We will have one comfortable day this weekend when the temperatures drop to 66°H/47°L on Sunday.
Where are we? Well, we are about halfway between Phoenix and Flagstaff and about a mile east of Interstate 17, camping out in the middle of the desert on BLM land for FREE.
We are saving the hike for the coolest of the three days we have here, meaning Sunday. Until then we'll just chill (as much as you can in a desert) and watch for the cars and trucks that slip passed our campsite on their way higher up into the desert looking for their own camping spot.
As I'm writing this post I'm looking out the windows for some of the wildlife that calls Agua Fria National Monument home, like coyotes, bobcats, antelope, mule deer and javelina. But the only thing we've spotted so far is one lone bunny rabbit, I guess we are too far away from their water source.
At 3:00PM today Tricia went out on a 30-minute afternoon walk and was talking with her friend in Jacksonville, FL. This is usually done every morning, but with a 3-hour time difference between AZ and FL it makes more sense than getting up at 4:30AM to talk before her friend as to start work.
Here are some photos she took during her afternoon walk.
You don't need it, until you need it! I'm so glad we have the hatch to open this weekend.
We exited THE POD at 8:35AM with the temperature at a mild 70°F and when we returned at 9:45AM the temperature had risen to a comfortable 71°F. Pair that with a pretty steady 5-10MPH wind and you've got what I consider the perfect day for a hike.
A couple more stats from our hike today:
1) From THE POD's front door to the Agua Fria River bed and back = 1.8-miles round trip
2) There was a 95' elevation change between the starting point and the turn around point
BADGER SPRINGS TRAIL
AGUA FRIA NATIONAL MONUMENT
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The trail started with a pretty substantial gate at the trailhead.
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After that there weren't any other markers to let you know you're still on the trail.
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Although it wasn't too hard to see where you were supposed to go.
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When in doubt, just walk down the middle of the dry sandy wash leading to the river.
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Saguaro Cactus is not something I expected to see today on the trail.
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This is the end of the wash where it meets the Agua Fria River.
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Although today there was no water in the river bed, just debris, rocks and sand.
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While at the point were the wash and the river meet you should look over your left shoulder...
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...and locate the petroglyphs on the rock face of that mountain.
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There are several large panels covered in petroglyphs.
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What is that growing out of the crack in the rocks?
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I believe it could be a "baby" saguaro cactus.
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This clump of Prickly Pear Cactus is closer to blooming than what we have near THE POD.
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Looks like these are going to be pink in color.
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That tall skinny cactus is a juvenile Saguaro which won't grow arms until it's 50-75 years old.
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This plant is called Tree Cholla and it too is close to blooming.
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This Tree Cholla will soon be covered in pink blooms.
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Time to head back! This is where the trail crosses the wash from the right to the left.
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We looked this guy up online and identified it as a Desert Stink Beetle.
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Not sure what this is called, but it sure is pretty!
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I recognize that gate, we're almost home.
That cell phone tower is just over a mile away with absolutely zero obstructions.
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