Phoenix is in the middle of monsoon season, so they finally opened up the national forests in Arizona. I took advantage by making a trek out to Bloody Basin Road -- about 40 miles north of Phoenix.  (The road is named after the reddish hued soil in the area.)  Because of the recent rains, the desert was alive with brightly colored plants and cacti -- it's amazing how the land seems to "wake up" with a little water. 

A few miles past Seven Springs, I came across a couple of cowboys tending to a herd of cattle.  The entire herd was on the road, so I killed the engine for a few minutes until the cowboys could round 'em all up.  (They didn't seem too pleased that I was there, but hey -- public road.)

On the whole, Bloody Basin Road is fairly easy going; but it does get a bit rocky the further east you travel. Some stretches might give larger bikes some difficulty.  The road ends at Sheep Bridge, a nice bit of engineering out in the middle of nowhere.  The bridge is just wide enough for a bike to cross, but there were campers down below so I refrained.

Normally, you would be able to cross the Verde River just past Sheep Bridge and continue on, but the river was pretty high (and I was alone) -- so I succumbed to better judgment and turned around.  I made my way back on the same road, but explored a lot of side trails along the way. All in all a good day.

Shown below are a few images from the ride. 

View from Bloody Basin Road	Waiting for some cowboys to move the herd	Great AZ scenery	Ditto...	Bloody Basin, as seen from higher up

Dropping down onto the Verde River	Distance shot of Sheep Bridge	The bridge up close	Oh so tempting...	Another shot of the bridge

Down at the bank of the Verde	A little too deep to cross	Not much left of this truck	Nice shot next to a mesa	Parked next to a bluff