Mawwage Is What Bwings Us Togevah

It was absolutely delightful up in the mountains of Payson, Arizona this past week. We made it our goal to get outside and enjoy the fresh mountain air as much as possible, and we definitely did just that. Our MAIN goal, however, was to just spend time together. ( . . . if you didn't already get the reference to the movie "Princess Bride" for the title of this post)

The weather down in Payson, AZ was a bit cooler than we anticipated, but it still allowed for us to be outside, enjoying a variety of hikes and walks. The difference between the mountains of Arizona in the early spring VS the mountains of Idaho in the early spring is that in Arizona, you will have a hard time finding any snow pack to hinder your hiking capabilities. In Idaho, snow is everywhere up in the mountains and on the trails still.

Most days during our spring break in Arizona, the temps were in the 50's, but there were 2 days that had a high of only 46 degrees. On those two days, we made alternate plans so that we could still maximize our time down there. 

You may notice that several photos will show me wearing the same teal hoodie. That's because I only brought that one thick hoodie plus a windbreaker shell layer. We didn't bring our winter coats because we were like, "Hey! It's Arizona! Nobody needs a winter coat down there!" :)

Early in the week, we visited Tonto Natural Bridge State Park, a few minutes north of Payson. It was high on everyone's list of suggested hikes, and for good reason!

While Scott got us set up with maps and information from the park ranger, I got my picture taken in front of this beautiful blooming tree. :)

The paved trail takes you along the top of the canyon, where there are four main viewing stations. This may not look like much from above, but that travertine bridge is truly HUGE!!

Here is another view from up above.

Short video of the view can be seen here: (29 seconds)

https://photos.app.goo.gl/rzzjzNF2zkUtpYnK7

After hitting all the upper viewing points, it was time to head down the steep trail to see things up close. 

Another short video of our surroundings: (19 seconds)

https://photos.app.goo.gl/M2k3g9nUyS9cokQx6

Might be hard to see in this next photo, but there is actually water dripping down from the top of the bridge above. And depending on where you're standing, you might really get rained on! Some of the water droplets hit me smack in my eye like a water balloon! (even while wearing sunglasses, ha ha)

After we finished tromping around on all the boulders underneath the bridge, and clambered back up to the trail at the top, we came across a pack of javelinas. (pronounced hovaleenas) Our AirBnb hosts had already told us about the javelinas and how mean and nasty they are. They even put up an electric fence to try to keep them off their property. Apparently the javelinas dig down to eat the roots of bushes and shrubs, leaving the above-ground portions to just rot and die. They don't have good eyesight, but their sense of smell is ridiculously good. If they feel that a threat is imminent, they will attack and you do NOT want to be the recipient of their teeth and tusks. 

This pack of javelinas seemed quite peaceful though. We were wary, nonetheless, not fully trusting the beauty of the scene . . .

A short video of the javelinas grazing on the lawn at the state park: (18 seconds)

https://photos.app.goo.gl/GycKdTfAKK87UVCUA

The last thing we did before leaving the park was to go down a short trail of 110 steps to see a waterfall. Only actually, the trail was blocked off partway down. So I guess this was supposed to be the waterfall??

Scott filmed me walking past the "waterfall". (11 seconds) Just as I thought I would be going around the corner and down more steps, that's when I saw that the rest of the trail was blocked off, due to erosion.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/AHSyQgW9Xp4xrkJX8

Then it was back up the stairs to the parking lot. And then off we went. :)

The next day it was one of the COLD days, so we traveled about 1.25 hours east to go see the Jacksons in Clay Springs. Vanessa is our niece on Scott's side, and her kids are Caleb (married to Bethanne) and Hunter and Taylor, both girls. Vanessa's husband, Don, was out of town on business, so we didn't get to see him. 

The weather looked somewhat ominous as we drove over the mountain pass of Heber-Overgaard to get there. The summit was at 7700 feet, compared to Payson's mere elevation of 5000 feet. 

Bethanne took us on a tour of the house that she and Caleb are renovating (with help from family members). It's located right across the street from Don and Vanessa's house, across the field where their two silly goats used to live (and used to purposely get their heads stuck in the fence all the time). The house is actually TWO houses joined together. It may seem like a renovation mess on the inside, but it's coming along a little at a time as time permits. Caleb and Bethanne are hoping to move in maybe a year from now.

After the home renovation tour, we all drove over to Show Low to have lunch together, since Caleb and his sister Hunter were working in the area. Caleb and Bethanne's little baby, Harrison, is so fun! He's about 10 months old now, only has 2 little bottom teeth, and is going to be walking very soon, too!

Caleb, holding his pride and joy, Harrison

Here's the whole group, minus Scott who took the picture. From the far left: Hunter (18), Vanessa, Taylor (13), Bethanne, Caleb holding Harrison, and me.

After filling our tummies at Bertie's in Show Low, we drove back to Clay Springs to hang out for a while. Harrison's favorite activity is to rent a motor, in the form of his Aunt Taylor, to zoom him around and around in laps through the living room. 

