The frogs only croaked until about midnight, so I at least got some sleep last night.  Keith and I are up again at 6:30, eat, pack, and leave a little after 8:00.  When we are part way out of Ruby Canyon, I get Keith's picture next to a Century Plant to give some scale to the height of the plant.  It's amazing how tall these things grow.  The views of Ruby Canyon are impressive.

Keith by a Century Plant 3-22-2008 @ 8:57	Looking back in Ruby Canyon 3-22-2008 @ 8:57	Looking west at mouth of Ruby Canyon 3-22-2008 @ 8:57

     Equally impressive are the views to the north across the river.

Looking north across the river 3-22-2008 @ 8:58	North view at mouth of Ruby Canyon 3-22-2008 @ 8:59

     I find some interesting Yucca-like grass just as we reach our first place to see the Colorado River today.  About 10:00 we reach the northern end of Ruby Canyon and make the turn east bound.

Satintail Grass 3-22-2008 @ 9:24	Colorado River 3-22-2008 @ 9:29	NE corner of Ruby Canyon 3-22-2008 @ 9:58

     It's incredible the varied amounts of plant life there are in the Canyon.  Spring is a great time to hike in the Canyon, not only because of the pleasant temperatures, but because many of the plants and flowers are in bloom.

Blackbrush 3-22-2008 @ 10:17	Mormon Tea 3-22-2008 @ 10:18

Century Plant 3-22-2008 @ 10:19	Desert Windflower 3-22-2008 @ 10:25	Beavertail Cactus 3-22-2008 @ 10:36

     This part of the trail is called the Le Conte Plateau.  I was expecting a vast flat area with no drainages to get past.  While it is a little easier walking than the last two days, there are still some minor obstacles to get around and unfortunately, the plateau only lasts a short distance.

Le Conte Plateau 3-22-2008 @ 10:31	An obstacle on the Le Conte Plateau 3-22-2008 @ 10:31

     We make our way through one of the many unnamed drainages and stop for lunch at the back side.  While I am sitting there, I feel something crawling on my ankle.  I look down and find a tick.  This is the fourth one this hike.  I can't recall ever finding a tick on my prior sixteen Canyon hikes.

One of the unnamed drainages 3-22-2008 @ 11:15	One of the unnamed drainages 3-22-2008 @ 11:33	A tick crawling on my ankle 3-22-2008 @ 12:07

     After getting out of this unnamed drainage, we are approaching the Shaler Plateau.  This is another area I was hoping would be flat and easy walking.  It is about like the Le Conte Plateau and while easier than the standard Tonto Trail, it is not a complete cake-walk.  It looks like someone lost their bandana and it snagged on some Blackbrush.

Keith by a Schott's Yucca 3-22-2008 @ 12:56	North view on Shaler Plateau 3-22-2008 @ 1:22	A lost bandana 3-22-2008 @ 1:36

     We are just walking along when a bird flies out of a bush I am next to.  Geez Louise, that scared the you-know-what out of me.  I nearly wet my pants.  The bird flies about six or eight feet and sets down on the ground right beside us, remaining motionless.  Its camouflage is so perfect that had we not seen it land we would not have known it was sitting there.  A few minutes later, I get a good shot of one of the many lizards we see in the Canyon.

Common Poorwill 3-22-2008 @ 2:11	Plateau Lizard 3-22-2008 @ 2:22

     I was hoping this would be a much easier day than the prior two days, but that is not happening.  We finally make the turn into Turquoise Canyon.  There doesn't seem to be as much water here as there was in Ruby or Serpentine Canyons.  We reach the backside and find the campsites on the west side of the creek.  There are some nice ledges beside camp, where we sit in the shade until the sun goes behind the ridge.

Looking south in Turquoise Canyon 3-22-2008 @ 2:26	Richard's tent in Turquoise Canyon 3-22-2008 @ 4:42	Keith's tent in Turquoise Canyon 3-22-2008 @ 4:43

     While there is water flowing here, it is much less than any prior canyon.  Like last night, I'm expecting the frogs to be croaking here too.

	Water in Turquoise Canyon 3-22-2008 @ 4:44

     Tomorrow we are camping in Agate Canyon, which is only five miles from here, so it should be an easier day.  However, our Alaska friends said it was dry, so we will be carrying extra water.

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