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| Hiking | 3.50 Miles |
1,110 AEG |
| | Hiking | 3.50 Miles | 2 Hrs 40 Mns | | 1.31 mph |
| 1,110 ft AEG | | | | |
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| no partners | | It's been a bit warmer than I've been use to these last few days, but boy is it great to be back in Arizona  We sold our Minnesota home and will now make Apache Junction our home of residence, so no more of that 6 months here and 6 months there routine that we have been doing for the last 5 years.
My good friend Jerry gladly accepted my offer to assist me with loading the remainder of our Minnesota furniture and other indispensable 'stuff' into a 16' van and help with the driving chores. I would have had a tough time of it without his help so today he asked if we could get in a hike in the Superstitions before flying out later in the afternoon.
We woke up this morning to some pleasant overcast and lower temps so I suggested a hike up Siphon Draw as far as the Slick-Rock Basin. We began our hike from the Mining Camp parking lot a bit after 0600 under those overcast sky's with temps in the pleasant 80's and a light breeze to evaporate the sweat that was sure to come. We took our time on the slopes and stopped frequently so Jerry could examine his surroundings and enjoy the experience. Jerry has never been to Arizona but likened the hike and terrain to his last duty station in Greece (Jerry recently retired from the Navy after 26 years of service).
We arrived at the Basin around 0730 and took a short break before heading back down. As we descended, we began to run into hikers on their way up, we only encountered 5 hikers on the trails today, so we almost had the mountain all to ourselves. I wasn't too surprised to find how out of shape I was after only 3 months away from the mountains, but while back in Minnesota, my time was spent preparing to get my home for sale and I was unable to get in any hiking time..... Did I mention how happy I am to be back in AZ?
I was happy to see that all the painted directional arrows have been removed and have not reappeared.
There were some gnats along the way but only a slight nuisance. 
The Brittlebush is dry and yellowed, a stark departure from the lush green when I left this spring. 
Saw several Monarch Butterfly's enjoying some flowers on vines covering the catclaw. 
Saw a large green beetle noisily flying around and it lit on my pantleg, but before I could get my camera out, it left.
Saw lots of bees hanging around the plunge pool below the waterfall 
Had a great morning and I hope Jerry is able to get away from Minnesota to come out and enjoy some real hiking weather this winter.
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Wildflowers Observation Isolated
Not much to see out there, a few flowering Cacti still holding on. |
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| On every trip into the Superstitions, I find another Gold Mine. Today the mine was filled with Memories. I can not wait for the next trip. |
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Route Editor
Route Scout
