Today we decide to return near the General Crook Trail to find a couple caches we missed previously and then to explore the Chevelon Canyon again to see what we can find. But first we stop at the Mogollon Rim Visitor Center that surprisingly is open, usually it is closed during weekends especially. We enjoy first the views and then we decide to enter it, it is a rare occasion.
It is a one room visitor center with the centerpiece being a large bear killed on the Rim quite some time ago. There are also a few other exhibits that we explore before moving to the other side of the road to start our hike.
The parking lot here is huge and as usually it feels empty even if it has a few cars in it. We start first on the General Crook Trail to finish up the caches that we didn’t find last time.
Besides the caches we also find birds, lots of them including some less viewed ones like the Green-Tailed Towhee. It is quite fun as we continue exploring and finding the three remaining caches in the area.
The trail is along an abandoned road and is quite beautiful and the caches are into the forest so we deviate from the trail a few times just to reach them enjoying the nice forest. But there are no mushrooms, none, not even poisonous ones.
There is also an even rarer sight for us, a band-tailed pigeon that doesn’t run away as soon as it sees us. Very interesting and enjoyable.
After finding the caches we return to the trailhead to use the restroom and then off we go towards Chevelon Trail in a different direction from the General Crook Trail.
This trail is even less popular, even though it is flat and passes through beautiful forest, there are even some ponds on the way. Here we have no caches left to find, we are just exploring an area that we liked previously.
The trail is a closed off road that is flat and large and really nice to hike on. It is also great for bicycles really and we are surprised as usual that no one else is using it.
Given how quiet it is it is not surprising that we see quite a few birds on the trail. Less expected however is the Pronghorn Antelope, it is always a great day when we see one.
We pass through a few burnt areas on the way and those are a bit sad to see. There are some closed roads also here, blocked by firefighters or by the National Forest service, who knows.
There are a few birds here but our focus is on the watchful Abert Squirrel that never takes his eyes from us while we pass next to it on the trail.
However the hummingbird buzzing around is also quite fun to watch as it explores the many flowers along the trail. It is surprising how many flowers there are especially this late in the season.
And almost imperceptibly we reach the end of the trail. Here the area is more significantly burned and there are large patches of downed trees that we explore before moving on.
The trail ends at the Chevelon Canyon viewpoint, there are some nice views here and we decide to spend some time just to explore the canyon rim before returning.
We discover also a few camping spots and some other great views as we walk along the Rim but then it is getting late and we decide to start on the way back to the parking lot.
On the way back we again see many birds including some completely unexpected cormorants. Likely the were flying between the lakes but still it is not something you expect to see in the Arizona forest.
The return hike is uneventful, we even escape the rain, mostly. There are some drops of rain just as we make it into the car but still overall it was a great hike with lots of birds and animals, just as we like it.
On the way back we decide to stop at the Diamond Point Steakhouse on the way. We have stopped here once before but otherwise it is always closed when we return. However today we are just in time to be almost the last customers in.
As always we order steak and is quite good with an acceptable salad as a starter. We enjoy the well deserved steak after a great hike and then we continue on towards Phoenix which we reach after a reasonably nice drive late in the evening.
