This weekend we took a night and hung out on Mt Graham in Safford, Arizona.  It was very cool in the morning and as we rode up the road to go for a hike we watched the temperature drop into the mid 30′s.  There was still snow and the ground and the road was closed.

So, we turned around and went back to the lower trails.  We hiked for a few miles on the Lady Bug Trail.  It was very nice.  The dogs loved it.  Too bad Brandon’s tender little feet started to get cuts and scrapes on them.  We cut it short and went back for some rest and relaxation at the campsite.  Brad read some in the hammock while Deanna did homework in the camping chairs.

Today, John, Gail and I hiked to the top of Rincon Peak. We started on the trail around 8:00 AM. It was a very nice day and not too hot. We strolled at least at the start. Once we started going up, and up, and up and up it rally turned into a hike. This is a scenic hike that starts just outside of the Saguaro National Park and then stays within the park boundary for several miles.

We took a short break in Happy Valley and then started to really climb after that. The last mile of the trail to the peak is very steep so the stops and breaks became more frequent.

Once we finally made it, the views from the peak were awesome. We could see in every direction and there was a light breeze. We had lunch on top and started our journey down. Near the end we saw two deer as we were walking along the creek. The trip down went pretty quick and we made if back to the car around 6:00 PM.

Our First Hike Together . . . . This trip was awesome! We jumped in our new Jeep o­n Wednesday night and started our drive. We stopped in Casa Grande for some Arby’s and then drove until we were around the Prescott, Arizona area. We stopped for a nap at o­ne of the rest stops. We snuggled-up in our sleeping bags in the back of the jeep. After sleeping like babies, we finished our drive to Havasu Canyon. We arrived around 11 AM, which was a little later than we wanted. Oh well, we are always a little later than we want when we go o­n our trips.

The hike down the canyon was beautiful. We made a lot of stops and took it nice and easy. Partly to enjoy the scenery and partly to rest. This was the first time we backpacked together and it was quite tiring. We finally made it to the campsite after wearing our new headlamps for about 2 minutes. It is a good thing that they are pretty bright. When the sun goes down in the canyon, it is pitch black!

We grabbed the very first campsite that was available. O­ne more step could have killed us. O­nce we had everything set up we went right to bed and again, slept like babies.

In the morning, we woke feeling a little sore. We fired up the camping stove and made some pancakes with blueberries. They were dried blueberries, but still good. Camping food just always seems to taste good.

We just walked around the falls and took it very easy all day. I think we ate three times and took three naps too. The water was chilly, but we still took a little swim. We had to-it was a beautiful turquoise color (this is from the high lime content). We also took a few minutes to relocate our camp to a more enjoyable spot. We picked o­ne right next to the river with the awesome sound of running water. The last two naps were even better and then we slept the entire night looking forward to hauling our packs back up out of the canyon.

The morning came and it was time to head out. We stopped in the small village(Supi) o­n our way out and met a couple from Canada. They mentioned that they were going to have a horse haul their packs out so they could enjoy the scenery much more o­n the way out. This sounded like a great idea and it was just a coincidence that a horse could hold four packs. So we gave in a dumped the packs. The hike out was very nice. The last mile is full of switchbacks. Of course there was a lot to stop and look at in the last mile. I think we stopped at nearly every corner. Of course it was o­nly to take in the sights. Yeah, Right…

We finally made it to the top and started our drive home. We didn’t make it too far and decided to stop in Flagstaff to sleep in a cushy hotel bed. We limped up to our room and we each enjoyed a very long hot shower. We ordered some food, ate all of it, and fell into a deep sleep. I can’t remember ever sleeping so GOOD!

The drive home the next day was uneventful. We were just glad to be off our feet and o­n our way home. When we got home, Bailey and Brandon were there wiggling and waiting for us. They missed us as much as we missed them.