Murray Springs

It was another hot and humid day. By 10am it was already 90F. Not a day to be out exploring. But then the clouds came overhead and by 1:30pm we had another downpour. Rolling thunder lingered as our mountains were shrouded in fog. The downpour lasted an hour and I had no intentions of staying at home.

I took Zeke and Minnie with me to the recycling center in Sierra Vista at 2:30pm and from there we drove north on Moson Road to the Murray Springs parking area, a two-mile drive. The turn-off to the parking area is just past Mile Marker 9. Most people who come here come to see the Mammouth Kill site just .4-mile from the parking area. Clouds were dark overhead but at least it was not raining. The rain stayed over the mountains. My goal was to get at least one mile in before turning around, making a quick two-mile romp for the dogs and making this our daily walk. We ended up going twice as far.

This is a flat, straight trail best done on an overcast, cool day. The exposure would make this walk otherwise unbearable. Both dogs ran ahead of me as I fought off tall weeds in some sections and kept my eyes open for snakes. Years ago I could walk with Sara and Sammy in the wash/drainage to the San Pedro Creek. The creekbed has gotten overgrown since then and too treacherous to follow.

The Clayton Ranch is 2.6 miles o/w from the parking lot and is visible once one reaches the drainage. The mesquite-covered terrain offer no shelter, so I continued on the trail cautiously, walking northbound. Rusty barbed wire protect wandering cows from getting too close to the drainage, which drops off perilously in some parts.

I spotted lightning to the west and it began to drizzle. I was less than a half mile from the ranch house, and I could even see it over a ridge. It was just past 3pm. I wore no rain jacket and just had on my cotton shirt and jeans. I didn't even have any pack on me, since this walk was meant to be a quick leg stretcher for the dogs. I had no other option but to turn around here for safety's sake and get back to the van before more rain came.

It never did rain on the hike. We managed a 4-mile power walk that did both dogs and me some good.