The idea for this raffle hike began last year at the Fall Social when several items were raffled off after dinner. Items included the book "Yosemite Valley Girl: A memoir of the early life of Nancy Eckart", two hikes led by seasoned hike leaders, two first aid kits and a sunglasses case. Lorna Turcotte's name was drawn for the Paul Careau led hike and after a couple of date changes, Tuesday, February 18 was chosen. The hike was to be the Baldwin-Templeton hike, a club favorite. The weather was perfect, not too hot but mostly sunny and a high of 60 degrees F.
Paul indicated he could take two more people along and Lorna asked the Huffines to go along as Gary had placed her raffle tickets for her into Paul's bucket! The trip began at 7:00 AM with a stop along the way for rest, gas and coffee. By 9:30 we were at the parking lot and preparing to hike. At the trailhead we met a mother/daughter team who looked like they could use a bit of help so Paul and Lorna were gracious and asked them to tag along with us for part of the hike. They were visiting Sedona to get away from the nasty weather of Long Island, NY for a week. Sandra, the daughter, used my camera to take pictures of the four of us. The first photo below was taken in the parking lot before we were underway. Being a Tuesday, it was not very crowded, parking was easy, the trail was in good shape and we were all excited to be outdoors hiking in such a beautiful area.
As the morning ensued and the air began warming we were able to begin removing layers of clothing. Between Paul's story telling and his recollections of past hikes on this trail, he announced to all the names of the local landmarks. I might have said aloud the names of a few of the bushes and trees around and Lorna checked me with her phone app. One bush/tree that we argued over whether it was an oak or holly was confirmed to be an oak by Lorna's app. Paul, being a typical hike leader, kept indicating that the climb would be over around the next bend. Well, eventually, we did climb out of Oak Creek Canyon and found ourselves on a relatively level trail with stunning views all around. Our guests left us at Cathedral Rock and we proceeded to the turn around point of the day's hike where we took our snack break and continued to marvel at the scenery. On our return to the trailhead, Oak Creek, which had lots of cold, clear water, was now in the sun and drew our attention. Lorna posed for several photos and Paul joined in with Lorna on the huge rock.
Soon after, we split up, with Lorna and Paul finishing the loop, and Marilyn and I heading to the trailhead. Forty five minutes later we were all together riding back through Sedona and the city of Oak Creek recounting our day on the Baldwin-Templeton Trails. The conversation quickly turned to one of hunger satisfaction and how long was it going to take. Paul knew that El Patio, the Mexican restaurant he had chosen was just off the first exit south of where we joined I-17 after leaving Sedona. Our meal was preceded by well earned margaritas as we discussed the high points of the day. Our food was served with a little teasing from our waitress (I think she remembers Paul). After a great, mid-afternoon lunch, we climbed into the car and headed back to Surprise. The day included lots of conversations about many different subjects. We all agreed that living in Grand (all or part time) and being a part of such a close knit group like the Grand Hikers, gave us the feeling of belonging, friendship, kinship and closeness that is very special. Thank you Lorna and Paul for a special day together that was very memorable.