A Million Little Pieces Of My Mind

Keith and I decided to take a break from unpacking the boxes the still reach to the ceiling, and take a hike. Specifically, we decided to go hiking in the Usery Mountain Regional Park, and somewhat at random, I chose Blevins Trail as the one to start with. This is the most famous and most used trail in the Usery Mountain Regional Park network. It's a nice easy 3 mile loop through beautiful Sonoran Desert scenery. Smooth rolling, wide singletrack with some sand but not too many rocks. Added to the mix were Keith's brother, Chris; Chris' dog Blackie; and our dogs Ella and Lilly.

The signage in Usery Mountain Park is excellent, and we had no problem finding the parking area for Blevins Trail.

In addition to Ella and Lilly, Keith's brother Chris brought his dog, Blackie. Blackie gets along great with the other two.

Blevins Trail is a loop trail. The other end returns to the opposite side of the parking area.

This trail is noted for its wildflowers, but that would be a little later in the year. Still, between the soils and plants, there was plenty of color for those who looked.

This is apparently one of those parks that is allowed to exist naturally, without being "fixed" or cleaned up. From the char, I would guess this saguaro met its fate at the hand of the lightning gods.

There are only slight rises and falls on this trail, for a total elevation change of a mere 118 feet.

I love that the dogs love to hike.

Teddy Bear Cholla is a cactus shrub. From a distance it looks soft and fluffy. But IT. IS. NOT.

Keith and Chris stayed ahead of me, mostly because Ella didn't want Blackie to be in front. So she kept straining to catch up to the little guy, dragging Keith behind her.

For the southern arm of the loop trail, the Superstition Mountains massif helped us maintain direction, since the winter sun was spending a lot of time behind the clouds.