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Wilson Mtn. North: Where Have All the Fairies Gone?
By Liberty Lincoln | April 6, 2008
Ms. Liberty
For years it was one of my favorite Sedona hikes, and I called it the Fairy Forest trail. Towering ponderosa pines, dense underbrush, a variety of grasses, wildflowers, juniper…all accompanied by a chorus of songbirds and the sounds of scampering wildlife.
Officially called the Wilson Mountain North Trail #123, it is accessed from a charming little pocket park called the Encinoso Picnic Area. This sunny rest spot and fantastic photo op is located about five miles from Uptown Sedona off Oak Creek Canyon aka Highway 89A.
Marv and I hadn’t done this hike for about four years. I have a strong heart connection with this place, and had been yearning to visit it again. And so we set off on a beautiful April morning — but with some trepidation.
For one thing, we knew the trail had been closed for more than a year due to the terrible Brins Mesa-Wilson Mountain fire of June 2006. The Forest Service closed this trail and several others nearby so the wounded forest could repair itself without human interference.
The beginning of the trail is rocky and rather steep, which might discourage the unwitting and unsuspecting tourist…especially those who did not bring water, hat or proper footware. We huffed and puffed our way upwards for about 15 minutes to the first plateau, a spot I really like.
It feels like Austria there, a Sound of Music landscape with sweeping views and fresh mountain air. But there were warning signs of what was to come: burned out trees and vegetation along the way, evidence of spot fires from the ’06 conflagration.
In five minutes we reached the “Wilderness” sign, the portal into my dense green enchanted Fairy Forest. We looked around as we trudged on, and were in shock. Burned-out ponderosa pines everywhere you looked. It was a wasteland. More than half the giant trees were dead, never to grow back.
I asked Marv, “Where have all the Fairies gone?” He said, “The birds are gone too. Listen.” Silence in the forest.
We pressed on. The views didn’t get much better. And — we forgot that this trail is a gradual uphill slog. It’s good for the legs, for cardiovascular and, no doubt, the lungs. We had come a little more than a mile. But after an hour I plopped down at a crossroads, exhausted and refusing to go further.
Of course Marv, typical male, had to keep going. At this point the trail gets very rocky and steep, a series of switchbacks that take you up up up the north face of Wilson Mountain nearly two miles to a huge plateau called First Bench. We have never made it that far. Maybe some day via helicopter.
Marv came back in 10 minutes, having seen patches of melting snow on the red rocks that suddenly materialize as you make your way up the steep mountain. He said some of the vegetation had returned, and much of the forest was still intact. He alerted me of his return with his familiar coyote whoops and cries.
On the way down, the rocky trail was just as tippy and trippy as the ascent, and we had to be wary at each step. Marv did step on a big rock and twisted an ankle, but he limped on and said, “I’m OK, I’ll just walk it off.” What a guy!
Near the edge of the forest we saw a hippie-type woman sitting on a rock on our right. She did not speak, just looked at us. She had a huge black Belgian shepherd with her. The dog turned and looked me right in the eye. It was a spooky moment. I kept walking. On the way to the parking lot, I wondered to myself, Was that for real, or just a mirage of some sort?
As we collapsed in the picnic area and enjoyed a light lunch and a few minutes of rest, Marv saw a car leave the parking lot. It had a bumper sticker that read, “I am a Celestial Citizen.” In the back seat of the car was the huge black dog.
Oh well, in Sedona anything is possible, what with the vortex energy and all. Try this hike. You’ll like it. Get ready for lots of blackened trees and a forest in recovery.
Topics: Outdoors |
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