Charlie Stein's Photoblog

On our end-of-summer vacation to Flagstaff, we drove about 1/2 hour to visit the Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument. A relatively young volcano, it erupted around the year 1085, which was no doubt a shock for the ancestral Puebloans who lived in the area.

Sunset Crater Volcano

The cinder cone is about 1000′ high, being one mile wide at the base, and about 2250′ from rim to rim at the top. Hiking on the volcano itself is not allowed, but one can hike along its base. We opted to experience the 1 mile long Lava Flow Trail.

One can see that the cinder cone remains very barren, especially the dryer south-facing slope seen at the right of the photo.

Lava Flow Trail

Lava Flow Trail

Lava Flow Trail

All of the surrounding hills and mountains in the area are also volcanoes! Covering an area of 2,200 square miles, known as the San Francisco Volcano Field, there are more than 600 cinder cones in the areas. Sunset Crater volcano is the newest of the field, which has been inactive since that eruption.

The area of lava shown here is called a squeeze-up, formed as lave beneath the surface oozes through a crack int he lava crust, like toothpaste being squeezed from a tube.

Lava Flow Trail

Lava Flow Trail

Shaina on the Lava Flow Trail

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Lava Flow Trail

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Lava Flow Trail

After completing our visit to Sunset Crater Volcano, we drove along the Loop Road heading to Wupatki National Monument. We stopped for lunch and enjoyed the view:

Scenery from Loop Road

This is Mormon Tea (Ephedra viridis). Mormon pioneers brewed the twigs into a drink. Ephedra is a stimulant and is often used to treat congestion and urinary problems.

Mormon Tea

It was about 21 miles from the volcano to the visitor center of Wupatki, which is in front of the amazing Wupatki Pueblo, a 104-room pueblo.

A population influx began after the 11th century eruption of nearby Sunset Crater Volcano, and by 1182, about 85-100 people lived here. The walls were assembled from local sandstone, held together with mortar. The site was abandoned around 1225.

Wupatki Pueblo

A wider angle view shows the Pueblo and the adjacent ballcourt.

Wupatki Pueblo and ballcourt

A closer view of the pueblo:

Wupatki Pueblo

This is the northernmost example of such a ballcourt.

Ballcourt at Wupatki Pueblo

We then drove about 15 minutes to Wukoki Pueblo, which was built on a sandstone outcrop:

Wukoki Pueblo

Batya at Wukoki Pueblo

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Scenery at Wukoki Pueblo

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Today, we visited the Flume Trail and Watson Lake Loop, said to be an easy to moderate 1.6 mile lollipop trail. We parked in the small lot off Granite Dells Road and State Highway 89, north of the entrance to Watson Lake Park, at 34.6026, -112.4210.

The trailhead:

Start of Flume Trail

In the early 1900s, John Bianconi, a Swiss immigrant, bought an established orchard that suffered from insufficient irrigation. He combined a wooden flume with ditch irrigation, and expanded his landholdings to a 200-acre ranch, with 40 acres devoted to an orchard of 3,000-4,000 trees. Bianconi won awards for his peaches.

Flume Trail

The “stick” portion of the lollipop trail quickly reaches boulders and rock walls that are very beautiful. Here Shaina and Batya make their way through a narrow part.

Shaina and Batya squeeze through the Flume Trail

A panorama view from the trail:

Panorama view from the Flume Trail

Rocks on the Flue Trail:

Flume Trail

Rocks on the Flume Trail:

Flume Trail

Shaina poses on top of a small boulder:

Shaina standing on a boulder

More rocks on the Flume Trail:

Flume Trail

As one leaves the “stick” part of the lollipop trail and reaches the loop part, signs ask hikers to keep their voices low, as there are private properties nearby. Other signs warn hikers to stay on the trail to avoid trespassing. Of course, Shaina is good at keeping her voice down.

Warning sign on Flume Trail

Prickly pear cactus:

Prickly pear cactus

360-degree Panorama:

360-degree panorama

More scenery:

Flume Trail

More rocks on the Flume Trail:

Flume Trail

We may have missed a short part of the trail that led to Watson Lake.

Batya and Shaina hike the Flume Trail

Dandelions:

Dandelions

Shaina couldn’t resist blowing the dandelions. On June 2, while running at a Phoenix amusement park, Uptown Jungle, Shaina had smashed her forehead against another girl. Shaina developed a huge purple bump on her forehead and black eyes. 17 days later, her forehead was much better, but she still had a trace of black eyes:

Shaina blowing dandelions

Heading back toward the trailhead:

Batya and Shaina returning on the Flume Trail

After the previous day’s hike, when Shaina wasn’t up to it, I was pleased that we were able to all hike together and complete this short hike.

