at 1:30 AM and then get up at 7:30 AM. I got a solid six hours of sleep. After a short trip to my local Safeway to pick up some bottled water for my hydration pack, I managed to arrive at the parking lot for Dreamy Draw at around 10:00 AM. I even managed to find a parking spot at the parking lot on a Saturday morning. Nice.
I took off my New Balance shoes and put on my new Zamberlan hiking boots. I then laced up the boots. Perfect fit, so far. I wanted to know how my feet would feel after hiking four or five miles.
Then, things started to get a little crazy.
I filled up the bladder on my Gregory hydration pack to up to the 3-liter limit. After tightening the cap, I put on the hydration pack on my shoulders. The back of my shirt was SOAKED. There was water all over the exterior of my hydration pack. When I opened the hydration pack, there was water inside the compartment where the bladder is stored. A large amount of water was missing from the bladder. What the hell happened? Fortunately, I bought three 1.5-liter bottles of water when I was at Safeway, so I had plenty of water for my 3-liter capacity hydration pack. I replaced the water that had leaked out and then waited for about one minute. No leaks.
I then put on some sunscreen on my face, neck, and ears. I put on my sun hat. I then made my way to the trailhead.
Hiking the Voaz MTB Loop Trail
When I reached the trailhead with the map of the entire Dreamy Draw area, I opened the All Trails app on my cellphone. I located the entry for the Voaz MTB Loop and then clicked on Start.
Almost right away, I started to have problems using the All Trails app. The beginning of the Voaz MTB Loop was improperly marked on the map. I had to walk around and match the landscape to the terrain on the map on my cellphone. I eventually found the starting point. While holding my cellphone in front of me, I walked forward for about one minute. I observed my location on the map update in real-time. I saw the bright blue line that indicated the part of the Voaz MTB Loop that I had hiked. I was on the correct trail.
Then, just a couple of moments later, I heard a loud chime originate from my cellphone. I was hiking on the wrong trail. I looked at my cellphone and then looked at the terrain. I tried to figure out where I was supposed to be. After about one minute of looking, I found the trail I was supposed to be on. The Dreamy Draw area of the Phoenix Mountain Preserve is littered with hiking trails. There are more trails that what is indicated on the City of Phoenix Parks and Recreation Trail Map.
For the next three hours of hiking, I had the same problem over and over again. I would hike for several minutes before getting a beep from my cellphone, inidicating that I was off the Voaz MTB Loop trail. I would then have to orientate the map on my cellphone to the terrain IOT figure out where I needed to be. At first, it was really annoying. Then it became mildly irritating.
During the hike, I quickly realized that I was largely hiking the same trail, the Perl Charles Memorial Trail (1A), that I had hiked a couple of weeks ago. There were some differences as the Voaz Trail itself is only 0.5 miles long. After I ascended to the saddle point, the highest point of my hike, I realized that I had been at this very location three weeks prior. I recognized the shape of the mountains. I recognized the rest benches made out of stone where I ate a Clif bar and drank some water. Since I have been struggling with allergies and/or a virus for the past two weeks, hiking up to the saddle point was a little on the slow side. However, I wasn't in a hurry. When I needed to take a break, I took a break. After I ate my Clif bar, I had A LOT more energy. After reaching the saddle point, it was literally all down hill from there. Despite the temperature being in the low to mid 80s, I was drinking water like crazy, especially on the way down.
Back at the Trailhead
When I returned to the trailhead, I sat down. During my first visit to Dreamy Draw, my feet were pain at the end of the hike. This time, there was some discomfort in my feet, but the difference was like night and day. After sitting down for a few minutes, I was able to walk back to my car at a relaxed pace. Big difference.
Yes, I did take some photos during my hike. To be honest, it was a hassle trying to switch between the All Trails app and taking a photo with my cellphone. For a brief moment, I considered giving up on taking photos during the hike IOT focus using the All Trails app. However, I decided to go ahead and take some photos despite the problems using the All Trails app. To be fair to the All Trails app, my cellphone is nearing the end of its lifespan. It took an agonizing minute or two for my cellphone to switch from the All Trails app to the camera app. It was painful. Then again, I wasn't in a hurry to get off the trail, so I adapted to the situation.
Lastly, my Samsung Watch 4 ran out of power. Again. This time, I waited until I started hiking to turn on my watch and record my hike. No effect. In addition to my cellphone, I just might have to replace my watch as well. Ugh. If I were to get a new watch, would I get a new Samsung watch or would I go with an Apple watch? I can't say. Before getting a new watch, I will have to play around with the settings on my Samsung Watch 4 and see if I can fix the issue.
Verdict on the All Trails App
All-in-all, I had a somewhat mixed experience with using the All Trails app on my cellphone. Yes, it was a hassle switching back and forth from the All Trails app and the camera app on my phone. I kept forgetting to press the Pause button on the All Trails app before taking a photo. In addition, there were times when I forgot to press the Resume button on the All Trails app. Plus, there is a limit to how far you can zoom in on the digital topographic map on your cellphone. Once you turn on the real-time update on the app, the feature can rapidly drain power from your phone. You definitely need to make sure that you have a backup charger for your cellphone with you on the trail. However, like I wrote earlier, the Phoenix Mountain Preserve is criss-crossed with trails. Many of these trails are either unmarked or poorly marked. The All Trails app is really good at displaying the trail you are hiking and your real-time location. That is a really convenient feature that makes the All Trails app useful. I am not too happy with having yet another service that I have to subscribe to IOT use. I can always go back to using a paper map, I suppose.
Here are about half of the photos that I took. I will make a second post with the other half.
