Fun With Knee Injuries.

Oh Dear Friend, this morning we hiked Squaw (Piestewa) Peak.

I got up early and made it work by 6:45 to meet R. As anticipated, he was running on Filipino Standard Time, which meant he arrived at 7:30. :)

E and his wife had called to let us know they were already on the trail, so R told them to go on ahead.

It was packed by the time we got there. (This is the most hiked mountain in AZ, with an estimated 10,000 visitors A DAY). We did manage to find a parking spot reasonably near the trailhead, and headed out. We ended up doing the summit trail, even though it's marked as 'difficult/strenuous', but it's only 1.2 miles (each way), so we thought, what the heck.

The way up was a fun climb. My knee wasn't nagging me too bad until the last quarter mile or so, when the trail got really steep. E and his wife met us as we were about half way up and they were about half way down. He walked most of the way down with his wife and then RAN up the mountain back to us, because he his a ninja, or a billy goat, or some inhuman combination of the two. He then continued to run ahead of us and take pictures, which I am eternally grateful for.

We hung out at the top for a while, and I was harassed continually by an overly amorous rock squirrel who desperately wanted some of my cliff bar. At one point it dove into my lap and stared longingly into the depths of my soul, attempting to make the sort of connection that would persuade me to feed it.

I was startled.

I felt it hit my legs and all I could think was 'Oh God! Something is on me!! It must be a tarantula hawk!! RED ALERT!!'

It however, was not a tarantula hawk.
It was a rock squirrel.
The weight of it should have been a clue.
No wasp weighs that much.
I have never been so relieved in all my life.

I did take some video of said squirrel, pleading for scraps, but I haven't uploaded it yet. I'll post it for you once I do.

The hike down was significantly less fun. My knee was agonizingly tender, and unwilling to bend in the way it was designed to. I went down most of the trail sideways, continually being passed by crazy men running up and down the mountain in masks to reduce the available oxygen, and unbearably dumb party girls wearing almost nothing, still stinking of tequila, begging their boyfriends to carry them the rest of the way. Seriously.

R was a saint to put up with my slow pace.

We made it back down with very little whining on my part, though I did wince more than I'd like to admit to. Walking on flat ground proved to be even harder than the decent, but I'd anticipated as much. It's the 30 or so degree knee bend that I'm struggling with. The large steps down are not a problem.

We went to LoLo's for some chicken and waffles, ate one of the most delicious meals of all my life, and then went home and passed out on the couch.

Now I'm awake, starving, and missing you terribly. I also really desperately need a bath. Pictures soon. Pinky promise.
All my love.