Hiking the Desert Around Yuma, Arizona

While here in Yuma we were lucky to meet Steve, a Master Naturalist, who offered to take a group from the RV park where we are staying on a guided hike on the Painted Desert Trail in the Imperial National Wildlife Refuge located just north of here:

Our fearless. and very knowledgable, leader:

Steve

When he retired, Steve went back to school to become a naturalist and conducts hikes like this on a volunteer basis. A very interesting man - we meet so many interesting people living this lifestyle.

We started out walking up a wash between the mountains:

A wash is an area or channel that is created when flooding occurs in the desert. This part of the desert was formed many millions of years ago by volcanic activity. The different colours in the rock are caused by the lava hardening at different rates.

Volcanic Rock Mountains

The narrow rock column in the photo below is a lava tower. It was formed when lava shot out of a vent in the volcano and cooled and hardend very quickly and plugged the vent.

We climbed up the mountains with a running commentary by Steve:

Which wasn't easy with such diverse levels of hiking skills (Steve is in the centre of this group). He did a great job.

Eventually we reached the two peaks you see at the upper right in the photo above:

And up and over we went.

At the top

And down the other side

Do you see the little people down in the wash?

All in all a great morning.

A few days later we learned the rangers in the Kofa National Wildlife Refuge in the Kofa Mountains were conducting a moonlight hike on the night of the full moon:

Kofa Mountains in the distance

It was dark, of course, and my camera does not take good pictures a night so I will just add a couple:

It was a rare cloudy night in the desert but the moon did peek in and out of the clouds.

The park emloyee who conducted the hike did an excellent job telling us about the wildlife and plants in the desert.

But mostly we just walked for about 2 miles and enjoyed the sights and sounds of the desert at night.

At the end of the hike I learned that Bill and Ann, Kofa Wilderness hosts, were at the back of our hiking group. I've read so much about them on several blogs, most frequently on the The Bayfield Bunch and RV Sue, and felt like I already knew them so I introduced myself and spent a few minutes chatting with them. They conduct hikes in the Kofa Refuge every Saturday and we planned to head up there the following Saturday to join them. Unfortunately I got a cold that lingered and lingered so we missed that opportunity and we are leaving Yuma shortly so it is an opportunity lost for now. Perhaps another year.

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Hiking the Lost Dutchman State Park

The Superstition Mountains have been a source of mystery and legend since early times. The area is dotted with ancient cliff dwellings and caves, many showing signs of former habitation by a number of different Native American groups, up until the 1800's. We visited the cliff dwellings on our drive through the mountains.

During the 1840's, the Peralta family of northern Mexico supposedly developed a rich gold mine in the Superstitions. According to legend, an Apache ambush ended the family's last expedition, and the gold remained in the area. In the 1870's, Jacob Waltz ("the Dutchman") was said to have located the mine with the aid of a Peralta descendant. Waltz and his partner, Jacob Weiser, worked in the mine and allegedly hid one or more caches of gold in the Superstitions.

After Waltz's death in 1891, several people attempted to seek out the Lost Dutchman's Mine, all without luck. Later searchers sometimes met with foul play or even death, contributing to the superstition and legend of these mountains.

So this seemed like an excellent spot to go for a closer look at the mountains. There are several hikes on the park's map with varying degrees of difficulty. We chose the Treasure Loop Trail - a 2.4 mile hike to an elevation of 2580 feet. Rated as moderate it seemed very do-able to us.

The "X" marks our goal

So we put on our hiking shoes, took water and a walking pole and off we went.

The saguaro cactus Arch is standing by is pretty scarred and pretty old. These huge plants are found only in Arizona and Mexico and weigh about 100 pounds per foot.

The views on the way up were spectacular:

And the trail was very well groomed:

X marks the top of the trail

And there were a couple of rest spots

But near the top it got pretty tricky:

Phew! We made it:

Top of the trail

The way down was much easier:

But you still need to be careful and the walking pole helps a lot. We bought the poles at a swap meet (the Arizona term for a flea market) for $7 each. And so far they seem to be every bit as good as the $100 a pair ones we buy in Canada. Time will tell.

We met these horseback riders on their way up:

That is the state park camp ground in the left of the picture. You can just see the top of the RVs parked there. A beautiful spot.

The views in this area are so vast and spectacular. One never gets tired of them. So different from the "small and incredibly beautiful" landscapes we are accustomed to in Nova Scotia.

Half-way down the trail. 

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The Old Folks go for a Walk

I am so far behind in blog posts I just realized that I missed one. This story should appear before "Traveling with Friends". Oh well!! Here it is now.

While we were visiting with Arch's family in Truro his sister Grace suggested we go for a morning walk in Victoria Park. Located in the heart of Truro this is an amazing spot to discover in an urban setting. It has everything you could ask for in a park:

There is a huge picnic area plus lots of smaller picnic spots tucked away within the park:

There are the usual baseball and soccer fields, tennis courts, etc and of course an outdoor swimming pool:

tucked in behind the trees

And a bandshell for outdoor concerts:

But, for us, the main attraction is the miles of hiking trails through the forest. We chose to take the trail to "the falls" - about a mile or so long. There are two ways to get there - a high trail thats takes you up over a very large hill and the trail we took, along Leeper's (read frog's) Brook.

Along the way there is the option to climb to the higher trail via "Jacob's Ladder"

there is another level to this stairway that you cannot see.

And various spots on the brook have interesting names - the easier to tell someone where you are:

The Witches Cauldron

And at the end:

The Falls

The next morning we went back and decided to take the "high road" to the falls. It as quite a climb but really good exercise.

