The Trailhead is on the far east side of the park, near a very upscale neighborhood off 48th Street. I had to drive five miles out of my way to find a open coffee shop. I needed caffeine and some time to recharge my phone before starting on this trail.
And what a busy trail this was! There's a guard shack as one drives through, warning drivers not to drive through the exit without damaging the tires. A narrow strip of green on either side of the road reminds visitors that this part is a private golf course.
I made it to the trailhead after 8am. The cloudy sky gave way to partial sunshine, but it turned out to be a good day to hike.
My goal was to hike the Mormon Loop (which I did last year with Zeke and Gretel) . From Pima Canyon trailhead, this is a 6.4- mile hike, but I tracked just under eight miles because I did not see the well-marked sign taking me on a loop and ended up going almost a half mile west on the National Trail. This would have taken me to the Buena Vista trail head another two miles.
The dogs were getting tired now and so was I. We had hiked five miles and needed to turn around. Although the clouds diffused the sun, the dogs needed water. I gave them that at two breaks before finishing the loop via the Pima Wash trail, past a petroglyph site.
This took us four hours. We got back to the Honda just before 1pm. The dogs were tired and needed water and were grateful to be in a cool car as I drove to Fate Brewing in Tempe.
Eric recommended this place. I had their Half Way to Heffen and then their 2021 Candy Bar Milk Stout, a sweet sipping beer that I finished off with some chicken tacos.
When I left at 3:30 I felt a light drizzle. Today's weather was perfect for being outside. I got to enjoy the nicer side of the greater Phoenix area (namely Tempe). I hope to come back more often while Eric is in the area.
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