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Soldier Trail: Trail has steep beginning

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People who like to pay their dues upfront have just the right mind-set for the Soldier Trail.

The otherwise moderate 2.6-mile route in the Catalina Mountains begins with a half-mile or so of almost rudely steep hiking.

Even though that formerly rough and eroded trail segment now has a good tread and smoothed-out switchbacks, it’s still got a whole lot of up.

But once you’ve paid your steep-stepping dues, the trail eases back and rewards your efforts.

Desert vegetation and seasonal wildflowers grace lower reaches of the path. Mesquite and oak trees show up along the way to an alternative trailhead at the upper end of the route.

For many hikers, the scenic centerpiece is Soldier Basin about 1.5 miles into the hike.

“There was lots of water flowing” through the basin area, said Dan Bittner, who hiked the trail one day recently with Justin Silverman.

For a vigorous workout, trek from the lower trailhead, at 3,200 feet, to the upper trailhead, near the site of a onetime prison camp at about 4,800 feet — and then return. For a mostly downhill ramble, arrange a car shuttle and walk from the upper trailhead to the lower one.

Getting there: To reach the lower trailhead, take Tanque Verde Road to the Catalina Highway. Follow the highway until it begins climbing into the mountains and watch for Milepost 1. Continue about 0.3 of a mile past Milepost 1 to a parking pullout and the trailhead on the left. For the upper trailhead, drive up the highway and turn left into the Gordon Hirabayashi Recreation Site between Mileposts 7 and 8.