one of the best rides of the year

Cole, Annie and Deanne....Trail off Gimpy's Gully-Mace's revenge

Field of irises

Healthy year for Deer's Ear

Iris

Cole at the top of a steep climb to Hochderffer Hills

Hochderffer trail-It burned here about 6 yrs ago. Amazing not a down tree on the trail...

Looking at Little spring it is tucked back in the corner

Just put your water bottle to the pipe and drink yummy cold spring water

Another shot of little spring. lots of good memories of hanging out with Steve here being exhausted thankful for the cold water....

super steep hike a bike behind little springs to Bismark lake-Cole, Annie and Eric

Bismark Lake

Close to the end of the day-finishing a section of Az trail by snow bowl road.

Did a great loop yesterday...A good old one Steve and I would do. Trails are in best shape ever and lots of work has been done by someone to remove all those down trees.

Start at Freidlein Prairie road-rocky power line climb- Gimpy's Gully-Mace's revenge-hart prairie trails-Hochderffer trails-little spring-Bismark Lake-Az trial-flying fish-Veit Spring-back to rocky power line. Wow and all Clear of trees...My thanks to who ever cleared all those trees on Hart Prairie trails and I couldn't believe it Hochderffer trail....I really wish Steve could of been there with us.....A ride he would of been proud of....We used to ride those trails when they were really tough-down trees and faint primitive single tract....Now I would have to say it is one buffed out trail system...

Corallorhiza Maculata - An Orchid

I was mt biking on a mission yesterday to find more of the Orchid in bloom. Most of the time it is just a stalk- then it blooms many of these tiny flowers...It would be easy to not even notice the beautiful orchid..

how time flies

A beautiful orchid in full bloom- A Species of Corallorhiza

Lupine flowers are starting to go off on climb three...

brook bank trail...

a field of Irises

Steve always with his loyal friends close by.....

baby horney toad....love these guys.

Family of mule deer checking us out....

Enjoying Climb three then brook bank trail with Steve and the dogs...

.....Sally always taking it all in and staying close to Steve.....

The inner basin all full of life.... A great ride with Dan and Deanne the other day.....

Have been enjoying orange bike the last few weeks due to "tennis elbow" . gears and a shock on the front takes some tension off the elbow....

I am done already she says.........beautiful view from the top of waterline road...way out there is the northrim of the Grand Canyon....

Nice spray paint job Dan Bergland...

Not an ounce of wind that day right there.....it was very calm on the north side at 11000+ feet.

Deanne pointing out to us what runs she skied one month ago here...

Deanne riding through some amazing forests....I love the way aspen trees smell.....

thinking about my dad; wow he died nine years ago already. thinking about all that has happened since then. I met my husband. learned how to ride a mt bike. saw my nieces and nephews grow. lived through the worst time in my husband's life being crushed by a pickup truck on his bike that left him an incomplete spinal cord injury. my sister-in-law Steph fought and won against breast cancer. my sister-in-law Nancy watched both her parents die within months of each other due to cancer. saw my niece Montana fought and won against Kidney cancer- not without loosing a kidney first. what else....Our Friend Doug Roether is now fighting oral cancer with chemo and radiation http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/douglasroether/journal -his story. Boy life just keeps spinning faster and faster.

That is why Steve and I live the way we do and the only way we can.....by getting out in the woods and taking it all in........what a beautiful place to be, here in Flagstaff Arizona.....D