The neighbor’s kids
Yesterday, I included a photo of the momma owl we see out our front window. Today I’ll show the babies:
Photo copyright ©2009 by Nikki Ahrens.
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Apache Junction, AZ, Carefree Manor RV Park, owl
Entries Tagged as 'Arizona'
Our neighbors
There’s an owl family across the street from us in a palm tree:
Photo copyright ©2009 by Nikki Ahrens.
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Apache Junction, AZ, owl
Fremont Saddle, Superstition Wilderness
Yesterday we hiked up to Fremont Saddle. The trailhead is at about 1800 feet, with the saddle at 3640 feet elevation, so it was about 1800 feet of elevation gain in about 2.25 miles. And the car said 90 degrees when we got back to the parking lot!
The views along this trip were awesome, well worth the trip.
Although not out fully yet, the desert is blooming.
The Saguaro cacti provide a green contrast to the rock wall and blue sky.
View back down the canyon from the saddle. Notice how green it is.
Loved these rocks stacked one on another, like a giants cairn.
Over the back side of the saddle, you look into a bowl with the Weaver’s needle rising 1200 feet from the floor of the bowl.
A bonus shot of the trail along the canyon wall. A blue sky behind. Again, notice how green everything is. The desert got a wet winter, so the spring is spectacular.
Photos copyright ©2009 by Nikki Ahrens. All rights reserved.
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Saguaro, Superstition Mountain, Tonto National Forest, Fremont Saddle, Weaver’s Needle
Hike to Hackberry Spring, Superstition Wilderness
Last Sunday we hiked to Hackberry Spring. Well, that was the plan. Except we didn’t find the spring. So we had a great hike past this abandoned farmyard (corral, loading chute, broken windmill and some fencing) down along the creek that goes through a pretty good canyon. At one point about 75 feet wide and 200 feet deep or so.
On the return trip we came back up the canyon and turned up a side gorge that bypassed the farmyard in favor of a hike up ravines, ultimately returning to the parking lot.
The first part of the trail was really an abandoned road that went over a ridge down into a bowl where the farmyard existed.
This stream went past the farmyard down into the canyon.
The stream enters the canyon.
A lizard. These guys are all over the place.
The red rock adds color to the desert landscape.
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Superstition Mountain, Tonto National Forest, Hackberry Spring
Massacre Grounds Trail: Superstition Mountains
We hiked the Massacre Ground Trail in the Superstition Mountains. This is a great hike, approximately 1.9 miles from the trailhead to a waterfall in the back of a canyon.
In Hikers Guide to the Superstition Wilderness: With History and Legends of Arizona’s Lost Dutchman Gold Mine
The spring wildflowers are coming out in the desert.
Cactus are also starting to bloom:
These next two, besides the sticks in the air, provide a view of the terrain off into the distance. Note the green. The desert is growing!
If we got the image correct, the base of this cliff is the Massacre Grounds. The black streaks down the red rock are where water tumbles off the cliff into a tiny stream below.
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Apache Junction, AZ, Superstition Mountain
Visit to Hieroglyphic Spring
We didn’t get all the way to the spring. Nikki fell on a wet rock, so we headed back out, but it was a fabulous hike and a beautiful canyon. It’s also very green. Supposed to be a good spring flowers area in the spring, particularly after wet winters. We did see some fascinating orange flowers in the canyon, but they didn’t show very well in the photos.
Hiking up the trail:
A cacti and mountains are breathtaking.
Notice the petroglyphs on this rock.
Pool in rocks at base of the wall.
Looking across the pool down the canyon.
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Apache Junction, AZ, Cacti, Cholla, Saguaro, Superstition Mountain, Hieroglyph Spring
Tortilla Flat, AZ
We took a trip to Tortilla Flat, Arizona, on the old Apache Trail today. The town is one of the only authentic stage coach stop along the Apache Trail to survive the 1900s. It got its start during road construction to the Roosevelt Dam in 1904. Once established as a freight stop, it has remained inhabited ever since. Current population is six.
Interestingly, Tortilla Creek was running over the road. It had a plugged culvert forcing the water over the road at up to about six inches deep.
The original town was on the opposite side of the creek as the current town, so there are some remains, foundations and slabs, along with debris (rusted out cans, etc.) from earlier eras. Today, the town boasts a restaurant that serves “Arizona’s biggest hamburgers.” They are big and good. Also an ice cream parlor, and of course, the usual touristy things. Great fun.
Got my photo in this one.
Fascinating mountains around Tortilla Flat. The mountain road in reminded me of many mountain roads I’ve driven in the Pacific Northwest, except without the rain and trees.
The outhouse is out of order. Of course, we missed the picture possibility from the women’s restroom.
The town boardwalk.
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Ghost Towns, Tortilla Flat, AZ
Tombstone, AZ
Today we visited Tombstone, the town too tough to die. A lot happened in this town that made the news in its day, and played well on the silver screen since.
The town came about when it’s founder discovered silver. The first mine, the Good Enough mine, is open for public tours, which we availed ourselves of:
We went to Six-Gun City and saw a reenactment of various moments in history (mostly with guns).
This man took offense when others made fun of his wild shirts, which he had special ordered from the New York Fashion houses.
Another shoot-out.
Big nose Kate was Wyat Earp’s girlfriend. She didn’t actually have a big nose, she just stuck it into everybody else’s business, hence the nickname.
This applies to all politicians. No further comment required.
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Tombstone, AZ, Old West
Colossal Cave Mountain Park
We’ve come to Prince of Tucson RV Park in Tucson, Arizona for the Thanksgiving weekend. Arrived yesterday. After eating dinner at the Cracker Barrel, we drove around Tucson, to see if we could recognize anything from when we visited with Nikki’s parents who were snowbirds here at the time. We discovered Rincon Country West RV Resort, where they stayed (we weren’t sure, but since confirmed). We also drove up A-Mountain, which we had visited at the time.
Today we went out to Colossal Cave Mountain Park in Vail, AZ. It’s about 32 miles from the RV park, here. A great little trip. We took the tour of the cave.
After visiting the cave, we visited the ranch with some hiking trails and other interesting things to see and do. Of course, like most of the Sonoran Desert, we saw lots of Saguaro cactus, and other types.
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Saguaro, Tucson, AZ, Colossal Cave Mountain Park
Wickenburg, Arizona
We went up to Wickenburg today. It’s about 70 miles northeast of Phoenix of Highway 70 in the northern high Sonoran desert. We spent most of our visit at the Desert Caballeros Western Museum. For a small town, it has a very nice museum.
It has a pretty good western art collection, including a number of pieces by Charles Russell, a famous painter of the west from the late 1800s into the early 1900s. Of personal note, my Great-Grandfather knew him in Great Falls, Montana when my great grandfather was proprietor of the Ahrens Mercantile. My Grandfather had a book of Charlie Russell paintings signed by the artist.
The drive was interesting and we had a nice visit, seeing the land. We’ve got a couple of other places in the area to return to for another visit in the future.
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Wickenburg, AZ, Charles M. Russell
