It has been a while since we have taken the Rubi out to play. Phil and Sue have a jeep wrangler now, so we decided to take our babies out for some fun. It has been a while since any of us have been out 4-wheeling so John picked an easy trail to test the Jeeps.
Kofa Queen Canyon is only one of two places in Arizona that palm trees grow wild. The trees were at the end of a 1/2 mile hike. I remember our friends John and Sharon telling us about there trip to see the palms when they were out here too.
The drive up to Palm Canyon was typical desert, flat, sandy, rocky and sprinkled with mesquite bushes, grass tufts, and cacti.
This is a national wildlife refuge so we were fairly sure that we wouldn’t be getting into anything crazy, but really? There are dirt roads in PA more challenging than this.
It felt like it took us forever to get to Palm Canyon, but finally we arrived. There were a few cars in the parking lot but not too many, just the way we like it when we are hiking.
Thanks to volcanoes and shifting ground, rock outcroppings or buttes will jut up from the desert floor in the oddest places.
These canyons offer a shady break from the intense desert sun, retain water pockets for wildlife and more lush growth of plant life.
Well, there they are, in the crevas of the butte. Yep, 1/2 mile walk to see wild growing palms. The hike was strenuous enough that we all got our hearts pumping.
The view of the desert from here was pretty cool though. The jeeps are down there somewhere.
Heaven forbid should we take the trail we just walked back to the jeep. Sue, Phil and their puppy Jackson got a lesson in rock scrambling. Quite an accomplishment for the 70-year-olds.
The second part of the trail into Kofa Queen Canyon was a bit more off-roady. The pass through the canyon was basically a wash and the terrain changes after every rain.
There were some holes and deep dips along the way that gently stressed the jeeps.
The guys were listening for any odd noises or creaks or whatever that the jeeps shouldn’t be making.
When you tow your vehicle for some of the long distances RV’ers do you are never sure what could go wrong. As it turns out, Phil and Sue’s jeep did start making some thunking sounds.
Turns out something happened with his sway bars. Obviously you can have vehicle trouble any time you take it out, but thankfully we were on an easy trail and no damage was done to the jeep driving it back out to the road.
Here is a Verde tree for all of you who have been wondering about the trees. These get about as big as a Japanese Red Maple and the back is smooth and bright green. Hard to tell from the picture I know.
John and Phil went to town to order parts for Phil’s jeep. We will soon be ready for some more challenging off-road trails now that the jeeps had their test run. Woo Hoo!!