Prior to our leaving Clay Springs, Vanessa took us over to her neighbor's ranch just around the corner, so that we could enjoy seeing all the cute animals. :)

They had about 20 goats. It felt more like 50, ha ha. They were super cute!!

Bucket o'goats. (3 little babies all curled up in there together)

Taylor, shown below - I lost track of time and thought she was 15 because she's so tall, but she's only 13! The kid next to her is one of the neighbors who lives on the ranch - he was heading out to do chores when we arrived.

At one point, we noticed quite a racket in one of the nearby pens. Turns out it was "Chief", a ginormous goat, who seemed very angry and destructive. 

Scott went over to see what was going on, and ended up making friends with Chief. He thinks that Chief just had a frustrating itchy spot on his head and couldn't get to it. So Scott tried to help him out.

Click here to watch a couple videos of Scott and Chief.

(1 minute, 17 seconds)

https://photos.app.goo.gl/hE5EmX1CGYCVQAYs5

(24 seconds)

https://photos.app.goo.gl/t9pGGar4BBR64KjP7

And then it was time to head back over the mountains to Payson, so we could get "home" before dark. We knew that snow was in the forecast, and we didn't want any troubles on the roads. 

On the way home, we could tell that snow had already passed through recently up near the summit, but thankfully the roads were good - even as the outside temperature was only about 29 degrees.

The next day, Wednesday, was our biggest adventure day of the entire week. The morning started out very cold, just as we expected after the previous day's cold and snow. I chose to kick things off by  exercising indoors, and I even did a double workout, just trying to get my body to warm up! ha ha

Then we went on a walk through the neighborhood together, up and down the very steep hills on the road. 

After our walk, and after we grabbed a quick bite for lunch back at our BnB, we headed out on some nearby trails for the afternoon.

Beginning on the Cypress Trail, we hooked in at the halfway point (see the lower left trailhead starting point in the photo below) and went about 1.5 miles through the woods.

The trail meandered along a brook that we crossed several times. There were also several huge granite boulders near the main trail for climbing if you felt so inclined. (which we did)

Eventually, we hooked in with the Boulders Trail Loop (2.4 miles).

The Boulder Trail Loop was pretty spectacular! I think this was our favorite trail for the whole week.

The geography changed often, but the trail was relatively flat a good portion of the time. The path consisted of tiny crushed rocks, similar to pea gravel, but it was orange and appeared to be natural to the area, not imported in. Even off to the right and left of the trail you could see the same tiny gravel among the trees and shrubs, as if over time the giant boulders had worn down to miniscule gravel instead. 

It sprinkled on us a couple times during the afternoon hike, but we didn't mind. 

All too often, I would see trees like this next to or above us on the trail, and I'd think to myself (and sometimes out loud), "That looks like a great perching tree for a mountain lion." I was even thinking that my big metal canteen would make a decent weapon, if it came down to that. Thankfully we never saw a mountain lion. And we never said, "Here kitty, kitty . . ." either. 

All in all, we did just shy of 5 miles between the 2 trails. Time WELL SPENT. Below is a screenshot of our afternoon. Scott has an app that tracks your distance and elevation gains. All I know is that my legs and my rear were wonderfully sore at the end of the day. :)

And yet, the very next day we were out on the trails once again. This time, we picked the Monument Peak Trail with an approximate distance of about 4 miles. 

The trail is much wider here, and is also used for mountain bikers. It was a mixture of the same tiny red rock gravel and lots of red dirt. 

Occasionally we would see magnificent homes on the other side of the canyon, surrounded by trees and giant boulders. I bet they're worth a pretty penny. Scott said more than once, "Good for them! I'm glad that they're keeping our economy going." :)

At one point, I saw a challenging boulder with the potential for climbing, so I gave it a try. I found a good climbing spot on the back side.

And at the end of the trail near the parking lot, Scott found himself one as well. :)

This one was just sitting next to the road heading back into town. I wonder where it came from . . . and it looks like a giant potato just sitting there.

Next, we drove into the oldest part of town, the Payson Historic District,  . . . or Main Street. It wasn't as amazing as the internet reviews suggested. One article told how back in the 1800's, ranchers drove their cattle right down Main Street and up over the Rim (a massive mountain bench that encircles the Payson area) toward Holbrook. I fully expected to see old forts and old historic buildings sprinkled along Main Street, mixed with some cute antique shops and ice cream parlors. 

Not the case.

Main Street consisted of several real estate offices, several thrift stores, and several junky and abandoned old buildings - not of the same caliber as historic buildings. Just run down and junky. 

Then we got to the end of Main Street where there was supposed to be this massive and spacious Green Valley Park, with acres and acres of walking trails, ponds, fountains, etc. It was more like one big pond with a couple of fountains. Yes, it was pretty, but Idaho Falls has WAY MORE to offer along the Snake River Greenbelt. (Good job Idaho Falls!!)

There is a Zane Grey Cabin and Museum adjacent to the pond area.

