It’s been a while since we spent a weekend with our friends Carl and Lifan. We finally scheduled Memorial Day weekend to camp and mountain bike on Mingus Mountain, near Jerome, AZ, because my SAT (self-appointed trainer) was excited to show us some of the trails he’s enjoyed the past year. I was excited to escape the Phoenix heat, which was — and is — ramping up.

Both my SAT and I took Friday off work and we spent a few hours in the morning packing and getting the last details in place before heading out. When we left at around 11am, my GPS said that there was a crash a bit north of us on the I-17. Therefore, we decided to take the scenic route through Yarnell and Prescott to Mingus. Neither of us had taken that route to Prescott before and were pleasantly surprised at how pretty the drive was. We were enjoying the lush trees (yes, in Arizona!) and charming ranch houses so much that we neglected to take pictures. I’m guessing that all of the green is due to the multiple springs in the area, marked by signs indicating “Hidden Springs,” or “Iron Springs,” etc.

We arrived at the dispersed camp area around 2:30pm. (We decided to disperse camp rather than stay at the Mingus Mountain campground because our friends were bringing their dogs and the campground wouldn’t be conducive to letting the dogs roam freely.) After driving up and down the gravel road, we staked our claim to a large, lovely, tree-covered campsite. We had to drive up the gravel road about 5 minutes to get enough cell reception to text our friends the campsite location; we were going “off the grid” this weekend!

A couple hours after we set up camp, our friend Ian arrived in time to start making dinner (Impossible burgers and potato salad). Delicious! Pretty soon, it was time for bed. We opted to sleep in the back of our truck and yes, it was pretty cozy. 😉 Good thing that nighttime temperatures were cool (about 8C / 45F).

The next morning, we awoke to see free range cattle grazing in our campsite! I love seeing wildlife. 🙂 While enjoying a leisurely breakfast (vegan blueberry muffins, vegan quiche, gourmet coffee), we discussed how to set up the shuttle for the day’s mountain bike ride. (For the uninitiated, a mountain bike “shuttle” refers to when (at least) 2 people drive 2 cars to where the ride ends. Then, after parking 1 car at the endpoint, both people drive the other car back to where the riders are. THEN, everyone (and their bikes) piles into the car for the drive to the trailhead. This process is adjusted depending on how many riders, bikes, and vehicles are available/needed. It took my SAT and Ian 2.5 hours to set up our shuttle (thank you!).

Carl and Lifan arrived mid-morning with their lovable doggies, Millie and Nala. After they settled in, we all packed into the truck (yes, all 5 of us in the cab!) and drove to the trailhead. We started with trail #9037, followed by the Black Canyon trail #114, then ended with the Gaddes #110 downhill. I think the word of the day was “adventurous,” because most of us found the first half of the ride to be fairly challenging. Why? Because the trail:

• was very narrow singletrack
• was overgrown (because the trail wasn’t ridden much by others and therefore not maintained)
• featured lots of loose rock
• was steep and exposed (i.e., the trail overlooked a canyon. Not good for those afraid of heights!).

So….yeah. That first half was a bit beyond my comfort zone. Oh. Right. I already said the ride was challenging. 😀 We went slowly and honestly, I felt like we weren’t ever going to finish the ride. I fell along one steep section because it was covered in slippery pine needles. After I fell, Lifan, who was behind me, fell in the same spot, then her husband, Carl, who was ahead of us, turned around to come back to us and then HE fell. My SAT tried to encourage us, saying that the trail would widen and that it would get easier…soon….However, before the trail got better, we had to navigate one very short and steep “hike-a-bike” (HAB) section, which is exactly as it sounds! The top of the HAB section was the physical high point of the ride, if not the psychological high point. When we reached the top, we were greeted by very gusty wind and great views. Finally! The trail DID start to open up and it became a bit smoother and easier, allowing all of us to ride much faster. We all reached the bottom safely and were extremely happy to see Ian’s Tesla waiting for us. Hooray! My SAT got everyone Cokes and snacks at the nearby Maverick gas station, as a peace offering, then we went back to camp. Overall, the 12 mile ride took 4 hrs 15 minutes (yes, that includes breaks, but still…) and although it did feature more challenges than I anticipated, it was still great to enjoy the cool temperatures and beautiful scenery with friends. Nothing like suffering together to solidify friendships! Back at camp, we devoured burgers and potato salad (again, but who cares?), with raspberry crumble bars and cookies. Food seems to taste better outside….and after exerting considerable physical and mental energy, haha. After some hangout time around the kerosene lamp fire (there is a fire ban, which means NO campfires), we all got ready for bed.

We all enjoyed another leisurely morning on Sunday, with lots of oatmeal, coffee, fruit, and conversation. Our friend (and Ian’s GF gf, i.e., gluten-free girlfriend) Vanessa arrived. Because none of us were looking for another strenuous ride (apologies to my SAT, haha), we decided to do a couple more moderate downhill trails (specifically, trail #533 and a couple of connector trails). We did have to do a shuttle, but this time, it was much less involved. This time, all 6 of us were in the truck: 4 people in the cab and 2 people, plus 2 bikes, in the back of the truck. The rest of the bikes were on the bike rack. My SAT and I elected to “take one for the team” by riding in the back of the truck. It wasn’t too uncomfortable, mainly because the drive was short and the 2 borrowed pillows from Carl and Lifan helped to cushion our aging knees. 🙂 The mountain biking this day was really fun, with enough flow and technical sections to provide (appropriate) challenge and lots of smiles. 10/10, I totally recommend.

After arriving back at camp, a few of us tested out our solar shower. Verdict: 2 thumbs up! It felt amazing to clean up a bit. We made tofu tacos for our last camp dinner, then hung out in Carl and Lifan’s Sprinter van with their dogs to end our last evening together. All too soon, morning came, and we all parted ways. Thanks for a great weekend everyone!