Going Hiking! Part II

First, let me say my intent was not to leave everyone hanging about the rest of my hike.  It was mostly that I ran out of time to finish it!  So not to worry, thankfully nothing bad happened,  we weren't attacked by an ancient tribe of lost Apache Indians, nor did we fall off the side of the mountain and we didn't find the lost gold either.  We did, however, learn a few things about hiking in the Superstitions!

Part II

What WERE we thinking?

 The day of our hike was a typical sunny and beautiful Arizona day.  It was to be the hottest day of the year so far with temperatures climbing to 87 degrees.  No matter, we started around 10:30 in the morning and it was quite comfortable.  

About fifteen minutes into the hike you come across this sheet of rock to climb that hardly looks like a trail.  

 

This photo is looking back down the canyon where we came from.  Our truck is parked somewhere behind the ridge jutting out on the right side of this picture.  

 The trail ahead.  Rocky and climbing.

Lichen growing on the rocks.

At this point of the trail, there are small, shady spots of pinyon and mesquite trees that provide a welcome place to rest.  It was here that we ran into a large group of young school kids and adults in the middle of a field trip, coming back down off the mountain.  Our inquiry to one of the adults indicated that the 'top' of the trail was only about 45 minutes farther.  

This was about as far as we had made it seven years ago with Mr. Fix-it's teenagers in tow.  I remember being disappointed with them because we were so close to the top and I really wanted to make it.  That was also, pre-knee replacement and yet I was determined to go on if they hadn't protested so much.  But....I turned around with them and left the mountain making the kids happy and leaving my goal behind. 

 On this hike, we hadn't planned on going to the top.  Mr. Fix-it just wanted to get into the interior of the mountain, be in the middle of the desert and take in the beauty, enormity and solitude of it all.  True, we bantered back and forth coming up the trail that maybe we should just go on to the top while we were here. 

But here we were, in this nice shady spot and supposedly only 45 minutes away from the top and a most rewarding vista.  Do we go on?  Well, those Junior High school kids had done it.....no doubt we could too!   

Hmmm...lets see, we have one bottle of water each left and one power bar to share.  Should we.....or shouldn't we?   Oh yeah, and we are both about 50 lbs overweight and not old, but not young.  We both have knees that aren't the best either.  And it's getting warmer out too.  

So taking all that into account....did we or didn't we?  

Stay tuned!

Going Hiking! Part I

It started out innocently enough.  My baby brother and Mr. Fix-it flew out together for a week.  Unexpected....and thankfully, due to a cheap air fair not normally seen at this time of year.  

Baby brother was going to stay with dad so Mr. Fix-it and I could take some day trips and spend much needed time together.  (As long as dad's insulin needles were pre-filled...baby brother faints at needles!)


Mr. Fix-it couldn't wait to get back here.  "I want to go hiking into the Superstitions"  he said.   "Fine by me",  I said.

 The Superstition Mountains, or 'Supes' as called by locals, are a massive mountain wilderness area in the Tonto National Forest, comprised of 160,200 acres.  It is an area steeped in mystery and stories of lost gold.  Legend has it that Jacob Waltz, a German immigrant, relocated to Arizona in the 1860's and is purported to have found an extremely rich vein of gold somewhere in the Superstitions.  He is said to have told only one person where the mine was located, Julia Thomas.  Ms. Thomas, from Phoenix, is said to have cared for Waltz in his last days.  She mounted a a search after the Dutchman's death to locate the mine but was never successful.  


Nor have those that have followed!

Many deaths have occurred in the area over the years due to the vast, rugged and inhospitable, though beautiful, terrain.  As recently as last summer, three gold hunters from Utah lost their lives searching for the legendary Lost Dutchman Gold Mine.  Though extensive air and ground searches were made, their bodies were not found until a month ago, when a well seasoned Superstition hiker got off the beaten path into an area even he had never discovered before.  There, he stumbled upon the unfortunate gold hunters.  

I've been enamored with the beauty of the Superstition Mountains for twenty-one years when I first laid eyes on them.  In particular, the Flat Iron mountain area.  Old timers thought the mountain had the shape of an iron.  Today, more modern pioneers have dubbed it the Battleship or Ship Rock.  It is this end of the mountain that many of the legends were born.  

My cousin first introduced me to the Mountain twenty one years ago when she took me there to hike the Peralta Trail.  We hiked to the peak to a most gorgeous vista and I vowed I would hike it again one day.   Seven years ago, Mr. Fix-it and his kids and I tried to hike it again but the kids, teenagers at the time, gave out and we never made it to the top.