On a family trip to Prescott, we decided to hike the Thumb Butte Trail (33), which I thought would be easy enough for Shaina, who had just turned 5. Trail 33 is about a 2.2 mile loop trail, climbing only 639 feet. We parked across Thumb Butte Road (CR 89) at 34.5519, -112.5213.

Start of Thumb Butte Trail

We began hiking counter-clockwise on the trail.

Thumb Butte Trail

Shaina initially seemed eager to put her hiking boots and backpack to good use.

Batya and Shaina

Her fashionable hiking boots and hiking socks.

Shaina’s hiking boots

Unfortunately, Shaina soon lost interest in the hike, and Batya said that I should go on ahead, and they would return to the parking lot.

View from Thumb Butte Trail

I continued on alone, enjoying the scenery.

View from Thumb Butte Trail

Manzanita (Arctostaphylos) are evergreen shrubs with a red bark. The have small, edible, apple-like berries.

Manzanita

The scenery was lovely. The standing dead trees (snags) provide food for insects, and then animals eat the insects.

View from Thumb Butte Trail

The surrounding ring of mountains forms the southwestern rim of the high basin that cradles the city of Prescott. Many of the mountains are dark with Juniper trees, leading them to be called Sierra Prietta (dark mountain).

View from Thumb Butte Trail

Around halfway through the loop, I arrived at an intersection with the Thumb Butte Spur trail (314). I continued on trail 33, though.

Intersection of Thumb Butte Trail with Spur Trail

More scenery from the trail:.

View from Thumb Butte Trail

More scenery:

View from Thumb Butte Trail

About 2/3 of the way through the trail, I finally approached as near as possible to Thumb Butte. The butte is made of very dark extrusive basalt. Most of the surrounding Sierra Prieta ranges are composed of granites, quartz, and metamorphic schists.

Thumb Butte

A wide-angle view. Fencing was erected February 1-July 15 to avoid distrubing courtship and breeding season of the peregrine falcon.

Thumb Butte

Numerous archaeological sites are known around Thumb Butte, as prehistoric groups left behind pottery shards, spear and arrow points, pit houses, fortifications, and rock art. The earliest known people in the area are referred to as the “Prescott Tradition,” visiting the area seasonally for brief periods between the years  900-1300. They practiced agriculture and hunting and gathering.

More recent natives, the Yavapai, also used the Thumb Butte area for seasonal hunting and gathering. They harvest walnuts, acorns, pinyon nuts, sunflower seeds, yucca and cactus fruits. They harvested crops of corn and squash. They hunted deer, fox, rabbits, and antelope.

I stopped for a quick lunch before heading back.

View from Thumb Butte Trail

More beautiful scenery.

View from Thumb Butte Trail

The rest of the trail consisted of some paved segments, with multiple switchbacks descending to CR 89.

I found a neat rock with lichen.

Rock with Lichen

I completed the hike on my own, and found Batya and Shaina waiting for me.

On our short trip to Sedona, we stayed in nearby Cottonwood. Today, before driving back to Phoenix, we decided on two quick visits. The first was to Cliffrose Trail, a short and flat trail near our hotel in Cottonwood.

Batya at Cliffrose Trail

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Cliffrose Trail

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Cliffrose Trail

We then drove to Montezuma Castle National Monument, where the Sinagua people lived around the years 1100-1425. The main structure, below, is a cliff dwelling that is five stories tall, containing about 20 rooms.

Montezuma Castle National Monument

Another view of the main structure:

Montezuma Castle National Monument

The cliff dwellings face Beaver Creek, providing a convenient water supply for the Sinagua who lived there centuries ago.

Beaver Creek

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This day, we enjoyed the Mescal – Deadman’s Pass – Long Trail loop. We drove to the parking lot at 34.901, -111.828.

We hiked in a clockwise direction. We began hiking north on the Mescal Trail, which eventually turned toward the west. I regret that I don’t know the names of most of the mountains or features that I photographed.

Sedona mountains

Sedona mountains

Sedona mountains

The trail turned north again, skirting around Mescal Mountain.

Sedona mountains

Sedona mountains

We turned northeast onto the Deadman’s Pass Trail.

Sedona mountains

Sedona mountains

Sedona mountains

Sedona mountains

Sedona mountains

We turned southeast onto the Long Trail, and soon took a detour to the west, that brought us to the Birthing Cave.

Birthing Cave

View from the Birthing Cave.

View from the Birthing Cave

Charlie and Batya at the Birthing Cave.

Charlie and Batya at the Birthing Cave

View from the Birthing Cave

We returned to the Long Trail, and continued until we reached the Mescal Connector Trail, which took us back to the parking lot.

I estimate the hike was about 5-6 miles.

To celebrate our 10th Anniversary, Batya and I drove up to Sedona for a few days of hiking.

