Never Ending Canyon Loop and Mirage Trail

The Never Ending Canyon Loop has always been a popular hike even when you end up going up the wrong canyon.  There is at least one canyon in this area that narrows down to shoulder width and then ends.  The only safe way is to turn around. Today we went up and down all the right canyons.

The trail goes up one canyon across a ridge and down another parallel canyon. The area is always being reshaped by the wind and especially the rain.  You never know what to expect year to year or even after a small rain.

Many grand views that almost look like cathedrals.

There are always stories being told and a group of three... must be a good one.

We thought this poor bird's remains were of an eagle.  The large bones were remarkably light compared to those of a turkey.

With all the chunks of sand and clay calving off the canyon walls the trail has many detours that you have to climb around.

Photo-Op Rock...

View south to the Salton Sea

Don't step back to take pictures here.  I think the border of rocks are there as a warning.

The canyon we hiked up

The canyon we hiked down

This is the steepest part of the trail. Some people have been know to slide down this.

Heading into the final stretch to the cars.

Our second hike was the Mirage Trail aka Bump and Grind.  I have been calling it just the Bump and Grind and have had some people back out of the hike.  It is a great fitness trail that sports one steep section and the rest is quite tame.  It is very popular with the tourists and locals because it is right on the edge of the city.

One of the many washes that cut the across the trail.  You can see the boulders left behind from the water washing through during a rain.

This is the portion of trail with the steep section, I have highlighted the trail to show the zig-zag effect.

Almost to the top! In this photo you can see how close the city is.

I think trail bikes are off limits on this trail but this clever lad though extreme is going down the steepest part, forget the fact that people have to scramble to get out of his way.

I changed the colour saturation on the next photos to highlight the surrounding hills and mountains.

Amazing contrast between the golf course and surrounding hills.  Water truly does supply life around here.