Nice job on the description! Here's a quick summary of my encounters. It's about a 2 hour and 15 minute drive from Awatukee. The temperature around 8am was beautiful, though it did heat up quickly. Driving through Prescott on a Saturday in the morning was really something. The streets are filled with art shows I'd only heard about to this point. My sister takes quilts and drawings to these kinds of show, in which I've photographed in the past. Okay to the trail. I'm not sure on the quality, but there is a water pump at the pay station before the trailhead. On the trail, I saw lots of butterflies and some really nice birds. Along the way I spotted wild grape and lots of little red wildflowers. Silky spider barricades await the first visitors of the day. Gee, how could I be so lucky! I was nearly eaten alive by DEET resistant bugs. Which kept me from exploring the trail heading out left (straight ahead) from the saddle. I'm thinking the views on that side might be even better. Though you might want to bring some binoculars.