I was going to go for an early ride with a bike group here in Phoenix, but since the theme of the visit is vacation, I decided to sleep in and do another trail ride on the mountain bike. I did an easy 25k with less then 1000 feet of climbing. Great trails also in the Phoenix Mountain Park.
After I got back and cleaned up we decided to go down to Squaw Peak for a hike up to the top of that mountain. It is about 1.2 miles from the parking lot trailhead to the peak 1400 feet up.
It is a true example of the Nature's Stair Master as very little of the hike is along a trail but stepping up to a new rock each time.
Once we got to the top a short rest was in order. This trial is very popular. There were probably 20 people resting at the top. Numerous people of all descriptions were seen going up and down the peak.
We did have a bit of excitement on the way down. Cat spotted two different lizards, which I think were COMMON CHUCKWALLAs (Sauromalus ater). They appeared to be eating the vegetation on the sides of the trail in the rock crevices. One of them was quite impatient with our blocking his path across the trail to get to some other vegetation. It appeared to attack us, so we thought, as it tried to run across the trail. The Chuckwalla is quite comical when it is running. It appears as if a switch is thrown that starts the legs moving, very fast. When it is on the ground it moves fast, bouncing around, going up into the air and in erratic directions. It did add to the excitement of the hike. One guy was telling us they were Gila Monsters. You meet all kinds out on the trail.
In the morning, we are going to head up north to Sedona and Jerome. The Red Rock is calling and we must go.
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