The road up to Flagstaff is quite slow today with lots of cars taking advantage of the extra holiday day and driving up north. There is also construction along the way but going slowly and carefully we make it to the trailhead of the Flagstaff Loop Trail we are planning to explore today. It is a section we haven’t explored before through Skunk Canyon and to our surprise there is even snow at the trailhead, it doesn’t feel that cold.
The trail is mostly level and it is structured as a two mile loop and then you can continue out and back along the canyon as much as you want.
We didn’t expect to see that much snow so low but there is snow especially on the canyon floor and of course also on Mt Humpreys. We enjoy playing with the snow for a while before continuing on finding interesting caches and weird structures in the forest.
There is also some interesting wildlife we see quite a few Abert’s squirrels and Pygmy nuthatches but to our surprise also a tarantula. We are surprised that it is out so late in the season not that we see one.
On the back and forth section the trail continues to be mostly level but follows the canyon which is quite nice especially in this great weather. And then we notice the time, we have to return to the trailhead so we can arrive at our lodging before it gets dark.
As we return we are surprised to see a helicopter flying close to the ground. And then we notice it is a military helicopter, quite weird. At least the juncos do not care as they flit from tree to tree looking for seeds and insects.
After the out and back section we return on the second part of the loop towards the parking lot. This section goes through the canyon first before cutting through the forest and passing near a very weird construct in the middle of the forest. It looks like a landing pad for aliens but maybe it is a jumping point for bicycle or motorcycle races, who knows?
As we drive towards the AirBnB we notice we are quite hungry so we decide to stop in Williams for dinner. We choose a well reviewed restaurant, Red Raven and at least the interior delivers, it looks quite eclectic.
And the food is quite good also especially the steak, it is delicious. Full we are ready to drive to our AirBnB to spend the night and then meet alpacas the next day.
