A Fond Farewell to Spring Training 2019

2019 has been quite the year for Arizona Spring Training. Not sure what the Grapefruit League saw in Florida but the Cactus League saw cool (sometimes downright cold) temps, some heavy rains that caused rainouts as well as snow on the higher hills surrounding Phoenix, and crowd numbers lower than last year (at least at Surprise Stadium). On the flip side the rains brought spectacular flowers in the desert, cool temps meant great hiking and biking conditions, and the smaller crowds meant the stadium offered better seats to all who came. So, all in all, not bad.

I'll be heading north back to Colorado in the next couple of days all still contingent on Mother Nature's weather whimsy. Speaking with my wife last night she tells me that there is snow in the forecast for today and tomorrow with conditions getting better by Sunday. We'll see!

Google lists the fastest route from Phoenix to Denver going through Flagstaff then north to Moab and then via I-70 over the mountains to Denver. 826 miles and 13 hours. Alternatively it gives me the Flagstaff to Durango then up through Buena Vista and then to Denver on 285 route which adds 14 minutes but is technically 42 miles shorter. The route I'll actually take will be the third option which is 13 hours and 3 minutes taking me from Flagstaff through Albuquerque and Santa Fe then north on good old I-25. The first two options are absolutely far more scenic but at the end of March and given this year's weather the time estimates could go to heck in a handbasket if I run into Colorado's potential for inclement winter driving conditions.

All of the routes north at this time of year offer pros and cons. Some of the scariest driving conditions I've ever experienced was during a Thanksgiving ice storm between Santa Fe and Raton, New Mexico. The road, which is flat compared to the more mountainous routes, was covered in ice smooth enough the Avalanche could have played on it. The plow drivers had given up - not much they could really do given the conditions, so we crept slooowly on and on until bailing for a hotel room to wait until conditions improved.

This trip I'm hoping for better conditions. I'm also hoping to take the right turn off the highway at Exit 233 to visit Meteor Crater between the snow-covered peaks of Flagstaff and the wide expanse of Winslow, Arizona (made famous in the Eagles hit "Take it easy"). While I won't be seeking "...a girl my lord, in a flatbed Ford, slowing down to take a look at me...", I will be looking to see the world's best preserved impact site. Having driven by it way too many times on my trips south without stopping I figure I'm about due.

I've attached a short wrap-up video of my Spring Training adventures below. I'd be remiss if I didn't give some Kudos to two ladies I worked with, Karen and Jennifer, who let me drag them around the Ford Canyon loop hike the other day. Neither had been on the trail before and though I had tried to be as honest about the difficulty as I could one really knows what one is capable of until one gives it a try. I'd even sent them the link to the video I had done on the trail when I first came down. Sore feet and aching muscles notwithstanding they made it around the 10+ mile loop and I hope after a couple of days to recuperate they'll be glad for the experience. Toward the end, as we were making our way down the Mesquite Canyon section, we came across a hiker heading uphill who appeared to be

What? Snakes in the desert? Imagine that! Photo by Jennifer

stymied in his efforts to proceed any further by the mother of all rattlesnakes who had deemed it appropriate to take up residence smack dab in the middle of the trail where it could absorb the sun's rays and occasionally raise it's rattle to warn off stupid hikers who felt that this was their trail. This was the first snake I had encountered while actually on a hike so staring at the business end of a big rattlesnake with its forked tongue tasting the air and beady eyes fixed on the three of us as we listened to what is truly one of the most distinctive rattling sounds in Nature, is something I'd truly recommend to nature lovers everywhere. However, all good things must end, so eventually Mr. (Mrs.?) snake had had enough of us and decided to head off into the underbrush allowing us to complete our desert stroll.
So there you have it. Six weeks in the Arizona desert with some Baseball thrown in for good measure. This time next week perhaps I'll be high in the Colorado Mountains which I have sorely missed. I'll trade my hiking shoes for snowshoes, the snakes for bears.  All things considered, not bad - not bad at all.

Oh, and what will I miss the most? My friends of the desert, the Coyote, who's mournful but energetic howls lulled me to sleep under the stars. May you continue to sing in the night forever.