Hiking Trails
March 8, 2026 8:07 pm #active#hiking#walking
Mount Lemmon Trail Map
Visual description
A topographic trail map shows a green marked route winding north through mountainous terrain toward a labeled peak, Mount Lemmon, at 9,167 feet. The Santa Catalina Research Natural Area is labeled near the bottom of the map. Elevation contour lines and shaded terrain fill the surrounding area.
I can't remember a time when hiking wasn't part of my life. I started young, picked up the pace in high school, and kept going from there.
Some of it was on marked trails in national parks. A lot of it wasn't, unmarked routes through forests and mountains back when I was younger. I've hiked the Grand Canyon, the Santa Catalina and Santa Rita ranges near Tucson, the White Mountains of New Hampshire, the Green Mountains of Vermont, the Sandias in New Mexico, and everywhere from Yellowstone to Olympic. The Chiricahua Mountains were my favorite in high school. I spent a lot of time out there, caverns included. A lot of those hikes are hard to pin down now since there was never a name or map attached to them.
Most of what I do are day hikes, five to fifteen miles. From here on, I want to start writing about the hikes I'm actually taking now, and the places I keep going back to. Anything over five miles, or anything that sticks with me, I'll write up.
Long term, I want to hike in every national park in the country. It's going to take years, but every trail is a step toward it.
Hiking Goals for 2026
This year I want to focus closer to home, explore more trails around Maryland and Virginia, and actually write about them. I'll keep this page updated as the hikes happen.
Trail Safety
There's real risk in hiking. Know the area, check conditions, study the route, and prepare for the weather to change on you. Even a short day hike needs water, some emergency food, and the basics. Don't count on your phone. Bring a compass and a real map.
When I hike alone, I leave my route and my expected return time with someone I trust.
Always Stay on the Trail
Stick to the trail. It protects the fragile parts of the land that are easy to wreck without noticing. Footprints only, nothing else left behind.
Update (8/14/2026): This summer turned out to be the hottest one, so I haven't been out on any real hikes. I still walk daily, two and a half miles or more, but that's all close to home. Didn't get a chance to travel anywhere cooler either. Hoping to get back out on the trails once the weather cools off, or maybe I'll find an excuse to head up north for a day hike sooner than that.