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| Hiking | 14.00 Miles |
520 AEG |
| | Hiking | 14.00 Miles | | | |
| 520 ft AEG | | | | |
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| no partners | | I have done this hike 2 times within the month of June. The most recent hike is was filled with adventure. I went with my brother Ian. He and I are outdoor enthusiasts who enjoy exploring off trail.
The hike back to the beautiful swimming area of Beaver Creek is 3 miles. It was warm. We started kind of late because we got to Camp Verde at around 12:30 in the afternoon so we welcomed the cold refreshing water of the creek. After 3 miles of trail pounding Ian and I had our lunch, did some cliff diving and swimming and then went exploring.
We took an inner tube up the creek with us. I hopped from rock to rock where I could, but when there were none to hop on, Ian pulled me on the inner tube so I didn't have to twist my ankle wading through the water with one shoe. While cliff diving I had lost one of my water shoes. While heading upstream we decided to branch away from the creek for more exploration. So there I was climbing over rocks with one barefoot and the other with a water shoe.
Then we came upon a small mesa atop the red rock cliffs where it looked as if someone had camped. There was a fire ring and a beautiful tree for shade. This is where I found a pair of old flip-flops that had been forgotten by one of the previous campers. They were a pair of men's leather thongs just sitting right next to tree. How funny! I was without one shoe and needing one and suddenly my need was met. Praise the Lord for listening  Then we found a carving within the rocks that looked to be old, but I wasn't sure. Later that day, when describing our adventures to my mom she told me that the Camp Verde area had a lot of Anasazi, so it is possible the that carving was "real."
Well, Ian and I kept up our adventure. While scanning the rocks for more carvings Ian looked up too see a hole high above us. He decided he wanted to investigate. I was without two good shoes so I said he should go ahead and let me know if there was anything interesting. I just didn't feel like climbing up the slippery soil and rocks to try and get to that area if there wasn't anything "worth my while." So Ian gets up to the cave and is crawling back into it, when suddenly he yells some profanity and hurries out of the dark hole. He exclaims that he has seen the biggest ladybug/scarab looking creature he has ever laid eyes on. He was in the cave and looked up to see this "thing." He didn't expect to find any living creatures and it surprised him. In every other small cave like this that we have explored we have never found an animal. Thus, I decided it was worth the effort to investigate, so I worked my way up to the cave very carefully and slowly. I was still wearing the mismatched shoes, LOL! As I approached the cave I stopped to listen for any movement and then slowly went inside. Ian was describing where to look for the "bug" while I was inside, but I couldn't find it. Then he came into the cave to show me the area where he saw it, and I looked up to see a huddled little brown and black creature. My heart jumped! I looked closer. "It's a bat!" I exclaimed. The poor little guy was sleeping and I had woken him up. He started to move away from me. He resettled himself and went back to sleep. Ian and I quietly observed him for a bit longer and then left to let him finish his slumber. I was so excited! This was the first bat I had seen up close in the wild. How cool! I said to Ian, "Oh we have to go back so I can get my camera. Mom will want to see pictures of the carving and the bat."
On our way back down the creek Ian was so nice to let me rest my feet while pushing me on the inner tube. It was very relaxing floating on the creek under the shade of the many trees. I told him I would return the favor on the way back. Once back at the swimming area I switched over to my hiking shoes and we headed back down the creek to get our pictures. I made sure to let my brother enjoy the same rest on the tube he had afforded me on our return. We came through the clearing of trees, both of us floating haphazardly on the tube laughing to ourselves over our great adventure. It was a wonderful day that we finished off with a bit more swimming and a 3 mile hike back to the car. |
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