Still here but not for long.

I'll bet some of you are wondering what happened to me. Well, I'm swamped with trying to do last-minute things that aren't exactly going well. I have been getting one hike in each week to restore my sanity, but you've seen all that before. So what else to say?

I'm two weeks out from departure and trying not to panic about the stuff that's still outstanding. Unexpected and expensive things happen every time we go through this process, so you think I'd be used to it by now, but I always hope that my extensive experience will make it go smoother, but nooOOOooo.
 

Yes, I sound just like that.
Experience doesn't seem to have anything to do with it. Sh** happens. I do know, however, that despite all the setbacks, I'll get 'er done. Somehow. Am I excited?

Every time, I get really stressed out, I work out...

My month is up at Amenzone - boo.

... or hit a trail, and that helps me to reset. Of course, it's snake season again, so one day I caught this guy terrorizing whatever was in that hole.

Then I hiked the Dixie Mine Trail and ran across a baby rattlesnake that didn't have any rattlers yet to warn me. Luckily I saw him before I put my foot down. I don't think I've done that trail once without running into a rattlesnake (or 3). I think I'm done with that one.

This weekend, I hit my favorite trail, Tom's Thumb, for the umpteenth time. You'll recall that the last time we went, we saw some falcons nesting. Well, they had their little chickadees, so I decided to do the Overlook Trail at the top to give them some privacy.

Where most people go to the right, I went to the left, so I was on my own -without a cell-phone signal - and kept seeing snake swirlies in the dirt.

Between those and some insects that sounded like and were as loud as buzz saws (no, they weren't cicadas), I started getting the heebie jeebies. I'd think I was paying attention to where I was walking, but then a lizard would dodge out and scare the crap out of me. I made it without incident though and had a nice trek.



Yes, it was hazy out there - there are number of distant wildfires going on.

One thing I love about hiking here is that no matter how brown or dry it is (or how hot), you can usually find some color. Something blooming. Unlike winter in snowy climates where everything looks dead for 6+ months.

Ok, now I'm ready to try to knock off the last of my must-do's. Hopefully they're ready to be knocked off. I could use some luck.

Thanks, Morgan.

Spring

Not quite yet...

People say that Arizona doesn't have seasons, but I disagree. They may not be like other states', but there is definitely a winter - usually January/February - when we can have freezing temps and snow dustings. There absolutely is a summer, when the temps go over 100, usually starting in mid-May until about mid-October. The rest of the months are a crap shoot. If you miss "dead" trees in winter and blooms in spring, just drive north an hour. When we hit 101 on May 1st, I thought - uh oh, here we go. Luckily, that was a blip, and we've had marvelous weather in the 70s/80s. Perfect hiking weather.

This weekend's hike was the Peralta Trail in the Superstition's. That really is my favorite AZ mountain range. First I had to brave the 7-mile dirt road to get to the trail. It wasn't too bad, just a little slippery on turns thanks to the loose gravel.



And then you have to sign in, just in case. It's been a long time since I've done that, but it was somewhat comforting to know that there might be a nugget of information as to my whereabouts should I disappear.

My plan was to keep it simple though - just head to the saddle via the narrow trail, wave at Needle Rock, and head back the way I came. There were other trails up top to turn this into a long loop, but I stuck with my plan. The trail was beautiful from the beginning and stayed that way throughout. It took exactly an hour up and an hour back (a little over 4 miles).

Notice the lonely tree to the right? Odd.

 Once on the saddle, a cold wind hit me in the face. I didn't last long.

There were cool rock formations along the way.

    

The return was just as stunning.



That is now on my list of top hikes, for sure. Reportedly, it can get pretty crowded, which tells you its level of difficulty (medium), but it wasn't too bad this Mother's Day.

Michael was hiking too, although he kayaked to his trail first. Apparently the current was a little stronger than they would have liked, but all made it to the island they were aiming for.



Cactus! It's everywhere!



Nice to see Michael's mug again.

Better.

So after a rather not-so-great week, it didn't get any better after the last post, I was looking forward to pulling myself into the fetal position and sucking my thumb all weekend. Somehow, I managed to rally though and got a hike in, among other things.

I wanted something nearby, free, easy to follow, and yet a little challenging. So I chose the 5.5-mile Sunrise Trail in Scottsdale via the Ringtail Trail on 128th St. Although I was going to gain some elevation on this one, the switchbacks were quite long, so while it was still a little steep in places, it wasn't like Tom's Thumb (one of my favorite hikes). I decided to push it a little on this one and treat it more like exercise than a meander.



The views behind me were pretty great, but I wasn't worried about turning around constantly to look at them because I knew I'd be coming back that way and would snap some photos and take it all in then. Yeah, that didn't happen. I got to the turn-around, the hitching post, in exactly an hour.

I hadn't planned on going the extra bit to the summit, but I really couldn't resist its siren call. I mean, look how close it is! So I headed up.

It was only an extra 20 minutes and was worth it. There were nice views of Fountain Hills, Scottsdale, mountains, a great breeze. Sigh.



And then I headed back. Where did all those side trails come from? I hadn't noticed most of them on the way up. There was a lot of signage leading to the summit, but nothing on any other trail, so I had no idea which trail was the one I'd come up. I focused on staying on the Scottsdale side of the mountain range and just kept walking. I never saw the hitching post again or the views I had wanted to capture on my return. It turned out I ended up on the "official" Sunrise Trail which is steeper, not a problem going down but I wouldn't have wanted to take that going up. The view was, eh, and the next thing I knew I was at the bottom. On 146th Street.

My car was at 128th Street. The good news is that the street I had to return on wasn't all that busy and rather pretty.

Of course, I didn't just have to get back to 128th St, I also had to get back to the mountain since the street had veered away from it. Oy.

Despite that flub, it didn't ruin my zen. If I'm hiking, I'm happy. Add a view of crystal blue/green water, and it's my version of heaven.  About 89 days...