Rainy days and Mondays

We all need a down day now and then, today with the rain is ours. We did our shopping and I spent a good part of the day reading. We did get in a long hike (around 4 miles) last night and it was a perfect evening for it. The treasure Loop Trail took us up to the northern base of the Superstition Mountains near some rock formations called the Praying Hands. At this point our thoughts turned to Marilyn N. with a prayer for her recovery. That covers much of the main hiking available in Dutchman State Park. Tomorrow, Monday, we move on.

Lost Dutchman State Park, lost forever

We decided to spend a few nights in Lost Dutchman State Park which is one of the many State Parks in AZ slated to close this June due to State budget cuts. It sits adjacent to Tonto National Forest at the base of the Superstition Mountain range. The story goes that during the gold rush, over 3 million in gold was taken from the area, and a German immigrant discovered the mother load. He was unable to return to the claim and at his death they found a few pieces of gold and some crude maps. Several people have tried to find the mine, and many have perished in the attempt.

With a beautiful 70+ degree day we decided to hike the Flatiron trail up high into the Superstition range today. The hike took 4.5 hours and proved to be a good challenging hike. We did not summit the Flatiron but came as close as we wanted to go because the last 1000 feet was more of a climb on all fours. The basin we reached was just above a waterfall and the views were spectacular.

Clay Mine at Cave Creek

Cave Creek Regional Park is known for it's clay mine. The mines in the area were originally dug in search of gold but a fine white clay was found to have medicinal uses, think Malox. The clay was sold as an elixir for all ailments but was really only good for dysentery.

We are always amazed at how the cactus can find a place to grow almost anywhere so we're keeping a photo record of the strangest cactus.

Cave Creek Regional Park

It's a good thing we headed south as Sedona received snow and cold this past weekend. The park we landed in is Cave Creek Regional Park north of Phoenix. As with all the Maricopa Regional Parks, it is well managed with nice facilities, well marked trails, plenty of activities and best of all, this one has horse back riding. I took an hour ride and had a blast.

It rained our first day in the park so we took a drive around the area to see how it compared with the other parts of Phoenix. It is an area that is developing and the homes seem to be on the high side. We found a Petsmart and purchased a scratching post/cat bed for Blue. He loves to play with the feathers hanging from the side and will sleep in the bed but has yet to figure out the scratching part. As cats go, he is not bad when it comes to scratching but any scratching is too much for Gary. We also discovered the funky little town of Cave Creek with it's old fashion western store fronts and galleries. There was a craft show going on when we walked the town center but the rain made it difficult to get any shots of this busy little town.

Last night as we walked the park at sunset we could hear a single coyote calling on the hill north of our camp ground. In the night he moved into our site and was barking for company to join him in a meal. I think he smelled the fish dinner we cooked outside last night and was hoping for a little fish treat to share. This morning I woke at sunrise and noticed 5 balloons floating over the hills just south of the campground, very peaceful.

Salt Mines and Vino

We stumbled into a salt mine that's been in existence as far back as the native Americans that lived in the area. In most cultures, salt has played a key part in trade and wealth of those who gather the salt. Walking through the mine turned up some nice white crystals. Just a few miles down the road we found a road with three local vineyards. I had to try the local grape which in my opinion was just OK. As the weather changes we will move to lower country. Our next destination, another regional park north of Phoenix in Cave Creek. As for Blue, traveling seems to be going well.

Montezuma Castle and Well

Yesterdays exploration included Montezuma Castle and Well. The name came from a group of early settlers that thought the origin of the magnificent structure to be Aztec, but Montezuma was never in the area. The 5 story, 20 room dwelling sits 100 feet above the valley floor. The inhabitants used ladders to climb to the rooms. Sinagua indians lived in the local pueblos around 1100AD. Just a short drive down the road we found a sink hole formed long ago by the collapse of an underground cavern. Montezuma well is spring fed by 4 springs 56 feet below the surface that deposit 1.5 million gallons everyday of 74 degree water. The water exits the well through a cave 300 feet long, emerging in an area where the native Sinagua's created irrigation ditches to the valley floor where they grew crops. There are several small pueblos in and around the well if you look close at the picture.

Something blue in the red rocks

Well we picked up a little something special in the Red Rock town of Sedona. Gary and I can't go without our kitty fix so we stopped into the local shelter and found a little cat. He is around 7 months, 8pounds 2 ounces and possibly a mix of Russian Blue and Siamese. The ride back to our rig was a little frightening but he spent the night laying on top of our heads purring. With his yellow/gold eyes and silver blue coat, the name came naturally.

Meet Blue

Sedona Red Rocks

Sedona lives up to the hype with beautiful vistas and beautiful people. It's a fun little town with expensive touristy shops, but it's really all about the red rock that surrounds the city. It is an expensive town so we are staying just 16 miles away in Dead Horse Ranch State Park. It makes a great base camp for which to explore the area. The one photos shows our rig and you can see the town of Jerome on the mountain behind the rig.

Tuzigoot, Jerome and the Mingus Pass

Todays trip to Jerome reminded me of Bisbee. This funky little town sits half way up the Mingus mountain at 5023 feet and like Bisbee was a copper mining town. The difference is each resident and business has a spectacular view of the Verde Valley. We had a tasty hamburger and drove over the mountain pass. At it's highest point, the pass hits 7023 feet and has a winter coating of clean white snow. 15 miles and 150 curves in our little car was quite a drive.

On our way back to the campground we noticed a national monument, Tuzigoot so we stopped take a look. As we climbed the ruins I noticed that our campground was just across the river. I had taken a picture of the ruins the evening before. The ruins were home to the Sinagua Indians around 700 AD. Tomorrow, Sedona, I hope Gary can take all the galleries.

Just a reminder, you can enlarge a picture by clicking on it.