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Harquahala - AZ's highest desert peak Day one (Saturday) started off great -- from Jim's shop in north Phoenix, we rode to Lake Pleasant, where we hopped on a dirt road and traversed the "back way" to Wickenburg. After having lunch there, we headed south of town until once again finding the less beaten path. The rest of the day was spent mostly off-road while winding our way down to Harquahala. Approximately halfway up Harquahala mountain road, Denise took a nasty spill and badly bruised her right knee and ankle (great job of protecting the bike with her limb, though). After getting her back down to the bottom and sending her (grudgingly) back home via the interstate, Jim, Steve and I decided to find a nice remote camp site. Day two began bright and not-too-early with the three of us heading back up to the summit. The sight of Denise's swollen knee was still etched on our brains, so we took it nice and easy up to the top. Harquahala is the highest desert peak in Arizona. From the top, you have an amazing 360 degree panoramic view of what seemed like half the state. It really was breathtaking (the pictures don't do it justice). From the top, you also get the privilege of seeing an old observatory that was built in 1920 to study solar flares from the sun. Because the mountain is in a very remote area, it's pretty much a given that you won't see a lot of other people in the vicinity (can be both a good and a bad thing). After getting our fill at the top, we decided to head back to Wickenburg a slightly different way. (Once again, Steve's GPS 176 saves the day.) The ride back was just as fun, if not better than the previous day. What a great weekend. In all, the terrain greatly varied from well-kept dirt roads to jeep trails to deep sandy washes (a real workout when you're bike/gear is pushing 400 lbs.). But in my opinion, those are the best rides -- where you're always facing new challenges. Shown below are a few images from the ride.
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