I have decided to get up before sunrise, eat, pack my gear, and leave camp around 6:30.  I am down to my last two quarts of water and I don't want the heat or sun to be a factor in my hike back to Desert View.  Just a few minutes up the trail a rabbit jumps out of the brush and sits long enough for me to get a picture of him.

	Rabbit 10-10-2007 @ 6:35

     As I make the long climb up the trail to a ridge, Gold Hill fades slowly into the background.

Gold Hill 10-10-2007 @ 7:07	Gold Hill 10-10-2007 @ 7:26	Gold Hill 10-10-2007 @ 7:51

     I crest the ridge and come to the agave roasting pit and the Najajo Hogan.

Agave roasting pit 10-10-2007 @7:58	Navajo Hogan 10-10-2007 @ 8:00

     I round the small hill and reach the five-mile cairn.  It is downhill from here for a while.

	Five-mile cairn 10-10-2007 @ 8:29

     As I walk along the many creek bottoms, I come to the only blooming flowers I see on the entire trip.  I guess it makes sense that they would be in this creek bottom where water would be more plentiful.

Fleabane Daisy 10-10-2007 @ 9:09	Dandelions and Fleabane Daisy 10-10-2007 @ 9:09

     When it was in use, the old road traveled quite a ways on this creek bottom.  I know it's only been fifteen years since this road was last used, but several of the sections are extremely rough.  Surely there were some massive washouts of the road material since its closure because these boulders would have been plenty tough to get over in a vehicle.

Rough section of the trail 10-10-2007 @ 9:09	Rough section of the trail 10-10-2007 @ 9:25

     From this point on, I'm going to start looking for the Platypus container lid I lost on the way out.  In about ten minutes, I am amazed to find my lid right in the middle of the trail.

	Platypus container cap 10-10-2007 @ 9:48

     I reach the trail junction sign, turn right, and start up the many gravel switchbacks to the top.

Trail junction sign 10-10-2007 @ 9:58	Trail junction point 10-10-2007 @ 9:59

     The Desert View Watchtower has been in view for some time.

Desert View Watchtower Wide angle lens 10-10-2007 @ 10:12	Desert View Watchtower Partial zoom 10-10-2007 @ 10:12	Desert View Watchtower Full zoom 10-10-2007 @ 10:12

     When I get higher, I am surprised that the San Francisco Peaks near Flagstaff can be seen this clearly.  Like Gold Hill earlier, Cedar Mountain slowly fades away behind me.

San Francisco Peaks 10-10-2007 @ 10:48	Cedar Mountain 10-10-2007 @ 11:00

     A few more switchbacks and I see that wonderful sight of my car sitting right where I left it.  I pack my gear and head to Mather Campground.

	My car 10-10-2007 @ 11:17

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