Highline Trail Hike Highlights VOAz Restoration Efforts
Highline Trail Hike Highlights VOAz Restoration Efforts
Volunteers for
Outdoor Arizona project manager Paul Paonessa has a name for the pre-rehabilitated
condition of the Highline Trail #31: SOLPOST. The sobriquet, which was originally
concocted by Woody Keen, former director of the Professional Trail Builders Association, is an acronym for �Scar On The Land Piece
of S*#t Trail.� Those who have trekked certain sections of the path that runs
below the Mogollon Rim north of Payson prior to 2017 will agree---that pretty much
sums it up.
The historic route was cut back in the late 1800s as a travel
corridor to connect homesteads and communities around the towns of Payson and
Pine. The 51-mile course began to lose value when the Civilian Conservation
Corps built Forest Road 64 (Control Road) in the 1930s. This posh-by-comparison
road provided an alternative to the randomly built, precariously situated dirt
trail. No longer needed to run cattle and wagons, the trail was re-purposed into
a sporting destination and was designated as the Highline National Recreation
Trail in 1979.
Since then, a combination
of neglect, misuse, wildfires and erosion have taken a devastating toll on the
trail�s condition---especially the roughly 3-mile segment that runs between the
Washington Park Trailhead and Dude Creek. Impacted by the deadly 1990 Dude Fire and 2017
Highline Fire, the section�s original layout exacerbated its demise. Back in the day, trails were blazed as
point-to-point routes with no regard for sustainability. Crudely hacked uphill ascents, and passages
through arroyos and ravines lead to drainage problems, wash outs and overgrowth
conditions.
In 2012, VOAz in
partnership with the Tonto National Forest, began planning for an ambitious restoration project
to stabilize and, in some cases, reroute the trail. Fueled by grants and
thousands of hours of volunteer labor, the project has rescued the trail from obliteration
and created a safer, more scenic trek. Paonessa points to the leadership and vision of Michael Baker, Executive Director of VOAz as the driving force behind the massive endeavor.
"He is the one who fought for the funding, arranged all the resources, found the
various volunteers,
contractors and myself ( #1 crash test dummy ) to devote the time and
energy."
Paonessa, a former City of Phoenix Park
Ranger, describes the work as bringing the trail
back in sync with the terrain.
�We rerouted parts of the trail to follow the natural
contours of the landscape. Sections of old trail that went through overgrown
depressions or plowed straight up inclines were moved onto more sustainable
surfaces with better views that also keep natural watersheds intact. All
the �fall line� sections of trail (deep ruts with loose rock and downed timber)
have been redone or replaced by 5% grade climbs. In other words, you can now hike
it, not crawl through it. Also, this October, the Arizona Trail folks installed a
pedestrian bridge over the East Verde River where the AZT departs the Highline
and heads north.�
Another
objective of the restoration project is to enhance user experience. �We look to
incorporate interesting control points when working on trails.� Paonessa adds.
�Things such as historic artifacts like old culverts, unique botanical
specimens and geological features add to a trail�s character.�
One section of notable improvement is where the trail was
relocated from a brush-addled thorn tunnel onto an open slick rock ledge that
unwinds like taffy beneath limestone escarpments that frame views of the Mazatzal
Mountains previously obscured by scrub.
Just beyond this Sedona-esque passage,
the route winds down to meet a breathtaking half-pipe water chute at Dude
Creek. Core work on the trail has been progressing at about 2 miles per season
(4 miles per year) and is likely to conclude in the near future.
Once complete, the Highline Trail will have gained extra length and
renewed stature as one of Arizona�s premier hiking, biking and equestrian
trails.
WASHINGTON PARK
to DUDE CREEK DAY HIKE
LENGTH: 6-miles
roundtrip to Dude Creek and back.
RATING: moderate
ELEVATION: 6250�
� 6100�
GETTING THERE:
Washington Park
Trailhead:
From Payson, go 1.7
miles north on State Route 87 to Houston Mesa Road (Forest Road 199), turn right and
continue 10 miles the �T� intersection at Control Road (Forest Road 64) in the
Whispering Pines community. Turn left, go 0.6-mile and take a right on Forest Road
32. Go 3.2 miles to Forest Road 32A (sometimes
signed as Belluzzi Blvd), turn right and continue 1 mile to the trailhead. Start
at the Highline Trail sign, cross the bridge and head right.
Roads are
maintained dirt suitable for carefully-driven passenger cars.
