scary hike...

Started off with a spider crawling out of the toilet in the restroom at the trailhead. Should have just turned back... it wasn't really that bad. We were greeted with impressive morning light across the cholla fields. The trail seems well established and signed.

Not far into the hike I stopped mid step as I got close to a medium sized rattler. This coiled up boy was poised to nab anything scurrying along the trail. He didn't move or make any noise so we wondered if he was even alive. Denny opted for a wide off-trail work-around and who was I to argue. On the flip side I set up a duck to be aware on the return. No that's a ridiculous name, it was a cairn.

The cool morning was quickly heating up. The closer you get to the peak your mind can't help but ponder the inevitable climb soon to follow. This bad boy ascends with little time left and gets pretty steep in spots. The scramble to the peak is fun and over in a flash.

At the peak I noticed several bees landing on me. I didn't think much of it and just told myself to keep calm. I casually took off my shirt and gently shoo'd 'em away. Then I checked out the register. All the sudden Denny has a cramp and is grabbing his leg. Wait a minute... no cramp. A bee got under his pants or through one of the worn holes and stung him on the inner mid thigh. Next thing I know he's unzipped the leg off his hiking pants and is wiggling around doing a rain dance waving his head, flapping his arms and stomping at bees. If I had the video it would have gone viral.

Oh well, no such luck. So as he calms down I get a closer look and couldn't tell so I ask "is that the stinger in your leg?". What Denny said next scarred me pretty bad. Unfortunately I can't post it. He's too nice of a guy and people say the darnedest things under pressure...

Luckily Denny got out of the whole ordeal with only one sting and we decided it was best to leave the peak pronto. Heading down is pretty steep for about five or ten minutes then it's not bad.

Approaching the snake cairn cause there is no such thing as a duck cairn I slowed down and proceeded very slow with extreme caution. Slow step by slow step I'm examining the terrain. As I'm virtually in the same spot saying "see it could behind this rock or this..." when outta friggen nowhere Denny yells blood murder! Actually in a stern raised voice behind me "gawd he's in the same spot!". Knowing I'm in THE spot I didn't look down, about ten million thoughts ran through my mind. I decided to jump and run. About three miles down the trail, probably more like a hundred feet I slow down and start thinking that dirty pumpkin!

Well Denny doesn't lie and I should have never doubted. Sure enough that friggen snake moved six to eight inches to gain the shade of a rock... still coiled... still nary a move or whisper. Denny found two snake skins on the hike and believes he was in some phase of moulting.

Albeit a short hike my nerves got elevated a few times and likely compounded by lack of sleep too. Thanks for another cool hike Denny. I like going through downtown Wickenburg too, it's a cool town. We listened to Marshall Trimble explaining the Jail Tree Felon.