Nick, John, Kay, Sara, Marilyn, Mike, Bob, and I hiked a 11.4 mile loop starting from the Wagner Trailhead.
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8.8 miles on Wednesday…
This is a phainopepla:
I think this might be Spiny Goldenweed:
A view of the McDowells through some saguaros near the Scenic Trail:
Globemallow:
Wolfberries:
Marilyn and I hiked a little over five miles on the North, Chuparosa, and Verde Trails on Saturday.
Laura and I hiked an 11 mile loop in the Tom’s Thumb area on Friday.
6.4 miles on Wednesday Night…
Heather, Marilyn, and I hiked in the Seven Springs area on Friday…
7.7 miles on Wednesday evening…
I hiked a little over 13 miles on Sunday, visiting Peak 2972 along the way. This is the highest peak in the Usery Mountain range. (Pass Mountain, which is in Usery Mountain Park, is higher, but is part of the Goldfields.)
This was the view of Red Mountain as I neared the summit:
I saw another peak south of the peak I was on. It looked lower to me, but the presences of flags there suggested that it might actually be higher. I’m pretty sure that it’s Peak 2959.
This is a panorama from the summit:
A look back through the saguaros at the summit:
After reaching the summit, I did a mostly off-trail section which led down to this wash on the left. The wash was very relaxing; descending off-trail from the summit, prior to this wash, not so much.
Another view of Red Mountain. I think I got this shot from the Saguaro Trail while looking for a mine. (I never found the mine, but I only left the track for the loop that I was on for about a quarter mile.)
I think I was on the Twisted Sister Trail (which is part of the Hawes Trail System) when I got this shot of Red Mountain near sunset.
Another shot near sunset…
Heather, Marilyn, Marilyn, Nick, Ben, Bob, and Mike joined me for a hike of the Mesquite Canyon / Ford Canyon Loop at White Tank Mountain Regional Park.
This is a view of the Mesquite Canyon Trail from the Ford Canyon Trail.
Ben, Marilyn, Nick, Heather, Mike, Bob, and Marilyn:
We saw pools of water on our way down Ford Canyon. Heather says that this was the most water she’s seen in the canyon.
This was probably the hardest (most technical) section of our descent of Ford Canyon.
I stood atop a small boulder pile to get this photo…
Nick and Bob… 
It’s very beautiful here. This is my favorite loop hike in all of the Maricopa County parks.
Globe mallow:
Poppies – I don’t think I ever remember seeing poppies in November.
Marilyn and I did a hike in the Usery Mountain area on Sunday. We parked in the lot next to the western gate of Bulldog Canyon, then crossed the road and hiked west of the road. It’s a very scenic area. I want to do a longer hike in this area someday.
