Santa delivered an early gift of wonderful weather for our hike and thank goodness the only wrong turns on this event were made by the hike leader. In an attempt to take a short cut to the meeting place, I shot right past where I should have turned and took a brief unexpected tour of parts of Mesa I had never seen before. After calling Ted and getting directions, I arrived at 8:10 AM and Ted already had everyone signed in and ready to go.

Three vehicles proceeded to the First Water trailhead and the 11 hikers hiking were on the trail at 9 AM. Normally, I hike this trail clockwise but Ted suggested we go counterclockwise for a change.

The parking lot at the trailhead had several vehicles there already so we knew there would be several other hikers than ourselves on the trail today. Since this was a new hike for Yanis and Vanessa, I wanted to stop and take a picture of the memory they were making.

Water was EVERYWHERE! I lost count but I believe we had a total of 15 water crossings on this hike. If the rain keeps this up, we will have a glorious blooming of desert flowers come spring.

As usual, Rudy was on the lookout for “rocks with a story” and found this little boulder hiding in one of the first water crossings.

As we proceeded over Parker Pass, our stomachs were telling us that lunch time was due so we decided to stop for lunch in Boulder Basin. “Weavers Needle Café” provided ample seating for our group and a special ambiance. The sound of water flowing gently over rocks in the wash was very relaxing.

We all were grateful for our just finished lunch before starting the climb from Boulder Basin to the top of Black Mesa. Quy was one of the first to make it to the top. Michael stayed back to keep me company as I brought up the rear and was the last to make it to the top. Bill took advantage of his quick ascent time by doing a little side exploring.

The making of a crested saguaro. [photo by Ted]

The faster hikers went ahead and waited for the rest at the intersection of Second Water and Black Mesa Trails. Some thoughtful hiker had hung a stray canteen (assumed lost on the trail) on the trail marker for the owner to retrieve as they came back. I just couldn’t resist adding my little Santa hat to the mix for the picture.

Dark clouds were rolling in all around in the distance as we made our way back to the trailhead. I was fortunate to snap this one last picture on the trail.

Santa Cyd surprised the eleven tired and hungry hikers back at the vehicles by passing out homemade pumpkin muffins and a candy cane to everyone to thank them for coming out for the hike. The pumpkin muffins were just enough to whet our appetites and put us in the mood to stop at the Goldfield Saloon for a bite to eat and a “cold one” before we all went our separate ways. With Superstition Mountain looming in the background, we all posed for one last photo.

From me and the Arizona Trailblazers, we send best wishes to all of you for a wonderful holiday season.