Where does this trail go?

The day we hiked the Peralta Trail was pretty warm for February. When we headed out from the trailhead about 8:30, it was almost 70 degrees. By the time we returned after noon, it had warmed up to the high 80s. With only sporadic shade, it was quite toasty, and we ended up sharing a lot of our water with some of the less well-prepared members of our group. We had enough water to get everyone down safely, but only because we had carried two extra gallons of water.

About a quarter of a mile from the end of our hike up and back the Peralta Trail, two college-age men asked us where the trail went. One of the two men carried a half-full bottle of water. Neither had packs of any type.

"Hey," one said. "Where does this trail go?" Not really understanding what the two wanted to know, we pointed out where the trail went up the canyon to the saddle. Others pitched in to tell them how wonderful the hike was, and what a great view there was from the top. A short discussion followed, and the two headed up the trail. We had determined that the two actually had no idea where they were or where they were headed. Did they just drive around the desert on back roads until they found a parking lot, and head up the nearest trail?

It had taken me a few minutes to process their question, because the concept was so foreign to me. Never have we driven randomly around and hiked up whatever trail we found. Maybe you can do that back East, but here in Arizona, you can get into a lot of trouble really fast if you don't know where you are and what you are doing.

We hope they turned around before they got too far along the trail and got into trouble. With a half bottle of water between the two, they could get pretty dehydrated hiking four and a half miles. When hikers are warned to "be prepared for conditions" that means that they should check the weather, know where they are going, and carry enough food and water to safely complete the hike. Also, to let someone else know where you are going and when you are supposed to return.

A superficial survey of the stories on local Search and Rescue websites show that most rescues are those of inexperienced hikers who got in over their heads. A majority seem to be out-of-state visitors or newcomers to the area.

The two guys we met didn't show up on the news, but they could have been added to the list of statistics and merited a press-release by the search and rescue team that came out to look for them. Even if they stayed on the trail, dehydration is a real problem. Walking Arizona had an interesting post on dehydration in the Sonoran Desert here.

So just stay safe, and make sure you know where you're headed when you go out hiking.