Thursday March 5 Dad took me to Tempe Diablo Stadium to see the Brewers play against the Angels. Dad got the tickets for his birthday, but I drove. We didn’t have a handicapped tag with us, but he waved his cane at the parking volunteer and they let us park right next to the bottom of the stairs going up into the stadium. Then a lady came over and asked if we wanted a cart ride up to the top, but we declined. They could not have been nicer to us. We did take the cart ride back down and they took us right to the car.
We were there in time to watch the pre game warm ups and the field preparation - painting the batters boxes and foul lines, etc. We were in the 4th row, just to the 1st base side of home plate - terrific seats. Got to see Albert Pujols up close, and last year’s AL MVP, Steve Trout. Also it was fun to watch Mike Scioscia manage and give the signs on every pitch.
Mike Trout, AL MVP
Beautiful day, huh?
The cheap seats are out beyond the left field wall.
The Buttes Restaurant is one of the more famous spots. You can see it from I-10, just beyond it.
I am not scowling
March 3, 2015
South Mountain Trail Complete.
15 days, 131 miles, 62 hours, 17 minutes, 3 seconds, 26,854’ ascent, 26,099’ descent. finished.
Today I hiked about 10 miles, and completed the Holbert Trail, the Dobbins Lookout Extension, the missing parts of the National Trail, the Kiwanis Trail (again) the Las Lomitas Trial, and the Box Canyon Loop Trail.
Today’s hike was 9.9 miles, 4:25, 1950’ ascent and descent. It started to rain about 14:20 and keep training. Only sprinkling, and I didn’t get wet, per se, but was damp by the time I got to my car.
Mount Suappoa is where all the big tower antennae are. I hiked pretty close to them, then turned north and hiked around the summit, down steeply to the road, and then north on the Kiwanis Trail.
The little bump about 200’ up and back down is a side trail up to Dobbins Lookout - a little parking spot with toilets. Then back down to the Dobbins Trail.
I hiked what seemed like gradually up, but it was quite a climb looking at it this way. When I got to the top of the Tolbert Trail, mostly south-ish, I turned east on the National Trail, hiking back to tag the Buena Vista Lookout I had been to earlier. Then I turned around and hiked the National Trail west, around the tower antennae, and steeply down to the road, and the top of theTelegraph Pass Trail - my first day hike here. This completed the National Trail, and I turned north and hiked steeply down the Kiwanis Trail I had been on before. Then East, except I took a wrong turn West, on Las Lomitas, trend around, and then the Box Canyon Trail back to my car.
It started raining when I was still going up the slope to Mount Suappoa, and the sky was very dark. This would have been a problem for me if it got as cold and windy as last week, because today I did not have any coat or rain gear with me. But it only sprinkled.
Now that I’ve “finished” South Mountain, I will turn my interests to hiking in the Superstition Wilderness, east of Chandler. Here is a picture of the 15 day hikes, each in a different color.
And here’s a view from Google Earth:
