April 13, 2023 The Butcher Jones Trail Has a Little Bit of Everything

This trip has been amazing up to now. The hikes have been some that Debbie picked and some that I picked. Debbie & George have hiked a lot of the trails in this area. So they know what to expect for those hikes. I have never hiked in this area. So all I can do is find trails that look interesting and hope for the best. Today's hike is one of my "hope for the best hikes". Spoiler Alert: Mother Nature took care of me once again. Don't believe me, here is the photographic proof.

Once again we are in the Tonto National Forest on another beautiful morning.

The parking lot here was just about full when we arrived.

This hike features Saguaro Lake and the Salt River.

So off we go. Christy & Deb leave George & me behind relatively early on the hike.

So we take our time and enjoy the scenery and the cooler temperatures along the lake.

The flowers are in full bloom along this trail.

Hiking along this lake makes it feel like we are not in the desert anymore...

...until we see this along the trail.

George saw this guy fishing from a self-propelled small boat. This led to a conversation with the fisherman far below us about his unique way of traveling on water.

George was very accommodating whenever I thought a photo needed a person in it.

The trail went from the lake up and down the mountains along the way.

It was very easy to get scenic photos on this trail.

I will definitely kayak here on my next trip to Arizona.

Mountain desert surrounded by water, what a great combination.

Climbing uphill and inland...

...but water is visible just around the next turn of the trail.

It was damn near impossible to take a bad photograph on this hike.

You have water, cacti, and mountains with blue skies and white clouds.

George seems to be enjoying this hike as much as I am.

Flowers blooming all over this hike.

The scenery changes with every turn of the trail.

The views change with the elevation along the trail.

We finally caught up to our wives.

The trail cuts through a rocky section that adds some fun to our hike.

Now Christy & I are falling behind...

...my excuse is there are so many photo ops on the trail that I have to keep taking pictures.

Just when I thought that this is the most scenic hike I'd been on in quite a long time...

...there is an explosion of color at the far end of this trail.

Debbie is at the far end of this out-and-back trail.

We walked along the Salt River before heading back.

It is amazing to me how there is vegetation on the rocky shoreline all the way down to the water. 

Heading back through the most colorful part of a very colorful hike.

Below are photos I took with my phone. They were taken throughout the hike and are not in any kind of order.

This cactus looks like it has a face.

Christy climbing uphill.

Self Portrait of one happy hiker. 

This moment is one of many over the last 30 years that reminds me of something my grandfather told me a long time ago. We were looking at his old photos and he was telling me stories about each one. I told him that it looks like everyone was having a great time in the pictures. Then he told me,"We were but the best thing about it was we knew it while it was happening."

Ever since that day when I realize something special is happening to me, I remember that quote. So it was making me smile when I took this selfie.

Our tour guides for the week.

A rare photo of Debbie standing still.

After our hike, we ate lunch on the picnic benches at the trailhead. Then we sat on the shoreline of Saguaro Lake and were entertained by the dogs running on the beach and in the water. It was so relaxing to be on the beach. Deb took this picture of Christy & me in the lake. Debbie made us wait 30 minutes before letting us go swimming. OK, that is just me making fun of a good friend. But those that know her are thinking that it really happened.