death

Weather, Bighorn Death, Zipline – 1/4/2016

Updated - Posted - Charles Miles
The edge of the storm - Pusch Ridge, Linda Vista Trails. January 2016.
The edge of the storm – Pusch Ridge, Linda Vista Trails. January 2016.

Catalina Hwy closed, 2 feet of snow expected this week – Arizona Daily Star: The Catalina Highway was closed because of weather, there was rain in Tucson and by sunset a beautiful layer of clouds covered most of the Santa Catalina Mountains – there should be some great mountain weather over the next week!

The latest Santa Catalina Bighorn Sheep Reintroduction Project update includes several interesting pieces of information:

  • Pregnant Ewe #39554 died during this period – a fall appears to be the reason for the death, disease testing has not been completed and the cause of the fall is unknown (although predation has been ruled out). Another bighorn found dead in Catalinas – Arizona Daily Star.
  • The collars on the Bighorn Sheep released in 2013 are running out of battery life and are expected to drop off in January of 2016 – it seems to me that the information from the collars will be missed, while there will still be quite a few sheep with collars the alerts from the collars have helped provide very interesting mortality information.
  • The yearly trail restrictions on off-trail travel in the Bighorn Sheep Management Area are now in place and will last until April 30 – this page has the details.

 

Arizona Zipline Adventures is getting closer to opening – located off of Mt. Lemmon Road past the American Flag Trailhead outside of Oracle Arizona Zipline adventures is planning on offering an eco-zipline tour, hiking trails, gold panning and team building activities with your corporate, family or school groups along with deli style food, camping gear/equipment and locally-sourced goods. New zipline in Oracle provides high and fast adventure over the desert floor – OroValleyVoice.com, Adventures opening soon – CopperArea.com

Brilliant light bathes Ventana Canyon at day’s end – Arizona Daily Star: Nice pictures and information on the Ventana Canyon Trail.

Kick off 2016 with an invigorating hike – Arizona Daily Star: I hope you have been able to get out and enjoy the great outdoors in 2016 – one option for getting out on the 1st was Arizona State Park’s “First Day Hikes” program that included a hike on the 50-Year Trail in Catalina State Park. Catalina State Park and Oracle State Park host a wide variety of events – well worth checking their calendars for interesting opportunities!

Rescues/Accidents/Incidents including information from the SARCI Newsletter:

  • Box Camp Trail – 11/29: Hikers on the Box Camp Trail decide to continue down rather than hike back up – they loose the trail and one hiker continued on for cell phone reception, he was eventually brought out by helicopter. A search was set in motion for the other hiker who had been found and helped by other hikers.
  • Finger Rock Trail – 12/4: Hiker ran out of water and becomes exhausted – called for help but was able to continue down.
  • Injured hiker rescued from Ventana Canyon – Arizona Daily Star: A rescue after a hiker fell 30′ in Ventana Canyon. The SARA report on this incident provided some additional details: “A hiker scrambling around on a rocky pinnacle near the Window pulled loose a handhold and fell about 30 feet. His companion was unable to reach him, but called for help” – the injured hiker was short-hauled out.

Snow, Color, Cleanup, Bighorn Deaths, Grand Canyon National Park Backcountry Management Plan – 12/22/2015

Updated - Posted - Charles Miles
A snowy hillside - taken from the ridge south east of Bear Canyon. Tucson and Mount Wrightson in the background. December 2015.
A snowy hillside – taken from the ridge south east of Bear Canyon. Tucson and Mount Wrightson in the background. December 2015.

In places the snow has melted – but there is still plenty of snow on the mountain to enjoy!

 

There were two Bighorn Deaths in the first part of December. Initial lab tests confirm that Ewe #37448 died of pneumonia. Ewe #37441 was killed by a mountain lion. The latest project updated noted that:

A subcontractor to the project used a drone to monitor his dogs during pursuit of the lion that preyed upon Ewe #37441. The Department routinely uses low-level fixed wing and helicopter flights in connection with wildlife management projects. The pursuit was terminated upon the Department learning of use of the drone as the Department has not completed ongoing evaluation of how to best use such technology consistent with all applicable rules and regulations.

The Friends of Redington Pass held a cleanup with 50 volunteers on December 12th – pictures and a great summary are posted on their Facebook Page – the work included hauling away a burned out mini-van! Group looking for volunteers for Redington Pass cleanup – Tucson News Now.

Molino Basin puts on an autumn color show – Arizona Daily Star, Find autumn color on a Sabino Canyon hike – Arizona Daily Star: Two articles pointing out the beautiful fall colors in Molino and Sabino Canyons, the Cottonwoods and Sycamores in these – and other canyons – are a great source of late fall/winter color.

