3-20-2010- The 360 Mile Day Ride

3-20-2010- The 360 Mile Day Ride.- Myself and five of my close riding friends decided to take a day trip traveling through the center portion of Arizona. En route to meet them at Ellsworth and University in Mesa I took a 26 mile detour to view the last of the snow on Four Peaks. We then met at 8 am fueled up and headed to Payson. As we arrived in Payson we decided to do an early lunch at El Ranchero, Good choice! from there we headed north up the Mogollon Rim through Pine and Strawberry. On top of the Rim we had clear roads but there was huge amounts of snow, three to four foot drifts still existed.
We continued on up Highway 87 to the junction of highway 260 that would take us on into Camp Verde. Along the way we encountered several Bull Elk with their Cows. There were also many Brown and Redtail Hawks and a couple of Eagles in flight near the Highway, Awesome! Soon we arrived in Camp Verde and decided to continue on to the hillside community of Jerome.
On our way up we passed large groups of motorcyclist, I guess they thought it was a great day to ride also. In Jerome the hillside streets were jam packed with tourist and no place to park, they were having an artisans fair so we continued up Mingus mountain and stopped at a viewpoint to take a break.
Our group, Ray, Rick, Ironhead,Tracey and John.
Ironhead took this picture, thats me in the middle.
Decision making, we decided to go up and over Mingus Mountain and continue on to Prescott.
Yes this was a good day to ride the Vstrom versus the VTX, and Ironhead even left the Bobber at home and rode his Road Couch, the Goldwing!
As we got into Prescott we fueled the bikes and our bodies. We ate at PBR-Prescott Brewing & Restaurant, the pork sliders were yummy! Once rested we brainstormed to decide our next destination. Decision made, we would head south on Highway 89, lots of twisties into Wilhoit, Kirkland Junction, Peeples Valley, Yarnell and Congress. These are very small towns so if you blink you'll miss them.
From Congress we determined we would continue to Highway 60 and stop in Wickenburg for a short break. A warm cup of coffee was necessary as the sun was setting and the temperature was dropping. Back on the road we continued to the Highway 74 Lake pleasant road that would take us to Interstate 17 just south of Anthem and north of Peoria.
As we made our way down the 17 we encountered many other motorcyclist giving us the low hand salute, that's cool. Soon we came to the junction of the 101 Highway and we would take that east through north Phoenix, Scottsdale to the 202 Highway. Traffic was quit a bit heavier now so more concentration was neccessary to deal with the four wheeled cages.
The 202 highway was in sight that would take us back to Mesa and the end of an almost 12 hour adventure. When I pulled into the driveway the dogs were barking and the Vstrom and myself were giving thanks for a great day! and God Blessing us with a safe ride.

God Bless, Sly

3-19-2010 Pass Mountain Trail

3-19-2010- Friday 8a.m. Sheri and I decided to head to Usery Mountain Regional Park to hike the Pass Mountain Trail. The park is due east of our home and is approx. a 15 minute drive. The trail is a 7.5 mile loop around Pass Mountain, aka Scarface to the locals. Driving east the weather looked sketchy, a mix of sun and clouds and what appeared to be verga, and cool as well, temperature was in the 50's.
You take the Wind Cave Loop road to the junction of the trail-heads. The park has 30 miles of established hiking trails. The Wind Cave Trail is a 1.5 mile out and back trail that is very popular as it is high up on the west side of the mountain and offers great views of the Valley. But we opted for the longer distance but still offering awesome views.
The dreaded Cholla Cactus, my least favorite cacti as it always seems to have an attraction to me!
Myself stopping to take in the view on the north east side of the trail.
A Grand Daddy Saguaro Cactus. It was massive! I couldn't believe how many arms it had, it seemed all the cacti were swollen with water from all the rain we have had.
And yet this Saguaro was at the end if its life.
Sheri on the east side of the trail. She keep saying," I think its going to rain on us", and I kept saying," Not today"!
I ate my words as this small storm came in from the north and gave us a light rain for about 15 minutes. It was nice not unbearable and as we continued our hike we dried.
On the east side there our various rock ridges and outcroppings that just catch your eye and you have to stop and take it in.
At the half way point on the east side you can take a short side trip to the Hole in the Wall. Its a nice area to stop for a snack or to seek refuge from the rain. It can be seen in the left upper portion of the picture.
Sly hanging out in the Hole in the Wall.