And apparently, there is a lot of fishing to be done in this little lake. According to this sign, you can collect up to 4 rainbow trout, 4 catfish, 2 largemouth bass (at least 13 inches in length), 10 sunfish (whatever those are), and 1 grass carp (at least 30 inches in length) ALL IN ONE DAY!! They do have a fish hatchery in Payson, so that's probably how they can stock this very small lake so heartily.

As we completed our one lap around the "lake", we saw traffic come to a complete standstill because of a gaggle of geese crossing the road nearby. 

Click to see video: (16 seconds)

https://photos.app.goo.gl/xQ32z8ceaok5Y6486

On our last full day in Payson, the weather was again very cold, only expected to get up to 45 degrees. We had already seen this coming earlier in the week, so we adjusted our schedule to go down to Saguaro Lake on Friday to immerse ourselves in the much warmer temperatures down south (near Mesa). In exactly one hour's drive, we arrived at Saguaro Lake.

There were a handful of flowers blooming along the trail. 

Those of you that are die-hard fans of my blog might remember that I stopped at Saguaro Lake in early January 2020. I was heading south from Idaho Falls, making my way from family to family down to San Antonio. It was deliciously warm that January day, in the upper 60's as I recall, making for a stunning hike and a favorite memory to stash for future use.

Even though it was considerable overcast when Scott and I arrived, the temperatures were still pretty favorable. The forecast said it was supposed to be 65 degrees that day. But the rain and wind hung around a little longer than anyone thought it would, bringing the temps down to around 55 or so instead. It wasn't horrible, especially when the sun peeked out. Scott hiked around the lake in his t-shirt, while I kept an extra layer on the entire time.

The cactus, or cacti, were so beautiful! I learned that a Saguaro Cactus can grow to be about 40-60 feet tall, and that by the time they reach that height, they are approximately 75-100 years old!! A ten year old Saguaro might only be a few inches tall. Amazing! I reached out to give this cute little guy a kiss. Buuuuut, then I thought better of it. :)

We didn't hike all the way to Burro Cove, which is at the end of the in-and-out trail. The weather was looking somewhat ominous in the distance, and I wasn't feeling too well. I had been up a few times during the night because my throat was stinging so much it hurt to swallow. I was a little weaker than I wanted to be. The hike is an in-and-out hike of about 5 miles, but we ended up cutting that in half. 

All of the Saguaros looked like people to me. Each one is so different from the next. I felt like they were characters in some animated Disney movie where, at any moment, they would emerge from the spell that was cast over them and turn into humans once again! This one (below) was especially interesting because it didn't really have any arms yet. Scott and I wondered how long does a Saguaro have to grow vertically before it begins to sprout some arms?? 

Careful there . . .

As we neared the parking and picnic area where we began, we paused to study this sad little guy. We had been wondering if the inside of a Saguaro holds water or not. Well, it turns out that the inside is pretty solid, not so much liquidy. This one succumbed to either fire, lightning, or disease, which made it look so sad and pitiful!!

Before getting in the car to drive back up to Payson, we sat at a picnic table to eat some snacks. Scott had fun feeding tortilla chips to the huge pack of birds that were all too eager to snitch the tasty morsels and then fly away before anyone else could steal it from their beaks. 

Click here to watch what happened. (11 seconds)

https://photos.app.goo.gl/ZXz1Knfp9W5TqsDp8

On our way home to Payson, we saw a hint of a rainbow. A delightful way to end a delightful week!!

Saturday, as we made our way home, my throat felt like someone had taken some coarse-grit sandpaper to it. Cough drops helped to settle things down during the day so I didn't cough or choke unexpectedly, which would have surely gotten me some hostile looks in my direction. 

I reflected a lot during the flight about what I needed to do, change, get caught up on, plan, etc. once I got home. I have a few ideas stirring around, but right now I just need to get over this horrible cold. Today, I'm in bed typing up my blog post and blowing my nose every few seconds. I've gone through 2/3 of a kleenex box and it's only 2:30 p.m.!! I'm grateful that my nose didn't turn into a faucet yesterday when I had to wear a mask in the airport and on the plane. That would have been a nightmare!! I stayed home from church today, watching the proceedings on Zoom instead, while Scott and Amber and the girls went to church without me. 

In the midst of typing, and not looking my best AT ALL, Kylie called me!! Yay!!

Bless her heart, she's been feeling like garbage too. Only for a much different reason! :) I asked her how she's doing and if she's able to keep anything down. Not really, she replied. If she is able to get something down, it comes back up soon enough, and she's right back where she started. I had Amber message her with some suggestions, since Amber really struggled with morning sickness as well. Motherhood is an interesting thing: it is so hard, but it is so beautiful and rewarding at the same time! 

A mother who throws up for months, and struggles with a multitude of health issues, is somehow able to forget the worst memories and experiences, and even becomes eager (at some point down the road) to do it all over again! We forget the bad stuff, or at least we gloss over it, and we remember that it's all worth it. And it really is. 

Kylie, even though you're struggling right now, it will get better. And you will love being a mommy. I promise!! (Insert a GIANT HEART here) :)