To go back we had to climb up to the route we took in and, for some reason, the up looked a lot more tricky that the down. Also, it was a very frosty morning and there were a lot of slippery spots on the trail and we thought a hand rail would be useful. So we decided to follow the mid-level trail back.

What we did not know was that this trail ended  - guess where? At the top of Jacobs Ladder!!!

Looking Down

So there we stood. Three old folks (two seventy somethings and an eighty year old) and one very tiny dog. Looking down.

What to do? what to do? Go back to the top of the slippery hill? Or go down the frosty ladder?

We chose the ladder. Arch went first, carrying Dash, Grace's dog, Then Grace, then me. I thought I would stay a bit behind to take a picture but it was too scary, so sorry, no more down photos.

It was a terrifying trip but, needless to say, we made it safely.

And, don't tell Grace's children about this excursion, they will kill her!!!

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The Accidental RVers at Polly Cove, Nova Scotia

On the Sunday of Thanksgiving weekend we enjoyed a great turkey dinner with sister-in-law Lesley and her children and grandchildren:

Clockwise from left is Lesley's son Paul, Emily, Paul's partner Sarah (expecting their first child in November), Renee, Lesley, Lesley's son David (Emily and Renee's dad) David's wife Heather and Arch.

Then, on Thanksgiving Day, a family hike.

Polly Cove is a spot near Peggy's Cove, Nova Scotia, few people know about. It has always been our go to spot for a challenging and rewarding hike and on Thanksgiving Day we set out to introduce it to some of our family members.

This is a beautiful area of Nova Scotia so I am including lots of photos. To enlarge the photos simply left click on them.

While it is relatively unknown to have the place to yourself  it is always best to go early in the morning. So at 9 am we set out with 6 adults, 1 teen and 6 children. It was a glorious morning for a hike. Warm sun and a cool air temperature.

When we arrived the kids raced to the rocks:

If you hike in this area the unwritten rule is: stay on the granite or follow the already the already made paths. The terrain is very fragile and it's biggest enemy is people.

About one half a kilometer into the hike you come to this old foundation:

I've asked several people and no one seems to know exactly why it is there. Some say that someone started to build a house there without a permit and was stopped. Others say it was a radio post during WWII. And there is the belief that it was a lookout to watch for German submarines during the war. So, who knows.

Whatever, the view from here is spectacular:

Our hike continues by scrambling down the giant boulder in front of Arch (above) and then following a trail through the low brush. But first, it has started to warm up a bit, time to start shedding some layers of clothing:

This is my niece, Rebecca and her husband, Gord. Three of the children are theirs. Behind Rebecca, you can see our destination in the distance.

But first a stop to explore and climb boulders at "the cliff".

This photo will give you an idea how large the boulders are, and why we call the area the cliff:

Oliver thinks he is the king of the world up there.

This is Indy. I think this falls under the category of "dogs will be dogs"

Indy was named after Indiana Jones because he is her master's favourite movie character and he had been told that the dog was a male. It was some time after she arrived before anyone thought to check and realized she was a "she". 

Then it is on to find a picnic spot:

Aaaah perfect:

While waiting for lunch Ruby heads out to explore and finds a small waterfall:

Which mom has to come and check out:

I think I better mention that the ocean is a fair distance from where we are and the kids are in no danger. Also, they spend a lot of time around the ocean and know to respect its power.

And a yummy picnic lunch was enjoyed by all:

The man in the stripped sweater is my nephew Joe and beside him, his wife, Sharelyn. Four of the children are theirs. 

And all together you have this motley crew:

After lunch the kids and Arch went boulder climbing while some of us sat back and enjoyed the sun. 

Then it was time to head back . With a brief rest stop at the foundation:

All in all it was a great wind up to a fun Thanksgiving weekend.

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The Accidental RVers Take in the Fall Colours at Ski Wentworth

Weather-wise it has been one of those fall weekends you dream of. Cool nights and warm sunny days. A great weekend to go outside and have fun. So we sandwiched Thanksgiving dinner between two great hikes. One planned, one not so much.

When we left the farmers' market on Saturday we headed out to the Wentworth ski area to take the cable car to the top of the ski mountain to see the fall colours. Sounded like a great idea and it was.

At 815 vertical feet high it is not really a very high mountain in Colorado/Alberta terms, but it is high enough to provide a great view of the surrounding area from the chair lift. Especially on the return ride to the bottom.

So we purchased a ticket and off we went.

You can see the trails on the map beside us. The trail on your left that swings way out around the mountain is called the Chickadee. This info will have significance later in this story.

We got on the chair and up we went. We noticed a few people walking down the mountain. What a good idea, we should do that sometime.

About halfway up the ride we noticed something

"Oh! Oh! Look Arch. There is no one coming down on the chair lift." Then it dawned on us - you are supposed to walk down.

We got off at the top and followed  the other folks heading off to walk down the mountain. You will notice behind me that we have a choice of two trails.

 The one on your left is called Explosion and is labeled as a double black diamond. Those among you who ski will know that this is the most difficult rating for a ski trail and is usually very steep. We chose the trail on your right.

The Chickadee trail I mentioned earlier. It is rated as easy and it was. But long. Halfway down we crossed Explosion.

The people you see near the top were on their hands and knees (or hands and bums) crawling down the hill. It was very steep. As for us we really enjoyed our 1 hour hike to the bottom of the mountain. An unplanned but very enjoyable walk.

Then a small reward for a job well done.

And off home, with a brief stop at the Masstown Market to pick up some goodies for our planned Thanksgiving Day hike/picnic and a bottle of good Nova Scotia wine for Thanksgiving dinner. What a crowded spot that was - I think half of Nova Scotia had the same idea.

Next post: Thanksgiving dinner and our picnic at Polly Cove.

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