Catch comet Catalina on its way out of the solar system – Astronomy Magazine: Pictures of Comet Catalina with two tails! Comet Catalina is notable both for being currently visible in the sky and for being named after the Santa Catalina Mountains!  Comet Catalina showing two tails – Tucson News Now.

Rescues/Accidents/Incidents including information from the SARCI Newsletter:

  • Romero Pools – 11/1: Hiker missed the first crossing, descended the canyon and was accompanied out after reaching the Canyon Loop.
  • Blacketts Ridge – 11/5: Hiker with chest pains lifted out
  • Windy Point – 11/11: Fall
  • Agua Caliente Canyon – 11/22: Ankle injury while coming down the canyon
  • Marshall Gulch – 11/27: 30′ Fall

 

Grand Canyon National Park Backcountry Management Plan and Draft Environmental Impact Statement – Open for Comment: This site is focused on the Santa Catalina Mountains, but Grand Canyon National Park is probably of interest to almost anyone in Arizona who loves the outdoors… The comment period is currently open on a new Backcountry Management Plan – if you care about the Grand Canyon it is worth reading. This plan is mentioned here in part because the current Preferred Alternative includes seasonal permits and fees for day hiking to the Colorado River on the major corridor trails and notes the potential for future daily use limits, year round permits and similar policies for other trails. This would be a huge change for hiking in the Grand Canyon – please consider commenting. From the plan:

  • Implemented on [Backcountry Management Plan] Adoption
    • Day use permits required seasonally for [the North Kaibab Trail below the Manzanita Resthouse, South Kaibab Trail below the Tip Off and the Bright Angel Trail below the junction with the Tonto Trail]
    • Expected cost of day use permit at least $5 per person per day
    • Outreach and user education
    • User monitoring and data gathering
    • Protocols for Special Use Permits
  • Potential Adaptive Management
    • For [the North Kaibab Trail below Manzanita Resthouse, South Kaibab Trail below the Tip Off and the Bright Angel Trail below the junction with the Tonto Trail]
      • Implement group size limits (e.g., 30); adjust limits as research determines
      • Daily use limits (e.g., 250); adjust limits as research determines
      • Designated days for group or individual events
      • Day use permits required year-round
    • Policy for other trails

 

Snow on the Bug Spring Trail above Bear Canyon. December 2015.
Snow on the Bug Spring Trail above Bear Canyon. December 2015.

Bighorn Capture and Mountain Deaths, Free AZ State Park Entry, Bond Failure – 11/22/2015

Updated - Posted - Charles Miles
Pusch Ridge - end of the day - from Safford (Sombrero) Peak in the Tucson Mountains. November 2015.
Pusch Ridge – end of the day – from Safford (Sombrero) Peak in the Tucson Mountains. November 2015.

 

The latest Santa Catalina Bighorn Sheep Reintroduction Project update includes information on two deaths:

  • As previously reported during the recent November release one captured Bighorn was not released into the mountains – the Bighorn was unable to exit the transport trailer and was taken to the AZGF Adobe Mountain Wildlife Center where he was found to have a femoral fracture and was euthanized. Captured bighorn euthanized because of fractured leg – Arizona Daily Star.
  • The report also covers the death of Ram #34641 whose remains were found by a “hiker … near a mountain peak in the Catalinas”. The cause of death is currently unknown ” due to the age of the remains”.

With the death of Ram #34641 and the release of 29 new sheep (3 of which were not collared due to age/size) there are now 60 collared sheep believed to be alive in the Santa Catalina Mountains.

Arizona State Parks offer free admission on Black Friday – azcentral.cpm, #Optoutside at Arizona State Parks: AZ State Parks have partnered with REI to offer a free day pass for entry into one of Arizona’s State Parks if you visit an REI in Arizona from Saturday Nov. 21 through Wednesday Nov. 25. AZ State Parks is also giving away 10 Annual Passes to the 10 most liked pictures taken in an Arizona State Park and posted to the AZ State Parks #OptOutside Facebook page from 11/26 to 11/29.

Climbing Costs: Should hikers pay the bill for stupidity? – Tucson News Now: An article about the cost of rescues that asks if hikers/climbers/etc. should be charged for rescues. While the article does include some information about rescues in the area there was very little information from rescuers and no background information about how rescue costs are handled in other areas – for me the most thought provoking part of the article was the quote from Jim Holmes of the Southern Arizona Rescue Association: “We don’t want to do anything that would discourage the public from calling for help, if they delay because they’re afraid there’s going to be an expense associated with the rescue, it makes our job harder.”

County bond plan might have been too big to pass – Arizona Daily Star: In the beginning of November Proposition 430 Natural Area Conservation and Historic Preservation was not approved by voters in Pima County. Bonds and public expenditures are complex issues and it is worth reviewing the Audobon and Coalition for Sonoran Desert Protection pages on this failed Proposition.

