I MADE IT!!!

To what you may be asking. Well after hiking Siphon Draw trail many times, I finally achieved the trail beyond and made it to the top of the Flat Iron. I must tell you, it was exhausting, but truly amazing. After all of the rain we've had recently there was waterfalls and creeks everywhere. The sound of the mountains was so calming and serene. Every way you turned was either the soft whistle of the wind, or the bubbling of a creek somewhere in the midst of the rocks.

The path was treacherous, and I fell many times. But it was all worth it in the end. As we made it to the top, it was 27 degrees and there was ice and some snow. No doubt the snow melt was causing the runoff to those waterfalls.

I went with my co-worker Michelle, and I think we had a great time. We enjoyed beef jerky and goldfish crackers on the FlatIron as we looked at the 380 degree panorama of the valley, surrounding mountains and the snow covered Four Peaks. My camera fogged up after my first decent picture at the top...so hopefully Michelle got some good ones I can post another day.

I feel incredibly accomplished....it was amazing.

One of the small waterfalls/creeks we found

The waterfall at the Slick Rock Basin


The view from the top!

For Shame Arizona Legislatures

Today I found out that a decision was passed on January 15th, 2010. And that decision was that Arizona will be closing 13 more of it's state parks over the next 6 months. I for one am shocked...surely there is something else to cut besides the wildlife many of us have come to love.

The following parks will be closing (get your visits in while you can):

The remaining parks will be closed in a phased sequence starting on February 22, 2010 and include Homolovi Ruins State Park in Winslow, Lyman Lake State Park in St. Johns and Riordan Mansion State Historic Park in Flagstaff.

The next park closings will occur on March 29, 2010 and will include Fort Verde State Historic Park in Camp Verde, Roper Lake State Park in Safford, Tombstone Courthouse State Historic Park, Yuma Territorial Prison State Historic Park and Tubac Presidio State Historic Park.

The final phased closings will occur on June 3, 2010 and will include Tonto Natural Bridge State Park near Payson, Alamo Lake State Park in Wenden, Lost Dutchman State Park in Apache Junction, Picacho Peak State Park and Red Rock State Park in Sedona.

So much fun!!!

A little background:
For my birthday Derek was going to just get me something (though he never mentioned what) but then he came to the realization that he didn't want to just give me "stuff". So he's giving me the best thing I could have ever hoped for right now....a hiking buddy. A couple nights ago we went out to Sports Authority and got him some hiking clothes and shoes. We are planning a 3 day backpacking trip across the Northern Rim of the Grand Canyon for our 1 year anniversary. I am so excited!

Back to today: This morning, before I had to go to work, Derek and I went on one of my favorite hikes (granted it's one of the only ones I have done so far). I didn't think that he was going to be able to make it the whole way, but he persevered and I am so proud of him. It was so nice going with him and I enjoyed it so much. I can't wait until our next hike...better start researching some other ones!

The Sunrise before the hikeA great hike!Derek and Jackson sitting next to the inactive Waterfall on the Slick Rock Basin

Happy Birthday to Me

Today is my 22nd birthday...and how am I celebrating it? Well by heading to work in about 10 minutes, and then going to dinner with Derek, my dad and his fiance and Lacy tonight. Should be fun. We are going to Texas Roadhouse and I am super excited. Totally been jones'n for it.

Another Hike with Lacy

This morning, bright and early to watch the sunrise, Lacy and I departed for the Superstition Mountains along with Jackson to hike. It's a familiar trail to Jackson and I, hiked on 3 previous occasions. I must say though, hiking it in December when it was 40-50 degrees outside was way better than the 90s that October had to offer. The company was also nice. Being a weekday, there wasn't too many hikers out on the trail, so it was nice to have someone to talk to. And it was also nice that Lacy really seemed to be enjoying herself and may hike with me again in the future. :-) We enjoyed ourselves and hiked all the way up to the slick rock. It was too cold to hang out up there with the heavy winds, so we made our way back down. Completed it in about 4 hours...a good hike overall.

Happy New Year

I started off the New Year the same way I have the last couple of years....asleep by 10:30pm. Though this time I fell asleep with a small dog on top of my chest.

What can I say about 2009....it was an emotional roller coaster.

We got a puppy in February. I was married in June, the same month as my grandmother died. I honeymooned in July. In August my dad had to put his dog to sleep. I started hiking in September....my cousin was killed a couple days ago. And my dad is thinking about putting his cat to sleep. It didn't seem like a very good year besides the wedding and honeymoon thing.

I hope this year is better for everyone...