"Floyd" Thumb Butte

Last summer my dad took a hike on a hot summer day with his grandson-son-in-law, Ty, two young great-grandsons, and a couple of younger kid friends of theirs.  Dad remembers half of the hike, the half that he walked up to Thumb Butte's base.  The other half of his venture he was ushed down the hill strapped into a one wheel gurney by six exhausted firemen and para-medics!  It was a hot day with the temperature reaching into the mid-90s; he got overheated, dehydrated and passed out on top of the hill shortly after he sat down on a viewing bench.  Ty immediately called for emergency help, wisely.

An afternoon at the VA Medical Center to run tests and get hydrated was all it took for him to be released back to family care.  He was no worse for wear after a couple of days of rest.

It took me about three months to venture out on that same trail with him.  It was a cool Fall day, and this time we went up half way and all was well.  Notice the picture above; his constant companion is now Mr. Water Bottle and I carried plenty of backups.

I know I took more picture of "Floyd" Thumb Butte, but the only ones I could find were from that day.  So, here you have it!

 Manzanita, the smooth red barked bush is native to the area.

 This is a back shot view of Thumb Butte.  If one stood on the other side of the encropment one would see the whole of the City of Prescott perhaps just three miles distant.

 Lower in the forest the dead trees have been removed, but as we hiked up the natural look abounded.

Happy older man still enjoying the beauty of God's creation.   How many 88 year olds still revel in the hike?  It was a perfect late October day and it shows on his face.

November 17th, yet another beautiful day and another beautiful hike -  this time with Louise joining us.  Instead of venturing a bit westward, we traveled north a few miles to a trailhead easily accessed off of Williamson Valley Road.  Destination: toward Granite Mountain, the tallest and most prominent of the hills which provide the backdrop of beauty of this area.

7626 feet high surrounded by a rolling hills and small plains and home to at least a small herd of antelope.  These beautiful creatures may have been as surprised by our presence as we were of theirs!

This was the first time I had witnessed antelope in brushy area.  Up to today I had only seen them in open grassy fields.

 It has not rained with any resolve in several weeks, but the hike was still pleasant.

Lichen abounds throughout the area.  Did you know that Lichen is actually two organisms in a symbiotic relationship, fungus and algae, in most cases.

 

To our amazement, we found that although we were hiking the trailhead for Granite Mountain, virtually all the ground was covered by volcanic stones.  This area, including north and east of Flagstaff was very active around 1000 A.D., merely yesterday in geologic terms.

 

Stay tuned for more adventures as I hone my writing and picture taking skills!