Another Bighorn Death, Stars, Comets – 8/28/2015

Posted - Charles Miles

The latest update from the Santa Catalina Bighorn Sheep Reintroduction Project includes information on the recent death of ewe #37444. The update mentions samples being collected for disease testing – it will be interesting to find out if this death is attributed to Pneumonia since that was identified as a cause in the previous 3 mortalities – from the update:

The carcass of ewe #37444 was discovered by Department biologists on the afternoon of August 24 after they got a VHF mortality signal. The GPS component of her collar had not uploaded her location since August 21, and it did not send a mortality signal. However, Department staff had been monitoring her decreased movement patterns over the preceding days and surmised she was likely sick. Her carcass was found at her last known location from August 21, and there were no signs of predation. Samples were collected from the carcass for disease testing.


Ewe #37444 was captured in the Tonto National Forest in 2014. She had a lamb early this year, but it would have been independent by now.

The update also includes information from recent sightings verifying that 9 of the 16 lambs born in the Santa Catalina Mountains this year are still alive and mentions that the “typical lamb survival in desert bighorn sheep is about 25 percent”.

 

Adam Block – Beautiful shots creating star trails from the UA Sky Center: M11: Concentric Contemplation, Concentric Contemplation (video), Star trails captured from Mt. Lemmon SkyCenter – Tucson News Now.

The Catalina Comet! The credit for this 2013 discovery goes to R. A. Kowalski and the Catalina Sky Survey – this comet was featured as the NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day on August 18, 2015 – more information on the comet can be found here. Look up and see Comet Catalina, discovered right here in Arizona – Tucson News Now.

Man arrested after dog’s paws burned on hike – Arizona Daily Star: A man was “charged with felony cruelty to animals after volunteers from the Southern Arizona Rescue Association had to carry out his dog, Ranger, from three miles up the trail.”

Bighorn Pneumonia Deaths, UFOs, Fires, Bowden – 8/16/2015

Posted - Charles Miles

First the first time in months there was some bad news for the Bighorn Sheep in the Santa Catalina Mountains with 3 deaths reported. While some deaths are inevitable Pneumonia has been identified as a cause and that could cause delays in plans for releasing additional sheep – Mark Hart for AZGF: “That doesn’t mean we couldn’t come back later and do an introduction in 2016 or 2017, but until we’re sure how widespread the disease is among the population up there, we’re going to have to take a wait and see attitude.”

 

Wildfire Can Benefit Wildlife; Bighorns Not in Danger – Arizona Public Media, Latest on bighorn sheep from AZ Game and Fish – Tucson News Now: AZGF reports that the Buster Mountain Fire and Finger Rock Fire did not have a negative impact on the Bighorn Sheep in the Santa Catalina Mountains and that in fact these fires will probably improve the habitat for the sheep.

Hiker reported missing in Catalina State Park has been found – Tucson.com: A hiker that was late returning from a few nights on the mountain is located and able to walk out with assistance.

Kerwin Dewberry incoming Coronado National Forest Supervisor and Ken Born new Santa Catalina District Ranger: New personnel in Coronado National Forest and the Santa Catalina Ranger District.

UFO Lights Up Tucson Sky Like Christmas Tree – Huffpost Weird News, UFOs caught on video by two night vision cameras near Tucson, Arizona – OpenMinds UFO News and Investigations:  UFOs filmed from Sabino Canyon over the Santa Catalina Mountains?!?

Late author Chuck Bowden will be honored Saturday – Arizona Daily Star,  Mt. Lemmon center to be dedicated Saturday to late author Chuck Bowden – TucsonSentinel.com: The community center on Mount Lemmon will be named for well known author and journalist Charles Bowden. Supervisor Ray Carol said “we thought it was appropriate to name the Mount Lemmon Community Center for him because of his devotion to the Catalina.” Bowden wrote the brilliant and sad Frog Mountain Blues about the Santa Catalina Mountains.

Injured vulture on Mount Lemmon released into wild – KVOA.com: A nice story about a injured vulture who was caught, allowed to recover and released back on the mountain.

Sabino Canyon remains open while restroom repaired – Tucson News Now, Sabino Canyon Visitor Center restroom to be reconditioned – Coronado National Forest

See a quirky cactus collaboration in Sabino Canyon – Arizona Daily Star: A prickly pear growing on a Saguaro…

 

Other Trail Incidents:

  • Hikers or Bikers loosing the trail: Sutherland Trail (this is likely not the last time this will happen – currently Sutherland is an attractive route up/down the mountain but one of the easier trails to get lost on), Butterfly Trail
  • Heat/Illness: Bear Canyon to Seven Falls and Pima Canyon