Where the Hell Am I?...Kaiser Springs AZ

   Sometimes you just want to take it easy, and that’s exactly what this hike was.  An easy, fun day trip into Arizona.  Mike’s brother, Matt, joined us, so I didn’t video tape anything just in case he didn’t want to be on camera.

 Our first sight of Kaiser Springs had been last year, when Mike and I took an amazing trip to his old military stomping grands at Fort Huachuca in Sierra Vista.  He kept a mental memory of the placard he saw on the side of the freeway, offering a nice little reprieve from more of the daunting hikes we’ve scaled.  The drive was about three hours, located outside this little town called Wikieup, and which calling it a “town” is a stretch. We ate lunch in this diner that was owned by one of those conspiracy theory nuts who was proud to boast of his shooting skills, so make sure you don’t try to steal anything.  Surprisingly, however, the food wasn’t half bad, and we left to hike on a full stomach. 

 It was a bright, sunny day, so the sun beating down made the air warm. To get down to the path, the first hurdle is climbing down a rock face to reach the canyon path below.  It was fairly easy, but you must pay attention where you put your feet.  Once down, you are in a wash, so if you go on a rainy day please note these canyons can be hazardous from flash floods.  On sunny days, however, the heat is trapped between the walls so make sure to bring extra water.

 The path is easy to hike, and prevents some amazing views. About forty-five minutes later, you reach the hot springs. The water trickles out of the rock to soak the ground, meandering through grass and mud to eventually meet up with a small river.  The water here is ice cold. I took off my boots and socks and put my feet in, only to pull them out seconds later.  It’s the bone freezing cold that actually hurts. Mike and Matt went off boulder hopping but I stayed behind on a rock and took a ten minute nap.  With the sun above, the sound of rushing water, and weariness from the hike settling in, I relaxed almost immediately. 

 Once the boys came back, we decided to head home.  All along the path were droppings I thought

belonged to wild horses or perhaps burrows (like we have in NV), but as we rounded a bend, we saw a wild cow (more accurately a bull with no horns). Now, I have no idea if cows/bulls can be wild but as far as I knew, there weren’t any ranches around. We were on Federal land. So, either the bull was wild or managed to escape from his home.  In any case, we stood calmly as he passed by us, giving us the stink-eye. 

If you’re looking for fun and easy, this is definitely the hike to take.  Make sure to check out my video on the trip! 

To watch the video click the link: https://youtu.be/gPeQ-SROthk

Thanks for stopping by! Come back next Sunday for another adventure with Mike & Beth!