Saturday, March 24/2012

Heading out to the trail

On the river

In Box Canyon

Sunset from our back yard

As usual, I am up early.  Hogan seems none the less for wear this morning after all his excitement last night and his wound looks clean although a bit puffy.
The sun is shining and I think I heard someone say last night that it should get up into the high 80s today so the ride should be awesome.
I heard today that one of my favourite ladies back in Leoville passed away yesterday and was saddened by the news.  She had been battling cancer for a few years so her death was not unexpected however it is always sad to lose someone you care about.  She was a special lady and I count myself lucky to have had the privilege to know her.
John and I will be taking the jeep today so that Hogan can go on the ride.  He loves to be part of the action and is not sitting in the back waiting for us to start the engine!!  The jeep is loaded and ready to go except for the beer cooler which is the last thing to be put on the rack.
Lorne and Marilyn arrived and we were off on another adventure.  This is the first time that Lorne and Marilyn have been on a side by side quad so it should be interesting for them.  We met Ray's sister Karen and her husband Duff at the designated spot and headed up the Hassayampa River bed to Box Canyon.  Once there, Hogan frolicked in the water and had a great time chasing the ball.  He is such a goof and in no time at all, he was pretty wet and sandy.  Of course we had to stop for refreshments along the way and today I am drinking beer and tomato juice which is tasting mighty fine!!
Duff took us up a trail that neither Ray nor John and I had travelled before and it was one of the best trails that we have ever been on in this area.  There were some pretty narrow spots along it but the jeep is not any wider than Karen and Duff's CanAm side by side so we had no problem navigating these sections.  There were a few areas where we climbed through rocky spots but once again it was the best trail to date.  We will have to remember this trail for when our boys come down - hopefully next year.
Although I did not see any wildlife (where was Marilyn's cougar today?)  the other folks did see a few lizards and rabbits.  There were a couple of Hedgehog Cactus in bloom and of course the Ocotillo were starting to bloom as well.  The scenery was incredible and one just can not get tired of seeing what this Sonoran Desert has to offer.
The trail eventually spit us out on Constellation Road which we followed back into town.  Back at the bus, we sat around for a bit enjoying the evening before Lorne and Marilyn returned to the Best Western hoping they still had a room for the night.  We didn't hear back from them so assumed that they were accommodated!!
Ray and Kay, and John and I continued to sit around the fire until Kay decided that she needed to shower off the trail dust.  When she came back to the fire she was smelling so good it made the rest of us smell like stinky old pole cats!!  I went and had a bath in my Tranquil Moments bubble bath and returned to the fire wearing my pink pyjama ensemble only to be laughed at, mocked and ridiculed!!  NO MERCY!!  I just didn't think that the looking like a crazy Ukrainian comment was necessary - John!!  There truly is NO MERCY around here.  So much for my "tranquil moments" around the fire!!
Eventually, Hogan and I retired to the bus while the others sat around the fire for a while longer.   It was a lovely evening with no wind.  All in all, it was an awesome day filled with lots of fun and laughter.  How blessed we are to be able to spend our days in this manner.