A wet hike!

We had taken the Vissers to the airport at 6am, so we got ourselves ready for our usual Monday morning hike. The weather was overcast, chilly and windy when we left Mesa Regal at 8am but we were layered with clothing and ready to go. When we arrived at the Trailhead - Dutchman Trail #104 at the First Water Trailhead - the clouds were low but we thought the sky was a bit lighter to the east, so we began our hike. Within the first 30 minutes, it began a light drizzle which became a steadier continuous light rain as we continued. By this time, we were well into it so we kept going to our turn around point.

Often the streams in the desert are only a dry wash but today the stream is flowing well - we had to cross this steam 5 times!! in and again 5 times on the return. Most of the crossings involved using stepping stones - only one person got a "soaker" and it was NOT Jack or I! Jack is in the red jacket.

Notice how green the desert has become with the rain. We hope the wild flower display will be really good this spring.

Lunch stop - making the best of a cold and soggy hike. When we got back to the parking lot - 10km later - it was only 39F! When we got home we headed for a warming soak in the hot tub -lovely ending!