Prickly Galore & Desert Adventures -> Usery Mountain Regional Park, AZ
Paul left a few days ago for Miami so I’ve been on my lonesome here in Usery Mountain Regional Park. Although I’m missing the hubby already, it’s nice to have a few days of alone time too. It’s pooch, 2 cats and a Dane loose and alone in the desert…very exciting stuff I tell you (I swear if I had a mask I could yodel “hi ho Silver” and make a film out of it), but the reality is that we’re just having some great, lazy days and taking advantage of the TON of stuff there is to do here.
Usery Mountain Regional park is 3,648 acres of desert goodness set at the western end of the Goldfield Mountains just east of Phoenix, AZ. The sites don’t have quite the majestic valley views of McDowell (the spot we stayed at last year), but they’re spacious with lots of natural surroundings and some fabulous hiking (around 30 miles of it) not too far from camp. Plus the park is conveniently close to shopping and the like. I’m pretty stoked we managed to get 2 weeks at this place.
Polly and I have been totally digging the trails, taking time to meander around the valley plus tackling the more strenuous ~3-mile “Wind Cave” hike up Pass Mountain to the views near the top. The nature and views are fabulous, but one thing we’ve discovered is that we need to get our butts out early to avoid the crowds…and by early I mean around 8AM. By 9AM people start coming in and by 10AM most of the trails are teeming with hikers. It’s not too surprising I guess. If you don’t learn to hike early in the desert you don’t hike much. The heat will get you just about any time of year by ~mid morning.
But I’ve been expanding my outdoor repertoire too. Many of the trails here are multi-use so I’ve been mountain biking too!
Now I should specify that I use that term in it’s veeeery loosest sense. I may well be the only mountain biker (in the US?) who rides the trails in hiking pants, a straw cowboy hat and slip-on Keens…this being my standard go-to outfit for just about any outdoor excursion. I may look like a redneck and, at the pace I ride, just about anyone short of the age of 90 can easily overtake me, but I sure do enjoy the time to stop and smell the cactus.
Which lead me to the cactus…oh yeah…there’s cactus here. Massive, stupendous specimens all around creating a near-infinite landscape of prickly galore. This is cactus country and you better like it!
The “jumping Cholla” don’t just jump here, they grow to the size of friggin’ trees and seed entire acres of desert with their deadly offspring. Saguaro’s aren’t just around here, they propagate like bunnies into “Saguaro forests” that go for miles and soar 40-feet into the air. Thankfully doggie is a well-versed desert pooch and avoids most of the traps, but hiking with a set of pliers is a necessity just in case. Oh and if you don’t like cactus pictures you may be disappointed in the blog for the next month or so….just letting you know…
Still I won’t be alone for long. I’ve already met a very cool fulltime family (Boyinks4Adventure) who are hosting here in the park, plus buddies are coming down for a long hike tomorrow. So, social activities will once again be on the agenda. Until then, I leave you with some cactus shots…..enjoy!
One of our favorite parks! Be sure and hit the nice mountain bike trails there. Also, this full-time family is hosting there right now:http://boyinks4adventure.com/
Yup, already did and already met the family (posted a link in the post). Cool guys!
Nina
We love Usery Mountain – spent the winter in Mesa our first year out and yep those trails do get crowded!
I was surprised how many hikers get out here, but I guess the park is just so convenient to town…and the hikes are nice.
Nina
I’m glad you are enjoying yourself at Usery. We’re pretty much vegging here, enjoying those fabulous views. We’ll get down to see you soon, or come on up here for a visit.
Hey I don’t blame you. McDowell is ALL about those views. Hard to leave those sites to go anywhere else 🙂
I’ll definitely be making a trip up there sometime, probably early next week.
Nina
I wish Bear was as smart as Polly. Our first week at Cave Creek in early Dec. Bear walked into a teddy bear cholla….his version of accupuncture. Thus he remains leased. Enjoy the hiking and the great sunsets!
Ouch! Taggart (our cat) is pretty much like that. She’ll walk right into a cactus plant without even thinking about it. It’s 100%-leash for kitty here.
Nina
Very lovely, including the cactus!
Thanks…glad you like the shots!
Nina
If you would like to try something different while in the Phoenix area, come on over to the Arizonian RV Park (just east of Gold Canyon) and go for a group atv ride in the desert. There is always an open seat in someone’s side by side. You can get a feel for what to expect via my blog at ncmotorcyclists.blogspot.com/
Wow…what a cool idea! I actually get car-sick really easily so I’ve never been much of an ATV’er, but this is an outstanding idea for others who are coming to the area.
Nina
Hi to my cousin Pat’s boy, Mike Boyink and family. They are a long way from where they started in so very many great ways.
