GameDay

Here is part 2 of my Phoenix trip that took place the previous weekend. On Saturday, January the 21st, I got up early and drove to Lost Dutchman State Park to do a little hiking in the Superstition Mountains. The state park is located just east of the Phoenix metro area. I was on the trail at about ten till eight and there were already quite a lot of people out hiking. Sunrise was probably at 7:30 too. I didn’t have much of plan as to where I was going to hike. I looked at the park map and choose the hardest and longest trail. It would take me to the top of The Flatiron at 4861 feet. The hike was good choice and quite popular as well. I took the Siphon Draw Trail which leads into a steep and gorgeous canyon. The maintained trail ends at an intermittent waterfall. I imagine the only time there is waterfall there is after a good rain. There was a small pool of water at the base. It is said that most people turn around at this point, but from what I saw, a very good percentage kept going. It got rough too. It is written that in the next mile there is 1500 foot elevation gain. It felt longer than a mile. I had to use my hands quite a bit. I was rewarded with a great view from the top of the Flatiron.


Shortly after cresting the plateau, trail is down below




Looking South from The Flatiron.





Looking North from The Flatiron





A sad part about this hike is that I found out about a plane crash that happened just before Thanksgiving last year. The trail goes real close to the site. The details of the crash are extremely tragic and depressing. If you want to know more, Google it.



The plane crash site from The Flatiron














It was cold and windy on the top of the Flatiron. So I didn’t stay too long on top. Going down was slow due to the steepness and the ton of people out hiking.



The Flatiron





Looking down on the trail





Cactus on the way down





Above the dry waterfall









The pool of water at the base of the dry waterfall





Looking back at the Flatiron





Looking back one last time.






On the same day as the hike above, I attended a soccer game between the US and Venezuela. It was a meaningless friendly without the big stars, but it was still fun to attend. It had a great crowd for a meaningless game as well. The announced crowd was over 22,000 people. I would say about 95 percent of the people where cheering for the US. I didn’t see any major Venezuelan sections. I ran into a few people from Colorado at the game. Some of them I know, some I didn’t. Anyway here are some pictures from after the game.

Look for the Colorado flag behind the goal. That's where I was for most of the game.






Me on the field