Waking up to a dusting of snow was great. Since I couldn’t see where I had chosen to camp when I arrived, I took a couple mile drive down the forest road to see what other choices of a spot I missed out on. Boy am I happy I did. I wondered why someone was taking an early morning horseback ride as I noticed hoof prints (I initially thought were deer) and then droppings (that I knew where from a horse). Turns out it was a herd of wild horses. They didn’t spook too easily so I got a few pictures.

I let the horses be and continued down the road. Not even a half mile later a herd of elk crossed my path. I was only able to snap three pictures as they moved fast and I don’t do well under pressure. What a great morning. I continued a bit more until the road was so full of ruts I had no choice but to turn around.

I keep choosing the scenic route and I really prefer it. I can drive slower and see much more. I made it to the Arizona State Capitol well before noon. I took a self-guided tour of the original portion of the capitol that is now a museum. It was a nice couple of hours where I learned some new things and drew on knowledge from previous trips; there were exhibits about the Grand Canyon and the USS Arizona.

On my way I hit a Whole Foods to get some camp fire food and headed for my proposed spot with the BLM (Bureau of Land Management) free dispersed camping. I made my meal and decided it was too early to stop, so I packed up and headed to another place closer to my next destination. Well I stopped at a Flying J first to take care of some things, on thing being this blog and another uploading the photos. I must say I am not getting as much written down for the program redesign, but I have thought through some many aspects of it. It is time to start buckling down and put that pen to paper.