How cool that you have that connection! Have chatted with them a few times now and hoping to have a coffee at some point with the whole family. They have a wonderful story.
Nina
We encountered the busy Wind Cave trail on a Saturday…I didn’t think it would be mobbed during the week too! Guess it’s due to all us snowbirds in town!
Yeah…these trails are POPULAR! Amazing how many folks I’m seeing out here even in mid-week.
Nina
May I just say… Polly is a beautiful dog who looks like she’s having the time of her life in every single photo!
I also just noticed you have advertising on your blog. Do you get money from that or does it go to WordPress?
You know I never even saw those ads until recently (they don’t show when I’m logged into my own site). Sadly wordpress gets all those $$. The price I pay for a free blog I guess. And yes, Polly is a very happy doggie 🙂
Nina
Yeah watch those jumping Chollas…..love the black and white shadow shot….
Yeah, I had fun w/ the shadow shot (and I hate those jumping Cholla!)
Nina
Your blog was the very first RV travel blog that I started reading several months ago and I’ve enjoyed all your posts since then. After being inspired by your blog, and others, I’ve decided to publish my own modest blog (AdventureDavid). Although not full-timers, we do travel quite a bit and are excited to start sharing our experiences. I have a new post ready that reviews led bulbs from four manufacturers that I recently bought and tested. I would like to include a link to one of the posts you did on led lights, if that’s acceptable to you. Not sure of the “bloggers etiquette” on this, so thought I would ask.
Happy to have you along for the ride! And please feel free to include the link. Looking forward to your post.
Nina
Great post Nina. We did the Wind Cave hike last year when we were there and it was elbow-to-elbow when we got to the top. As I recall, we had to wait for a few to leave so we could get into the cave. I’m looking forward to hiking with you tomorrow. I think it will just be us gals, hopefully Polly too. I think you will enjoy the Pass Mountain Trail. See you then! 🙂
Cool! Can’t wait. I think I was lucky at Wind Cave. By starting super early we were able to get the cave all to ourselves. We sure hit alot of hikers on the way down though.
Nina
Looks like a great park and I actually enjoy pictures of cactus!! Your shadow pics are cool.
Thanks…and this is a pretty neat park. Don’t think you can go wrong with any of the County Parks in Maricopa.
Nina
Taggart is such a regal cat!
She is the queen…supreme queen in fact 🙂
Nina
Wow – almost like a family reunion going on here! How’s 9:30 AM Sunday on our site sound? We’ll have coffee, hot chocolate, fruit, rolls, etc.
Outstanding! I’ll be there!
Nina
Love Usery and the Superstition Mtns in general…
Box Canyon Mark
I’ve been eyeing the Superstitions for days now. Think I will take a trip out here early next week. They are cool-looking mountains!
Nina
It’s too cold for a see-through bathing suit, and you didn’t mention a pack of old men dogging your footsteps. What kind of trouble could you possibly find while Paul is gone?
Don’t forget to document any crested saguaros you find!
P.S. Trails are very sparsely occupied around here right now.
We are ON OUR WAY to Tuscon girls, so we’ll be hoggin’ those trails before long. So far no untoward advances here in Usery, but I guess it helps that I look like a redneck most of the time.
And I am STILL waiting to find a Crested Saguaro…no the radar
Nina
I really love to read your travel adventures we would like to meet you we have a thousand questions. We will be full time we have two dogs and a kitten we need solar panels.
Maybe we’ll meet down the road. For solar feel free to look at my “solar” section (in top tabs). Hopefully that’ll get you started!
Nina
Hey Nina – there is a Crested Saguaro just a couple of miles from Usery. Head out of the park to Usery Mountain Road and turn right. Look for Mile Marker 25 before you come to a stop sign. Pull off on the shoulder and scan the Saguaros beyond the fenceline. There’s a pic on our blog but it’s more fun to find it on your own.
AHA!! I should have known to ask the local expert! Cheers for that. Thanks also for a great AM yesterday w/ your family and friends. We hit the weather just right…and the company was perfect too 🙂
Nina
Yes – good time – glad you could make it! And glad we didn’t schedule today.
We sure did hit the right day…what a freeze we had yesterday AM!!
Nina
Love all of your photos and look forward to continued cactus pics. Thanks for giving me the “how to’s” of adding an avatar to my posting. I had a bit of trouble, but worked through it. On the site they misspell the link. It’s http://www.gravatar.com. The sight has an i in the link, incorrectly. Then, when I went to choose my photo I was taking it from a backup drive. Well, reading it a few time…duh…I realized it clearly states photo from the hard drive. So, a simple transfer of the photo to that drive and it was done. Hope this helps others that might be working on getting their avatar set up.
Glad I could help you out and cheers for reporting back with that mistake in the link. Your new gravatar looks great!
Nina