A Hike in the Desert

Last week a friend called to let me know about a toddler hike that was being held on Saturday at Usery Pass Park in East Mesa. It sounded like a lot of fun and since the weather has been AMAZING lately I thought it would be a fun thing to do as a family. As it turned out Michael was helping with an Eagle Project, but the kids and I thought it would be fun. The path that the hike would be on was accessible to strollers so taking Austin wouldn't be difficult. We filled water bottles and got some snacks and headed out for the morning. When we got there some friends from church were there also. The kids were excited to have friends to hang out with while on the 1 mile hike. It was a pretty big group of people there. The hike was geared toward 3-6 year olds, but the older kids had just as much fun. Ranger B told them about the animals that live in the park and about some of the plant life as well. One of the stops along the way was Rattlesnake Alley and the ranger taught the group about what to do if you ever see a rattlesnake. The 3 S's are Stop, Spot and Slowly go around. The kids learned that if you don't bother a rattlesnake it won't bother you. The ranger then told us that it was still too early in the day and cool for a snake to be out. In all of his morning hikes he has never seen a snake, but when we got to the end of the hike someone heard a rattle. Upon looking to the side of the trail he saw the snake slither away from the trail and curl up on a rock under a bush. All of the kids got to see the snake, from a safe distance, and we all put into effect the 3 S's that we had learned earlier. The kids then received their Jr. Ranger badges and our hike was complete. Fun was had by all and I am looking forward to doing more of those in the future. They have a nighttime hike that you take a flashlight along with you and see what all of the creatures do in the dark. Sound like a great adventure to me. For info on any other activities at Usery Mountain Park go to www.maricopa.gov/parks or check out this blog for great events happening in and around Mesa.