Blooming Ocotillo. We were hoping for the wildflowers but since the temperature was low and cloudy skies, the flowering buds were shut tight.
I love the Saguaros and the rock formations.
We're so blessed to live this close to Gods creation, Awesome!
Thanks for letting me share with all of you.
God Bless, Sly

Four Peaks Mountain

Four Peaks Mountains. 3-12-2010- Four Peaks at 7,657ft. in altitude is a prominent landmark on the eastern skyline of Mesa and Phoenix, part of the Mazatzal Mountains. It is located in the Tonto National Forest 40 miles east of Phoenix, in the 60,740 acre Four Peaks Wilderness Area. On occasion in the winter months the Peaks can be found snow capped offering the Valley of the Sun a beautiful view, and the peaks are also the highest point in Maricopa County.

The truck was fueled,food and water was prepped, dogs were loaded and we headed out Beeline Highway (Highway 87), to the Four Peaks Highway. Once there you begin an 19 mile drive up to the Peaks. At the beginning the road is a smooth gravel road but as you progress it narrows and becomes quit rugged in spots, rocky, loose soil and a few water crossings depending on the time of year. We crossed running water in five spots on this trip with the snow melting fast.
The designated driver, me! As Sheri didn't want any part of driving the ole Dodge up the mountain.
This is an eastern view of the mountain as the road up is not a direct route, but it offers you many awesome views of the area. A side note The Four Peaks Wilderness Area contains one of the largest concentrations of Black Bears in Arizona.
After 19 miles of rugged road the boys were glad to be out of the truck! And ready to start hiking!
Sheri and the boys starting out on the Four Peaks Trail an out and back trail covering 8 miles.

The kid in me is still there, if I see a big rock I have to get on top of it!
The name Four Peaks is a reference to four distinct peaks of a north to south ridge forming the mountain summit. The northern most peak, (seen here) is named Brown's Peak and is the tallest at 7,657 ft. the remaining summits are unnamed and from north to south are 7,642 ft., 7,575 ft., and 7,624 ft. in altitude.
Rest time and snack and water break before we head back to the truck.
The dogs don't look to enthused about getting back into the truck yet, they liked the cool air and just being outdoors. From the Lone Pine Saddle parking area we decided to take the 10 mile route down to Highway 188 to Roosevelt Lake. This road down on the east side is maintained as there is a communication tower about 2 miles down from the top and they need year round access.
We encountered several quads, UTV's and jeeps on the way down. Passing was much easier an this road versus the west side.
Looking down on a portion of Roosevelt Lake from the eastern end. The lake is at 100% capacity which is very good as this is a major source of water for the Valley of the Sun. In December I was quail hunting on the eastern side of the lake and that area is now under water!
The Roosevelt Lake Bridge. When you cross over the bridge from the eastern end you can take a right to the dam and Highway 88 that will take you past Apache Lake, Tortilla Flats, Canyon Lake, the Superstition Mountains and in to Apache Junction. We opted to continue on Highway 188 to Highway 60 taking us through Globe, Miami and Superior that would return us to the Valley.
This is the back side of Roosevelt Dam. Originally it was all large stone blocks cut by Italian stone masons. When the dam was renovated and raised, the stone is now all encased in concrete.
Water was being released in anticipation of continued snow melt from the White Mountains, the Mogollon Rim as well as what snow had fallen on Four Peaks through the winter months.
This large Saguaro cactus caught my eye as we started to head back up to the top of the dam. The retaining wall you see below it supports the road and its about 40 ft. tall, so I'm guessing this is one grand daddy Saguaro!

8 hrs. and 172 miles later we arrived home with two very tired dogs and hungry belly's, so time to unload and eat some dinner!

Thanks for sharing this day with us!

God Bless, Sly