Hooping on Humphrey's

I decided that I wanted to do a trek across the Andes in Peru this fall. In preparation, I decided to hike Humphrey's Peak again. I figured that this would help prepare me for the altitude, but also give me a chance to test out the new pack and decide how many layers I would need, since there was still snow up there.


When I got to the saddle, I decided not to approach the summit, since there were 50+ mph winds and I really wanted to save my strength to climb over the snowdrifts on the way back down. While I was waiting for the rest of my group to return, I hooped it up!
Maybe I should have saved that energy for the trip down. Instead, I slipped on ice and tumbled down the side of the mountain. Luckily, my 4 layers of fleece cushioned my fall and my backpack slowed me down, so I didn't get hurt. (other than a few bruises)

Trail Stats:

	Distance Round Trip	10.25 miles
	Trailhead Elevation	9320 feet
	Elevation Gain	3313 feet
	Avg Time Round Trip	5 - 6 hours

Watson Lake, Prescott AZ

The hiking group headed up to Watson Lake near Prescott to hike the Peavine Trail. However, we made a slightly wrong turn and ended up on the Lakeshore Trail instead.

The tail took us around a few wetlands areas before turning towards the granite dells.

We had fun climbing up the various granite rock formations and looking at the blue lake below.





Shhhh.....no waking me for the entire lake......

On the way back, we found this snake alongside the trail.

Trail Stats:

	Distance One Way	2 miles
	Trailhead Elevation	5198 feet
	Elevation Gain	100 feet
	Avg Time One Way	1+ hours

Black Mesa-Hackberry Springs Loops (Superstitions)

All bundled up at the start of the hike. Hopefully 4 layers plus hat and gloves will be warm enough.
Can you believe that it snowed in the Phoenix area in April?
An hour into the hike, I'm brave enough to remove my hat ... but not my gloves. My hiking buddies have already stripped down to short sleeves.
Two hours into the hike and a snack break. My gloves come off :-)
OK, I only took the gloves off to make it easier to eat. My hands were still cold!
7 miles into a 10.6 mile hike and the windbreaker finally came off. Will 3 layers be warm enough?
A few of the hills.
Such grace! I hate going downhill!
I'm not a fan of stream crossings... especially when there's water and you have to cross the SAME stream 20X!
Only 1 mile left to go!

Trail Stats:

	Distance Round Trip	10.5 miles
	Trailhead Elevation	2300 feet
	Elevation Gain	480 feet
	Accumulated Gain	1125 feet
	Avg Time Round Trip	6 hours

Arizona Snow!

Coming back from a weekend trip to Vegas, we were treated with this beautiful view of snow covered mountains surrounding Lake Mead.
We stopped near Chloride, AZ to get out and play in the snow for a little bit.

Ford Canyon - White Tanks near Phoenix

It was a beautiful January weekend, so I decided to hike Ford Canyon in the White Tank mountains with Dennis. He was familiar with the trail, but I hadn't been before.
I laugh in the face of danger!
The canyon was very pretty, although the pools were rather green and murky.



It was a little longer than I was ready for, so I was quite tired at the end. Next time I'll work my way up to the longer hikes!

Trail Stats:
Distance (one way) = 7.4 miles - we hiked it as a loop w/ about 11 miles
Trailhead Elevation = 1615 feet
Elevation Gain = 1410 feet
Avg Time (as loop) = 5 hours