Any and all of the trails you mentioned are well worth the trip. None will disappoint. Up Thomas Point and down Telephone (hard to find unless you have GPS points) is one of my favorite loops. The telephone trail and the Windows is way cool! http://hikearizona.com/photoset=16181 Harding Springs/Cook...

azbackpackr wrote:I'm more concerned about the coyote than about the people and their dog

+1

SuperstitionGuy wrote:you will have a dead battery in your HAZ ride 7.5 times

Not if you use a battery certified for... Oh, never mind...

Now what about that McDowell Mileage Estimate??

I've not seen too many snakes on the trails, but I'm pretty sure they've seen me...

My first Rim to Rim. We started on the north rim and took 3 days to get to the south rim. I was 18, and my 75 year old grandfather was on his 2nd beer when I hit the top of the south rim having beat me to the top by 45 minutes. That was his last R2R. Lots of memories there.

The fire near Willard Springs between 89a and I-17 seemed to have grown substantially over the weekend too. Sunday it looked like there were two main sources of smoke.

Because my family owns property across the creek from Call of the Canyon (West Fork), I was able to use a 'private' trail to get a peek at the opening to West Fork. Honestly the damage appears to be minimal, low intensity, healthy ground clearing. The area around the signage near the old lodge/chick...

azbackpackr wrote:I see a pretty big one at Grand Canyon almost every day, on the way to Grandview

This guy?
http://hikearizona.com/photo=155384

I remember finding wild strawberries on the SF Peaks when I was younger.

Outdoor Lover wrote:Dispersed Camping in the Pinalenos can be had in some spots

Pam, don't you dare give away the location of the Hubbard Hilton Mnt Graham!
http://hikearizona.com/photo=281115

Posted [almost] identical photos from 3 diffent cameras - a cheapy PnS (Nikon Coolpix), an entry level DSLR (Nikon D3100), amd a high end full frame (Sony a99). you be the judge, do I suck or is it just the camera?

“Your first 10,000 photographs are your worst.” Not too sure about that... Sometime your first few are the best - Then you start thinking you're a hotshot photographer that Nat Geo should swoop up, and you start over-analyzing the shot instead of just clicking. In doing so you miss some of the best...

Since my original posting I've upgraded again, this time to a Sony a99 full-frame (a true 35mm DSLR). The clarity is beyond outstanding, my D3100 can't come close, even with the most careful manual focusing. The drawback is it's HEAVY. I love Sony products, but for PnS, I don't think you can be the ...

I was just up in Oak Creek, and to be honest, I don't think the Slide fire was overly devastating (and this comes from someone who HATES wildfires). Just north of Slide Rock on the west side of the creek there is some pretty good burn, but it did not total destroy everything. It looks like there was...

kingsnake wrote:hot dogs can be eaten cold.

:yuck: ut:

I can't see how anybody could not have a Clue.... Tell that to the idiot(s) who started the Slide fire... Why on EARTH would anyone need a fire in the middle of the day just north of Slide Rock? To cook their friggin' hot dogs? That being said, who knows what caused the Slide Fire, it seems odd tha...

My sister lives on the east side (Speedway/Houghton area) and reported a downpour with the sun shining in the afternoon!

I always remember Lake Mary being just like your photos. Even "floaties" when you look into the water from the boat. Hard to believe Flag gets (or used to get anyways) a lot of their drinking water from there, and it was always clear and very tasty!

I grew up in Flagstaff and can never remember Lake Mary looking anything other than murky. In the years when the lower lake would fill it was a pretty site!