So....when the morning came last week for Mr. Fix-it and I to have a whole day to ourselves, it was kind of a no-brainer to go to the trail we were both familiar with.  
  
Mr. Fix-it grabbed our walking sticks, a couple of waters, backpack, a power bar, camera.  Off we went, happy as clams to be together and free for a day.

 

Such a stunning view to be greeted by as we headed up the trail.  Little did we know (but should have!) how the rest of the hike would unfold!

Stay tuned for Part II

Remind Me?

This is why I love Arizona

 

And this....

 

And even this.....

BUT......

I am not fond of the rather large scorpion found on my living room wall.

Nor do I care for the rattlesnakes that are coming out of dormancy right now.

However....

I guess that is the trade off I make for not having to live in the snow covered and frigid midwest during the winter.

Dottie and Mr. Fix-it

Hi everyone, Dottie here!  Thought I'd sneak in a minute and get on mom's blog.

I have company!!   Mom's 'friend', (she calls him Mr. Fix-it) came back in town to see me.  Mom said he came to see her but I know he missed me and wanted to come back just for me!

 See....you can tell by the way he hugs me how much he loves me!!  And mom said it is really unusual for him to come to visit twice in the winter so I know it was for me!  Mom tried to tell me it was because he found a really cheap flight and that he misses mom but I really don't think so! 

It's me.....all about me!!!

Dottie on Rug Hooking

Dottie at the keyboard.  Mom says she is trying to get something called a Migraine so she said it was ok if I got on her blog!

Mom's been awfully busy lately with lots of dogs coming and going.  Some for grooming, some for day board and some for long-term boarding like my friend George.

George is adopted like I hope to be one day.  His forever parents went on a two-week cruise to Hawaii.  George misses them and is anxious for them to come home.  I heard mom say they will be back in six days so I told George and he was happy!


I am feeling so much better since my bad teeth got pulled.  Mom says I still need to work a little bit harder on my house training issues so I can have full run of the house.   

This is my favorite place...mom's bed.  She wanted me to get up so she could make it but I asked if I could stay in bed just a little longer and she let me!

Now that I have settled in a bit more, mom has been working on her rug hooking again.  

 She finished this one last night and I heard her say all she has to do is bind the edges.

 

 I think it looks like a nice comfy thing to cuddle up on don't you!   

But mom said no!

She hardly ever says no to me!!

What's up with that!?

I'm going to snuggle with mom in bed.

Dottie out! 

 

An Old West Saloon Visit

You can't come to the West without visiting an old time Saloon.  This replica inside the Apacheland barn at the Superstition Mountain Museum fits the bill!

 Saloons were a fixture in every old west town.  They provided food, drink, and entertainment for many a weary cowpuncher or drifter as well as the locals.

Entertainment meant anything from various gambling games to brightly dressed and over rouged women of the night shamelessly displaying shoulders and ankles!

Many weary cowpokes simply wanted to belly up to the bar and whet their whistles after a long and dusty cattle drive.  

Saloons were more often than not the scene of angry arguments that usually did not end well.  And of course, there were always the church going ladies of the town that frowned on the very existence of a Saloon!

If I'd lived back then, I don't think I'd have been one of those do-gooder prohibitionist type females but I also wouldn't have been a lady of the night!  I would probably have fallen somewhere in the middle, curious and peering over those swinging saloon doors trying to get a look at what was going on in there.  What about you??

 

Horse Wear!

Thought I would post a couple of pictures of horse gear from 'back in the day' on display at the Superstition Mountain Museum.  Enjoy!

 Military saddle used in the War of 1812

Mexican saddle, age unknown

 Pack saddle, not for riding (thank goodness!).   This type of saddle was used on a second horse or mule that was pulled along behind the horse being ridden.  Supplies and sundries would be loaded and tied onto it.  

  Though not riding bridles, these particular headstalls, yokes and reins were used on horses and mules that pulled wagons and buggies. 

Like this one for instance.  Ranchers would drive the wagon to town to fill up on goods from the local mercantile. 

Can you imagine having to drive a horse and wagon to town to do your shopping?!?!?  What a job just to get ready to go....not like jumping in a car and turning the key!  I certainly wouldn't go to town every day like I do now if I had to hook up a wagon and team of horses!