3/1 McDowell Regional Park, Waterfall Trail

OK, so I never really walked all the way to the waterfall.  Two reasons:  I was running out of time and it was hard to take photos against the sun.  Also, there was no water in the waterfall, I was told, so I walked in about .6 miles and then turned around and headed back to my campsite. 

I liked that the trail was paved half-way down, and also that it was fairly busy. I do not like to walk alone on a deserted trail, especially later in the afternoon, in case I were to get injured and not be able to get back before dark. 

This may look strange to be taking photos of grass, but you don't get green grass often in the desert.  However, it rained about half an inch a couple of days ago, and they had some rain a couple of weeks ago, so grass is growing. 

Nice handicapped-accessible trail. 

The reason for the sign is evident in the next couple of slides. 

 All of these rocks with petroglyphs were immediately behind a bench I was sitting on.  They had the path fenced off to discourage people from touching these.
At this point, the pavement ends and the trail becomes dirt. 
This is the view looking back over Surprise, AZ.  Surprise is a far northwest suburb of Phoenix. 

Partway down the unpaved part of the trail was this wash.  A wash is a creek bed that stays dry almost all year, but fills rapidly during rains.  You can really imagine how this must look in a heavy rain.

I've been very busy with grading end-of-semester stuff for my online class, so won't have much time for sightseeing or posting for the next couple of weeks.  I do try to get out for a walk once a day, however.