Richard and I sleep in late this morning.  We heat our pre-cooked bacon and it is again wonderful.  We end up leaving camp around 9:00.  Today we will be looping around Lyell Butte, named for the English geologist, Sir Charles Lyell, and going to the back side of Grapevine Canyon, a distance of just under six miles.

Looking back at Boulder Creek 4-1-2018 @ 9:07	Lyell Butte 4-1-2018 @ 9:07	The trail leaving Boulder Creek 4-1-2018 @ 9:08

     We find plenty of the usual desert plants.

	An odd cactus "tree" 4-1-2018 @ 9:21

Barrel Cactus 4-1-2018 @ 9:53	Yucca 4-1-2018 @ 9:53	Century Plant 4-1-2018 @ 11:54

     There are a couple of large drainages we have to get past before reaching Grapevine Canyon.

A large drainage 4-1-2018 @ 9:23	Looking north 4-1-2018 @ 9:23

     Although we are still west of Grapevine, a very distinctive point on the northwest side of Grapevine Canyon, shown in the first and third pictures below, is visible at all times.  I expected this to have a name, but I could not find one on my map or topo software.

Point in Grapevine Canyon 4-1-2018 @ 10:01	First view of the River 4-1-2018 @ 11:02	Point in Grapevine Canyon 4-1-2018 @ 11:03

     We are treated to some very nice views of the Colorado River.

The Colorado River 4-1-2018 @ 11:22	The Colorado River 4-1-2018 @ 11:22

     As we round the corner and begin to enter Grapevine Canyon, the picture below sums it up perfectly.  This thing is huge!!  It's going to take a long time to get all the way to the back of it before reaching the campsites.

	Entering Grapevine Canyon 4-1-2018 @ 11:44

     There is a famous inscription, "Hotel De Willow Creek," somewhere near the back side of Grapevine inscribed by Pete Berry and Ralph Cameron in the 1890s that I am hoping to find.  A picture of that inscription is shown below, courtesy of Arizona State University.  We never do see it, though.

Inscription by:  Pete Berry and Ralph Cameron	Trail in Grapevine Canyon 4-1-2018 @ 12:23	Lichen 4-1-2018 @ 1:52

     We pull into camp a little after 2:00.  It's been twelve years since I was last here.  I had forgotten how few and small the campsites are.  We do find some pretty neat horns in a tree right beside the cooking area.

	Horns at Grapevine campsites 4-1-2018 @ 2:11

Grapevine campsite 4-1-2018 @ 2:11	Grapevine campsite 4-1-2018 @ 2:11	Grapevine campsite 4-1-2018 @ 2:11

     Grapevine Creek is considered perennial and we find plenty of water here.

Grapevine Creek 4-1-2018 @ 3:36	Grapevine Creek 4-1-2018 @ 3:36	Grapevine Creek 4-1-2018 @ 3:36

     Around 8:00, and well after dark, two guys come through camp hiking with headlights.  They stop briefly for water and then continue to the west.  If it were hot or summertime, I would not be surprised to see some night hikers, but I never expected it this time of year.  Tomorrow we are moving around to Cottonwood Creek.

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