At nine o'clock, nine hikers were lured by perfect weather for a hike in spite of the 30% precip prediction. But as fate would have it, their usual luck did not hold and all manner of rain gear was employed from noon on. Being too cheap to fork out the $10 parking lot fee, they walked a bit on the busy road like the rest of the trail users. Too bad the park service doesn't charge a more reasonable fee - surely they'd make more money.
The trail led past caves and tunnels up to an improbable quarry. Monster rock faces in a fairy tale side canyon lured the hikers into it's mouth. The pied piper led a few of them up the hands-needed steep trail to a box canyon replete with caves high up on it's face. Circling vultures made them uneasy. Coming down was a sit-down job.
As they were about to leave, a couple of rock climbers happened by. Fascinated, four of the hikers lingered to watch a bit too long, separating themselves from the rest. As happens in these circumstances, at the exit of the canyon one group went one way and other group went the opposite direction. After quite a while, both hungry groups got the picture and turned towards each other, reuniting not too far from a river picnic spot.
And then it rained.
Wildflowers were Chinese Houses, Fairy Lanterns, Chokecherry bushes (?), Dudleya, Buckeye. A beautiful small king snake crossed the road in front of us and a millipede couple was doing their spring thing (or perhaps it was one invertebrate devouring the other. Who knows?).