Signs throughout Sedona warned that trailhead parking lots were full and that we should take a shuttle, but we ignored them and didn’t have any trouble finding parking near the trailheads.

On our first day, we followed West Park Ridge Drive, a washboard dirt road, to its end, at 34.888, -111.768. A parking pass is required. We were hiking in the Red Rock-Secret Mountain Wilderness, a 47,195-acre wilderness area within the 1.856-million Coconino National Forest.

The parking lot provided a nice view of Sedona’s Ship Rock:

Ship Rock

We were hiking counter-clockwise, in a roughly 5-mile loop. From the parking lot, we took the Cibola Pass Trail for 100 yards, and then veered right onto the Brins Mesa Trail.

Red rock formation

While not identifying the trail, this sign let people know where they were in the national forest:

Forest sign

The hike provided many beautiful views:

Red Rock-Secret Mountain Wilderness

The trail became steeper, though it never became too challenging.

Brins Mesa trail

Red Rock-Secret Mountain Wilderness

Red Rock-Secret Mountain Wilderness

About halfway through our hike, we left the Brins Mesa trail and turned onto the Soldier Pass trail. We had read about a side hike to a Soldier Pass cave and decided to add that to our hike. The trail actually didn’t seem to be marked, but many other people were hiking that day and led us there:

Soldier Pass cave

The cave wasn’t very deep; more like an alcove in the red rock.

Batya sitting in Soldier Pass cave

Charlie in Soldier Pass cave

We returned from the cave back to  Soldier Pass, and continued on. We soon arrived at the Seven Sacred Pools:

Seven Sacred Pools

The next stop on the trail was Devil’s Kitchen sinkhole:

Devil’s Kitchen sinkhole

After the sinkhole, we turned off Soldier Pass trail, taking the Jordan Trail for a few minutes, and then the Cibola Pass trail, which led us back to the parking lot.

This was my first Daddy-Daughter hike, as Shaina said she wanted to go hiking with me, while her Mommy stayed home.

We went out for about an hour and a half. We parked at 33.5428, -112.0153, and started out on the 304 trail. When we reached the bench at 33.5464, -112.01214, we detoured from the trail and began climbing a hill to the North-Northwest.

As beautiful as the scenery was from the trail, the view was even better as we gained a little elevation:

We soon reached the top of the hill, where Shaina found a good resting spot. At the bottom of the hill, to the left of the photo, you can see that several trails meet at a bench. There are also tiny figures there, which are people.

This is a view toward the south, showing the parking lot where we left our car, and in the distance, downtown Phoenix:

Descending the hill, Shaina showed her appreciation for her achievement. We rain into a large group of hikers, several of whom congratulated her for being an accomplished hiker despite her young age.

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We once again parked at coordinates 33.5407, -112.0183, and followed trail 200. We then followed trail 202A, climbing a peak to around 1760′ elevation. So it was again about a 1.5 or 2 mile hike, with an elevation gain of about 400′.

It wasn’t much of a hike for Batya and me, but it was good practice for Shaina. Since our last hike was so successful, we presented her with her very own backpack with a water bladder, just like her parents have! She was very excited. Here she is taking a break to eat veggie straws, one of her favorite activities.

It was a windy day, and clearly Shaina could have used a headband or scrunchie to keep the hair out of her face. Oh, well.

I noted a strange indentation in one of the rock walls. Is there a geologist available to explain this?

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Batya and I have continued to enjoy the Phoenix Mountain Preserve, which is adjacent to our neighborhood. We typically climb to Piestewa Peak. Having already photographed that hike once, I don’t feel compelled to document each time we climbed it.

We have also taken short strolls in the Preserve with Shaina. Today’s hike was a little more exciting, because instead of just walking down trail 302 or 304 for a few minutes and then returning, we actually had a destination, climbing to the top of what is apparently called “RJ Peak.” So I thought it deserved a blog entry.

We parked at coordinates 33.5407, -112.0183, then followed trail 200, then at the intersection with trail 202A, we followed an unnamed trail that has a series of switchbacks to the top of the peak.

The hike was only about a mile or so, and the elevation gain was only a few hundred feet, but it was a good day for our 4-year-old hiker.

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A visit to Papago Park counts more as a stroll than a hike, but it was a fun outing for Batya, two-year-old Shaina, and me. The park is located near the Phoenix Zoo and the Desert Botanical Garden. One part of the park is adjacent to the zoo, with parking at the zoo parking lot. We visited the larger part of the park, Papago West Park, with parking at 626 N. Galvin Parkway.

There are a few trails in Papago Park, with little elevation gain. The trails are stroller friendly.

The park does feature several sandstone buttes that people can climb, if they desire. The longest trail, the Double Butte Loop Trail, is only 2.2 miles.