Mesa Trail to Shadow Canyon
We continued up Mesa trail past the fork on the left for Homestead trail. The trail got steeper but was pretty beautiful. It curved around giving you great views of the city below then started through the pine forest.
This is a really pretty trail. We kept going on Mesa until we reached the fork of Shadow Canyon. The fork does not indicated South or North but the first Shadow Canyon you see is technically the South trail.
Continuing on Mesa trail after the Shadow Canyon South fork the trail became REALLY rocky. I really wanted to go up Mesa and turn left onto Shadow Canyon. This was not a good idea and I don't know that horses are allowed on these trails. Sam and I turned around.
When we reached the Shadow Canyon fork we took Shadow Canyon (south, although not labeled) for another short out and back. We could see Devil's Thumb through the mist.
This little out and back was worth it for the amazing views. There were some rocks to cross over a creek bed.
When we climbed a steep hill and past a cabin the trail narrowed and went over a creek. This is when Sam and I decided to turn around and go back to the Mesa trail the way we came. Some hikers told me the trail became narrow and goes along the side of the mountain to hook back up to the Mesa trail where we had investigated earlier with the rocky, steep hill.