To learn how you
can help with trail rehabilitation across the state:
Volunteers for
Outdoor Arizona (VOAz)
 |
| Dude Creek flows over the Highline Trail |
Volunteers for
Outdoor Arizona project manager Paul Paonessa has a name for the pre-rehabilitated
condition of the Highline Trail #31: SOLPOST. The sobriquet, which was originally
concocted by Woody Keen, former director of the Professional Trail Builders Association, is an acronym for �Scar On The Land Piece
of S*#t Trail.� Those who have trekked certain sections of the path that runs
below the Mogollon Rim north of Payson prior to 2017 will agree---that pretty much
sums it up.
 |
| A section of new alignment of the Highline Trail |
The historic route was cut back in the late 1800s as a travel
corridor to connect homesteads and communities around the towns of Payson and
Pine. The 51-mile course began to lose value when the Civilian Conservation
Corps built Forest Road 64 (Control Road) in the 1930s. This posh-by-comparison
road provided an alternative to the randomly built, precariously situated dirt
trail. No longer needed to run cattle and wagons, the trail was re-purposed into
a sporting destination and was designated as the Highline National Recreation
Trail in 1979.
 |
| VOAz's Paul Paonessa on the new AZT bridge |
Since then, a combination
of neglect, misuse, wildfires and erosion have taken a devastating toll on the
trail�s condition---especially the roughly 3-mile segment that runs between the
Washington Park Trailhead and Dude Creek. Impacted by the deadly 1990 Dude Fire and 2017
Highline Fire, the section�s original layout exacerbated its demise. Back in the day, trails were blazed as
point-to-point routes with no regard for sustainability. Crudely hacked uphill ascents, and passages
through arroyos and ravines lead to drainage problems, wash outs and overgrowth
conditions.
 |
| Scar of the 1990 Dude Fire |
In 2012, VOAz in
partnership with the Tonto National Forest, began planning for an ambitious restoration project
to stabilize and, in some cases, reroute the trail. Fueled by grants and
thousands of hours of volunteer labor, the project has rescued the trail from obliteration
and created a safer, more scenic trek. Paonessa points to the leadership and vision of Michael Baker, Executive Director of VOAz as the driving force behind the massive endeavor.
"He is the one who fought for the funding, arranged all the resources, found the
various volunteers,
contractors and myself ( #1 crash test dummy ) to devote the time and
energy."
Paonessa, a former City of Phoenix Park
Ranger, describes the work as bringing the trail
back in sync with the terrain.
 |
| Badly eroded section of trail that was re-routed |
�We rerouted parts of the trail to follow the natural
contours of the landscape. Sections of old trail that went through overgrown
depressions or plowed straight up inclines were moved onto more sustainable
surfaces with better views that also keep natural watersheds intact. All
the �fall line� sections of trail (deep ruts with loose rock and downed timber)
have been redone or replaced by 5% grade climbs. In other words, you can now hike
it, not crawl through it. Also, this October, the Arizona Trail folks installed a
pedestrian bridge over the East Verde River where the AZT departs the Highline
and heads north.�
 |
| Sustainable new alignments frame epic Rim County views |
Another
objective of the restoration project is to enhance user experience. �We look to
incorporate interesting control points when working on trails.� Paonessa adds.
�Things such as historic artifacts like old culverts, unique botanical
specimens and geological features add to a trail�s character.�
One section of notable improvement is where the trail was
relocated from a brush-addled thorn tunnel onto an open slick rock ledge that
unwinds like taffy beneath limestone escarpments that frame views of the Mazatzal
Mountains previously obscured by scrub.
 |
| Paonessa on a restored section of the Highline Trail |
Just beyond this Sedona-esque passage,
the route winds down to meet a breathtaking half-pipe water chute at Dude
Creek. Core work on the trail has been progressing at about 2 miles per season
(4 miles per year) and is likely to conclude in the near future.
Once complete, the Highline Trail will have gained extra length and
renewed stature as one of Arizona�s premier hiking, biking and equestrian
trails.
 |
| Bigtooth maples and Gamble oaks in shades of autumn |
WASHINGTON PARK
to DUDE CREEK DAY HIKE
LENGTH: 6-miles
roundtrip to Dude Creek and back.
RATING: moderate
ELEVATION: 6250�
� 6100�
GETTING THERE:
Washington Park
Trailhead:
From Payson, go 1.7
miles north on State Route 87 to Houston Mesa Road (Forest Road 199), turn right and
continue 10 miles the �T� intersection at Control Road (Forest Road 64) in the
Whispering Pines community. Turn left, go 0.6-mile and take a right on Forest Road
32. Go 3.2 miles to Forest Road 32A (sometimes
signed as Belluzzi Blvd), turn right and continue 1 mile to the trailhead. Start
at the Highline Trail sign, cross the bridge and head right.
Roads are
maintained dirt suitable for carefully-driven passenger cars.
 |
| Sign at the Washington Park trailhead |
To learn how you
can help with trail rehabilitation across the state:
Volunteers for
Outdoor Arizona (VOAz)
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