Can you say Poodle Dog Bush?

Met up with my good friend Mary to hike Santiago Peak from the Maple Springs Truck Trail and the North Main Divide (NMD) Road intersection. Although this hike is on a dirt road (NMD) there is a way to skip the road and hike on trail just above. We followed the road up to a single-track trail, which cuts off about a mile of the hike.

The summit was great! Clear skies with a little bit of a breeze. We took our photos and walked around the summit area for a while, then headed back down the same way we came up. Once we made it back to the NMD road we took a quick detour on the right to another single-track trail and headed toward Modjeska Peak. This trail is not maintained and is overgrown with Poodle Dog Bush and it’s almost impossible to avoid in some places.

Along this route there was about a 20-foot section of trail that was washed out. In order to get past the washout, we had to scramble down about 7 to 10 feet in loose dirt and rocks and then climb back up on the other side of the washout. Definitely not for the faint of heart. If you are not skilled in scrambling or have a fear of slipping and sliding down the slope, do not take this route.

We summited both Santiago and Modjeska Peaks as we hike 9.4 miles with an elevation gain 1,552 feet.