Join the Hiking Club for Oct. 17 work session on the Arizona Trail

Elisabeth Wheeler

Temperatures are cooling down and it is time to volunteer for SaddleBrooke Hiking Club’s October 17 Work Session on the Arizona Trail, 7:30 a.m. from SaddleBrooke. Come and join the fun; it’s enjoyable to work side by side with other hiking club members as we help maintain the “Oracle Passage” section of the Arizona National Scenic Trail. This 8.6-mile section starts at the American Flag trailhead. It ambles through washes and across low ridges speckled with high desert plants just east of Oracle State Park, north to Highway 77 and onto the Tiger Mine road to the trailhead. Generally, the work is light and involves clipping, brushing, raking, pruning, building cairns and developing/clearing erosion control devices. Bring along gloves, hat, water and pruners. Other tools, if needed, will be provided. The work session usually lasts about three hours. Hike three-four miles. The roundtrip distance is 41 miles. The club will pay the $3 driver donation. [Guide: Elisabeth Wheeler, 520-818-1547 or [email protected] or Ray Peale, 520-818-6285 or [email protected].