The Long Day Out

By: Ryan Lay

By KAVU

December 12^th, 2023

TEMPE, ARIZONA

Almost without fail, anytime I set my alarm for 3:30 am, I wake up wondering if I’ve really got the chops for the day ahead. In the past couple of years, things have started to hurt, especially first thing in the morning. The walk to the kitchen to get my first cup of water brings pain..... currently on the menu is a heel bruise (yes, the same one) and some knee pain from jumping down an 11-stair the previous weekend. The paradox here is that I feel mentally tougher than ever and determined to push just a little harder to prove something to myself; a kind of protest to my aging body.

Three months ago, I tried to 'fastpack' the Colorado Trail as a public fundraiser, and after my fourth 35+ mile day, I melted down in spectacular fashion–crying to my wife as I limped up Copper Mountain that "I was done with all this". The load on my body, coming fresh off a skate trip and not enough training, was just too much to handle and I felt like I lacked the mental fortitude to suffer in isolation. It was hard to tell in the moment if this was just an acute breakdown or an epiphany of sorts, but I genuinely felt relieved to refocus my energy on skateboarding and put long distance endurance stuff on hold for a little while.

Anyways... fast forward a few months, I’m feeling confident about skating and filming for the first time in a while. The chasm (which always seems enormous) between no clips and another video part is finally closing in a bit. But with the weather finally cooling down, I’ve been feeling the itch to get back into some endurance adventures.

So, my friend Vlad and I started mapping out a big link up of some of the prominent peaks around the Valley. After some deliberation we settled on five mountains scattered roughly 50 miles apart, with an emphasis on trying to...

A. Do it all in one day

B. Leaving from home and only making progress on foot and bicycle

I’m a fan of the long day out (I’m talking pre-dawn to late into the evening), and fortunately these Adventure Stories give me the opportunity to plan something totally arbitrary and pretty out of my comfort range. I’m not particularly great at running or biking, but my time thru-hiking has really given me the confidence of chipping away all-day and getting the distance done.

The route goes something like this:

Bike: Home to Siphon Draw Trailhead at the Superstition Mountains (29 miles)

Hike: Flatiron Trail (6 miles out and back, 2600 ft of elevation gain)

Bike: Superstition Mountains to ‘A’ Mountain (29 miles)

Hike: ‘A’ Mountain (1 mile out and back, 250 ft of elevation gain)

Bike: ‘A’ Mountain to Papago Park (3 miles)

Hike: Papago Buttes (less than a mile of scrambling, 300 ft of elevation gain)

Bike: Papago Park to Camelback Mountain (5 miles)

Hike: Camelback via Cholla Trailhead (3 miles out and back, 1280 feet of elevation gain)

Bike: Camelback to Piestewa Peak (9 miles)

Hike: Piestewa Peak Summit Trail (2.3 miles out and back, 1150 feet of elevation gain)

Bike: Piestewa Peak to Home (14 miles)

The grand total is ~90 miles of cycling, 2600 feet of gain and ~14 miles of hiking, 6550 feet of gain.

Vlad lives right next to me, so with a 4am start we met on the street and shuffled around a few minutes looking for missing pieces of gear. I never feel prepared, and to be honest... I did two days of intensive training with around 30 miles each day on the bike, so I had some nerves about what the day would do to my body. The worst part of waking up before dawn before a long day is having to eat a bunch of food AND try to go to the bathroom, neither of which feel comfortable. I forgo the latter.

Vlad is a couple years out from a stint as an exceptional cyclist and is also an Ironman finisher. He was on a road bike and me, on my gravel bike, so while I struggle a bit, we made decent time wandering the sleepy streets of Mesa. Vlad has recently gone through a divorce and his self-deprecating humor knows no bounds. I enjoyed the company of an old friend and was thankful to be able to do this stuff together as adults. As a result, the ride passes by quicker with good conversation and eventually, we make it out to the Superstitions just after dawn.

The 'Flatiron', within the Superstition Mountains is like this jutting, massive bow of a ship, which is basically the backdrop of the East Valley... near where I grew up. The hike is short (six miles) but brutal, with roughly the last mile on a steep, dried riverbed that you essentially are required to scramble up.

We spend a few minutes enjoying the breathtaking views, making jokes about how we’re roughly 4 hours behind our projected schedule, and then carried on down the mountain.

At that point, it was feeling like there’s probably no way we’re gonna’ get this thing done, and will have to settle for an abridged version. We were also hitting the sun and 70+ degree weather for the first time in the day, but ate some food, hit the bathroom to change, and got back on the bikes anyway. Getting to coast a little on the bike for a bit, after hammering our quads and toes for a solid hour, was very welcome.

On long stuff like this, I consume Tailwind Nutrition powder, Kind bars, chips, trail mix... and for the morning, I brought a couple of bean burritos. They ended up squished in my running pack, but still taste decently well. The ride back is a slog, but at this point we were back in Tempe and the two long rides are behind us. We fueled up with some coffee and hit ‘A’ Mountain, a tiny peak right in downtown Tempe.

A funny byproduct of moving through familiar places, with what are essentially race conditions, is that you rid yourself of any and all inhibitions. TLDR; we look like absolute shit and are surrounded by a bunch of casual day hikers who have no idea where we’ve been, or what we’re doing.

Vlad was showing signs of slowing, but I was still eager to get Papago out of the way because we can’t get to the Camelback trailhead at night and the clock was ticking.

The Papago buttes are these mars like features right in the heart of the Valley. They are my 'go-to exercise' if I only have an hour and want to get something quick done before sunset. It’s only a few miles from my house and the scramble up to the top is a nice, short combination of mountain running and some semi-technical climbing. I quickly ascended the first half, though I saw Vlad down below struggling with the exposure. He was feeling a little uncomfortable, so I told him I’d tag the top and come back in fifteen minutes or so. When I got back, I saw Vlad higher up on an entirely different (and sketchier!) part of the butte, this time having a full-blown panic attack. He’s going to kill me for writing this.... but I’m talking wheezing, cursing, and the inability to process the task at hand. Nothing to be embarrassed about... I’ve been there before, and most people who’ve spent time exposed would say the same. So, I helped him calm down and we moved one foot at a time back down the trail. He lights the joint he’s been hanging onto all day, we shared some laughs, and it was very clear at that point he was losing motivation.

But I was in a rush, and we were pushing into sunset. My housemate, Eli was waiting at Camelback with a much-needed burrito but Vlad makes the decision to stay behind. Eli and I are the last people to get through the gate at Camelback... just before twilight and we made our way up Cholla Trail.

I hiked the last half on my own and was surprisingly thrilled about how decent I felt. The city lights and lingering sunset were mesmerizing. It’s an incredible feeling being up on a mountain in the desert at night, something I need to do more often. Not much but rocks and cool air, the city was settling in for the night. I ran most of the way down and tried to harness the last reserves of my energy to get through the last stretch of the day. At 7:30 pm I headed out towards Piestewa solo, and was surprised to see a few people at the trailhead when I arrived. This is a peak I’d never been to before, and I spotted a Ringtail on the summit, which I’m told is an incredibly rare sighting. There were beautiful, crystal-like features projecting out into space.

I was spent, but grateful for my health and settled into a steady run back to my bike. The thrill of the day felt over, and all that was left was a 14-mile ride home. I arrived home just before midnight to an empty house. Adriana (my wife) was gone, and I reluctantly heated up some food, showered and finally passed out. There was no finish line, no grand welcome back, but there WAS a warm sense of satisfaction from having spent a special day out on trails and cycling routes I’d spent countless hours on, all from the comfort of my doorstep. To experience these places with the speed and intention of an endurance event, through all hours of the day and night, has carved out an entirely new relationship to this place I live....