U-Bar Trail

The creeks were so cool and refreshing, and most of them didn't have any yucky crawfish.

We found Zane Grey's old hunting cabin.

Doesn't my new recipe look good? I mixed Lipton noodle soup with dehydrated veggies. Yum!

After we heard a pack of coyotes howling, Tahoe had to stand guard for 30 minutes.

Wildflowers

Western sneezeweed.

This is the first corn lily bloom I have seen. It was delicate and fragrant.

One of my favorites is the Mexican hats.

Barbershop Canyon

The first night I camped in this pastoral meadow in Dane Canyon. While exploring the area, I discovered a bee hive in a rodent hole in the ground, so I put a log over it so I wouldn't fall into it.

This section of the loop was really beautiful. The trail meandered through bracken fern thickets and past Ponderosa Pine, Douglas Fir, and Spruce trees.

Butterflies flitted among the flowers. At night, a woodpecker decided to peck a hole in the tree right by my tent, so I listened to its construction for about 30 minutes.

Tahoe and I both enjoyed relaxing among the lush ferns.

Cabin Loop Trail

We began our 15 mile loop on the Houston Brother's Trail. It's a historic trail which the brothers used to move their livestock.

One of the best things about this trail is the abundance of water. We wouldn't hike more than 4 miles without hitting a creek or spring. This is Aspen Spring, the prettiest one along the loop. The water seeps from the sandstone rock.

We camped near the Houston's old corral.

This fireplace is all that is left after the fire many years ago. I'm not sure why Tahoe is standing in it. He might be after the shade.

FUNgus

My favorite mushroom - the Fly Agaric. They look like something out of Alice in Wonderland.

I don't know what these last two are called, so I made up names. This is Popcorn.

and Melted Candle.

Pivot Rock Canyon

This young coyote was trying to pounce on a rodent which had a burrow under the tree. When she saw me, she seemed curious and stood there for a minute, looking at us before she walked off.

Some of the ponderosas were over 40 feet tall.

The trail took us to this pleasant spring.

Water bug were everywhere, but I don't mind them. They are actually kind of fun to watch as they hop across the top of the water.

East Clear Creek

I haven't spent much time on this creek, so I decided to check it out. There is no established trail. You just slosh through the creek or bushwack along the side.

This is about as far as Tahoe likes to get in water. He loves to stand there and cool off, but when it comes to actually swimming, he's not interested.

We walked about a mile to a huge swimming hole where I went skinny dipping with the crawfish. Above the hole was an interesting Coconino Sandstone outcropping with a hanging garden.