Verde

You know the saying how everyone turns into their parents? I'm pretty sure it's coming true. 

Yikes. 

Just kidding, Mom. 

So here’s the story…

When I was a kid, we did a lot of middle-of-nowhere camping. Day trips, weekend trips, week-long trips. Usually the closest person was many many miles away. On one trip, my mom decided the family would go on a hike to the Verde River. It wasn’t that far – the perfect afternoon activity for parents, kids and dogs. Well… the river never came. Mom rallied our spirits, calling out “It’s just around the next bend!” After a certain number of bends, you start to lose patience. My brother plain gave up (he was a youngling at the time, you see) and threw a tantrum, meaning my mom had to give up too, and carry him back to the camp site. Dad and I made it eventually. This hike was promptly dubbed the “Death March”, and it has lived in our memories forever and ever.

So. A few weekends ago, I decided my little family should finally go on a dog friendly hike featured in a book I’d picked up. I love being near any water, which can be tough to come by in the Valley of the Sun. This meant I was picking from trails located outside the metropolitan Phoenix area. 

No big deal, right? 

In hindsight, there were many things I should have done. Like:

I SHOULD have double checked the trail/mileage with another source. Like GoogleMaps, for heaven’s sake.

I SHOULD have gone ahead and prepared for the worst instead of packing us a granola bar and 2 Camelbacks full of water for a summer-in-Arizona hike.

I SHOULD have decided to call my parents to let them know about this harebrained idea before my phone ran out of bars.

Anyways. I’ve luckily learned several life-lessons all at once, and thank goodness nothing bad happened along the way. The nice part? I got some pretty pictures. :)

Sheep's Bridge at Verde River

just outstanding views.