Chiricahua National Monument Hike, Oct.29, 2009-Arizona

The Chiricahua's are definitely off the beaten path but well worth the effort taken to get there. This is is one of my all time favorite hikes. We spent the night in Willcox at a great Holiday Inn, then hiked the next day.
If you go do stop at the ranger station. They will help you decide which hike to take, depending on how much time you have, what you want to see and your skill level.

Chiricahua National Monument is located 120 miles southeast of Tucson.
My photos are in random order, I had so many to choose from...





Wild Turkeys


This was the weekend of the first anniversary of our son's death. It helped to get away to deal with our grief. My husband and son had taken a wonderful trip to Southern Az. so it seemed an appropriate travel destination. In the Chiricahuas we felt the emotional cleansing that comes from nature. It was a beautiful place to shed tears, remember our son, reflect, pray and contemplate God's love.



“And he said, The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; the God of my rock; in him will I trust: he is my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my high tower, and my refuge, my saviour;.."
-2 Sam 22:2-3

Chiricahua National Monument is truly one of the National Park Service secret treasures. If you are willing to drive the 37 miles off I-10, you will be surprised to discover a mountain wonderland of trees, wild animals, and the amazing balanced rock and pinnacles that make this place so unique. A must do for anyone who loves hiking and adventure!

A Man Who Walks

Time is not money; time is an opportunity to live before you die. So a man who walks, and lives and sees and thinks as he walks, has lengthened his life. –Donald Culross Peattie

Sabino Canyon, Tucson Az

Hike for....

West Fork of Oak Creek Trail

Sheriece, Sandra, Melanie, Jan I took this hike in May of 2006. It is breath takingly beautiful! Vivid Color everywhere you look.

Joy

"And the moral of my whole story is that walking is not only a joy in itself, but that it gives an intimacy with the sacred things and the primal things of earth that are not revealed to those who rush by on wheels." –John Finley,

2009 Hike??

It was a cold rainy day in the desert
We came upon a very small pond near this boulder, (a result of all the rain that year). In it were 3 trout happily swimming. This was a very curious thing to find in the desert.



Some of the wildlife we have come across on our hikes:
1. Rattlesnakes
2. Coyotes
3, Gila Monsters
4. Horned toads, and various lizards
5. Deer
6. Big horned sheep
7. desert tortoise
8.rabbits
9 Wild turkey (in the Chiricahuas)
10. fish