Wade went backpacking with his brother for his 34th birthday. This was his first trip in a long time. Planning and excitement went into this trip. Water, shelter, and maps with GPS coordinates were prepared. What was not taken into account, was that 18 miles in 2 days, climbing over 3000 feet, might be a little much for the first backpacking trip in over a year.
Below are the highlights from Rogers to Reavis Loop deep in the wilderness. What is not pictured, is me, looking at the clock, battling my anxiety. Who wants to see that anyway? I think they both had a good time despite the late arrival home. This was an ideal way for Wade to celebrate. --- For the first time ever, Wade is going contribute his words to the blog in the picture captions. This is an exciting day.
Wade here. ---- So this is a long loop through the heart of the wilderness area. -- 5 miles to the indian ruins, then 2 more to Fish creek, where we camped, then a really long 5 mile climb up into Reavis Ranch, then 3 more uphill miles to Reavis saddle, then steep downhill with switchbacks for 2 miles, then uphill again for the last 2 miles. -- A long hike, but tremendously scenic. Rugged, remote country, with a feeling of solitude. My kind of trip.
This is an Arizona Carrot. Looks and smells like a carrot plant. They grow in the spring/summer in the high desert canyons.
This is an Arizona Carrot. It looks and smells like a little carrot plant. The whole thing is edible, and the root will get bigger as summer approaches. It will never get big like a carrot, but it tastes good.
Rugged terrain.
Jake looking surprised by my camera skills.
Here we are inside the indian ruins. This is the roof of the dwelling.
Hand prints in the mud. 600 years old. I put my hands in the prints. Their hands were smaller than mine.
View from inside the dwelling. You will notice from the names carved into the wood that Payton was here at some point. Thanks, Payton.
View looking up at the caves with the ruins.
Sign explaining the site. --- In all my hiking, I have found many ruins. Some that are on the maps, and others that are unpublished. This one is frequently visited, but it is the coolest one, because it is so well-preserved, and because you can go into the ruins and explore.
I once read a theory that stated that all the entrances to these structures are thin and narrow, so that any enemy trying to enter them would be vulnerable to attack as they squeezed/ducked through.
These ruins are comprised of 5-6 rooms, some more preserved than others.
This is the roof of the main dwelling. Solid construction to be able to last 600 years. Notice the layer of reeds in the roof. Those don't grow in Rogers canyon, so maybe they hauled them here, or maybe there was a wetter climate in the canyon back then. Or maybe they bought them at Home Depot.
This is Angel Basin. Really pretty area. We should have stopped and camped here, but instead, we over-committed ourselves, and decided to do the loop.
Angel Basin. Late March is the perfect time to hike the Supes. - The creeks are all flowing, and the flowers are blooming. ---- That pack looks heavy.
The camer couldn't get them all in one shot, but from this spot, I could see 6 keyhole rocks. --There are 4 in this photo.
Really pretty area.
Now made less pretty. -- Why do I look so angry??
Our campsite.
Camping next to the creek.
Slime falls, and Slime pond.
This was my favorite part pf the hike. Climbing up out of Fish creek. I had never been on this part of the trail. Very scenic.
Jake
Wade
Looking west. We had climbed out of the canyon below. You can see the front of the superstitions in the distance, and can barely see Weaver's needle right below the horizon in the middle.
Looking south. These captions are getting pretty lame.
Plow Saddle Spring.
The spring tanks were built by ranchers in the 40's.
I found this rock, and when I cracked it open.....
It had fossilized plants inside.
Jake exhausted at Reavis Ranch. 6.5 more miles to go, and the sun is setting. -- The reavis ranchhouse used to be on the rise behind Jake, but some boy scouts accidentally burned it down in 1991. - But you can still find the apple orchards. The apples are delicious in the fall.
Me doing my impression of how tired Jake looked. --- In the background you can see the pine trees. It is always surprising and pleasant to find a big pine forest in the middle of the superstitions (elevation 5100 ft).
Hiking back in the dark, we found the biggest tree in AZ. -- Jake and I measured, and it would take 7 of us extending our arms to wrap around it. We did not hold hands in our measurement taking. That would have been wierd.
This is an Arizona Carrot. It looks and smells like a little carrot plant. The whole thing is edible, and the root will get bigger as summer approaches. It will never get big like a carrot, but it tastes good.
Rugged terrain.
Jake looking surprised by my camera skills.
Here we are inside the indian ruins. This is the roof of the dwelling.
Hand prints in the mud. 600 years old. I put my hands in the prints. Their hands were smaller than mine.
View from inside the dwelling. You will notice from the names carved into the wood that Payton was here at some point. Thanks, Payton.
View looking up at the caves with the ruins.
Sign explaining the site. --- In all my hiking, I have found many ruins. Some that are on the maps, and others that are unpublished. This one is frequently visited, but it is the coolest one, because it is so well-preserved, and because you can go into the ruins and explore.
I once read a theory that stated that all the entrances to these structures are thin and narrow, so that any enemy trying to enter them would be vulnerable to attack as they squeezed/ducked through. 
These ruins are comprised of 5-6 rooms, some more preserved than others.
This is the roof of the main dwelling. Solid construction to be able to last 600 years. Notice the layer of reeds in the roof. Those don't grow in Rogers canyon, so maybe they hauled them here, or maybe there was a wetter climate in the canyon back then. Or maybe they bought them at Home Depot.
This is Angel Basin. Really pretty area. We should have stopped and camped here, but instead, we over-committed ourselves, and decided to do the loop. 
Angel Basin. Late March is the perfect time to hike the Supes. - The creeks are all flowing, and the flowers are blooming. ---- That pack looks heavy.
The camer couldn't get them all in one shot, but from this spot, I could see 6 keyhole rocks. --There are 4 in this photo.
Really pretty area.
Now made less pretty. -- Why do I look so angry??
Our campsite.
Camping next to the creek.
Slime falls, and Slime pond.
This was my favorite part pf the hike. Climbing up out of Fish creek. I had never been on this part of the trail. Very scenic. 
Jake
Wade
Looking west. We had climbed out of the canyon below. You can see the front of the superstitions in the distance, and can barely see Weaver's needle right below the horizon in the middle.
Looking south. These captions are getting pretty lame.
Plow Saddle Spring.
The spring tanks were built by ranchers in the 40's.
I found this rock, and when I cracked it open.....
It had fossilized plants inside.
Jake exhausted at Reavis Ranch. 6.5 more miles to go, and the sun is setting. -- The reavis ranchhouse used to be on the rise behind Jake, but some boy scouts accidentally burned it down in 1991. - But you can still find the apple orchards. The apples are delicious in the fall.
Me doing my impression of how tired Jake looked. --- In the background you can see the pine trees. It is always surprising and pleasant to find a big pine forest in the middle of the superstitions (elevation 5100 ft).
Hiking back in the dark, we found the biggest tree in AZ. -- Jake and I measured, and it would take 7 of us extending our arms to wrap around it. We did not hold hands in our measurement taking. That would have been wierd.
