Hiking near Black Rock, Arizona

We set for a hike with Terry the day after I returned to Utah but there was a cold front and quite a bit of snow. Abby loved it. We humans decided to seek a warmer hike.

Abby enjoying a snowy afternoon dogwalk on the C Trail

Abby enjoying a snowy afternoon dogwalk on the C Trail

And so we headed south, deciding on hiking around on BLM land near Black Rock, Arizona, which is right on the Utah-Arizona border. There aren’t any trails but Tom and Terry had hiked here before and suggested we hike south across the volcanic hills. After ascending a few hills and skirting a bowl, we found ourselves at the rim of a large canyon. Or rather, I found myself there – Tom and Terry had planned this. After a pack adjustment and some photos we found a place where it was possible to descend and then picked and skidded our way 600 feet down the canyon. Proceeding west along the wash we soon discovered fossils and came across interesting sandstone outcroppings. There were fantastic examples of the latter along the bottom of the wash, eroded into incredible wave-like formations that made the canyon floor appear to undulate. Terry and I ran around for more than 10 minutes trying to capture the organic forms of the sandstone before we finally proceeded down the wash. ore visual treats were found – patterns in the ice and rounded sandstone ledges in the wash – before we finally arrived at the mouth of the canyon. Scrambling back up to the top of the mesa was less adventurous than our descent, and our path back to the car through the rolling mounds and drainage less photogenic than the canyon, but it was a pretty great exploration and a welcome respite from the below freezing temperatures up north.

Black Rock, Arizona

Black Rock, Arizona

Tom hiking across the hills, Black Rock, Arizona

Tom hiking across the hills, Black Rock, Arizona

Black on the inside, Black Rock, Arizona

Black on the inside, Black Rock, Arizona

Cholla wood, Black Rock, Arizona

Cholla wood, Black Rock, Arizona

And we reach a canyon rim, Black Rock, Arizona

And we reach a canyon rim, Black Rock, Arizona

Not facing the camera but I like this shot of the canyon better, Black Rock, Arizona

Not facing the camera but I like this shot of the canyon better, Black Rock, Arizona

Me adjusting my pack at the rim of the canyon, Black Rock, Arizona

Me adjusting my pack at the rim of the canyon, Black Rock, Arizona

Black Rock, Arizona

Black Rock, Arizona

Looking up while climbing the canyon, Black Rock, Arizona

Looking up while climbing the canyon, Black Rock, Arizona

Fossilized shell, Black Rock, Arizona

Fossilized shell, Black Rock, Arizona

Hiking in the wash, Black Rock, Arizona

Hiking in the wash, Black Rock, Arizona

Sandstone erosion in the wash, Black Rock, Arizona

Sandstone erosion in the wash, Black Rock, Arizona

Sandstone erosion in the wash, Black Rock, Arizona

Sandstone erosion in the wash, Black Rock, Arizona

Sandstone erosion in the wash, Black Rock, Arizona

Sandstone erosion in the wash, Black Rock, Arizona

Sandstone erosion in the wash, Black Rock, Arizona

Sandstone erosion in the wash, Black Rock, Arizona

Sandstone erosion in the wash, Black Rock, Arizona

Sandstone erosion in the wash, Black Rock, Arizona

More fossilized shells, Black Rock, Arizona

More fossilized shells, Black Rock, Arizona

Tom ahead of me in the wash, Black Rock, Arizona

Tom ahead of me in the wash, Black Rock, Arizona

Ice in the shadows, Black Rock, Arizona

Ice in the shadows, Black Rock, Arizona

Erosion at mouth of canyon, Black Rock, Arizona

Erosion at mouth of canyon, Black Rock, Arizona

Mouth of canyon, Black Rock, Arizona

Mouth of canyon, Black Rock, Arizona