our first rodeo

 The next day, however, H did not have to work (yayyyyyyy) and we are all able to do a hike together.  One of the trail systems that has been on our list to explore is the Horsethief trails surrounding the BLM campground of the same name, out off Route 313.  We'd ridden just a bit of those trails just over a year ago when we rode the Chisholm trail; although I didn't love that as a MTB ride, the area was pretty and we wanted to see more of it, on foot.  When we got to the trailhead parking lot (at the start of the dirt road into the campground), we checked the map.  The Rodeo trail made a loop and was about nine miles - sounded good.

Your basic Rodeo scenery

We were early enough to mostly have the trail to ourselves: one MTBer passed us as we walked out on the portion of the Chisholm trail that connected to the Rodeo start; and a family of five (with matching kits!) passed us just after we'd gotten on Rodeo itself.  From there it was just us three, and a few lizards and ground squirrels that Milton felt compelled to chase until H called him off.  

Rodeo = dark green blazes

(Chisholm = light green)

The hiking is pretty easy: some sand and chunky bits but mostly hard pack and rolling rocks, crossing washes and skirting short cliffs.  There were brief climbs and descents, but for the whole outbound portion we were clearly losing elevation, which mean an undramatic but steady uphill finish.

Pretty little meadow

The trail is blazed and there are signs and maps at nearly every intersection, so in theory it is easy to navigate these Horsethief trails.  The signs did not, however, indicate where the Horsethief parking area we used was located and we ended up emerging further up on Route 313, at a different Horsethief parking area above the Mineral Basin road.  We figured it would be more direct to walk back down the highway to the car, which technically made our hike a lopsided figure-eight (instead of a lollipop) and brought us to nearly eleven miles (instead of the nine we had intended).  

Imma sleep right here

Back at the car, Milton took a nap right there, face planted in the sandy dirt, having clearly overdone it; by the time H and I finished our beer and sandwiches, we had stiffened up - apparently we had overdone it a bit ourselves.

Hike stats:  10.84 miles; moving 3:13 hours/3.4 m.p.h.; overall 3:25/3.2; 900 feet elevation