“Tune up and Clean up and Hike up” was the theme of this morning. Our faithful Ford F150 pickup received a thorough wash after many miles on the road. Karen’s bike received a tune up and prepped for our upcoming bike trip in the Texas Hill Country. After tending to office work and sorting through mail sent from NJ, Karen hopped in the sparkling clean pickup and hiked the less crowded trail to the summit of Camelback Mountain. The Cholla Trail, at the east end of Camelback, zigzagged up the mountain with great views from the top of the camel’s hump. At 2,704 ft, this is Phoenix’s highest point. Thankfully Karen had on her ankle brace for the last quarter mile of the trail which involved rock scrambling along the boulder ridgeline. She came down with 4 college age kids from the area who were very friendly and even offered a helping hand every now and then! The weather couldn’t have been better with a warm breeze, 78 degrees at the beginning of the hike and 82 degrees at the end. No hand warmers, hats, gloves or microspikes needed!
Cam had a good day at his dental course. He can walk to the center from our hotel so he does get some “hiking” in each day! Tonight we met up with one of Cam’s friends from his high school days in England. They played football, basketball, and ran track together at Woodbridge-Bentwaters and were on the same relay team. Othel lives in Phoenix and met us at a local restaurant just down the street from our hotel. Many funny stories were shared and hearty laughs ensued as we had a relaxing dinner outside on the patio with a fire burning. We could get used to this nice ambiance for our dinners. We are missing our furry friends at home though! Maddie and Ginger are getting lots of attention from our friend Steve who is taking care of them. It is so nice to know they are in good hands while we are away.
good to see Othel. He's grown up!
ReplyDeleteBig O!! Great picture. I'll bet he was a treat, he's so funny.
ReplyDeleteDeanne