3 Mar, 2019;
Roper Lake State Park, Stafford AZ
I planned this trip last Dec
After a snowy cold few days, I'm hoping that this trip won't be cold! I'd really like to unpack my kayak - it's been sitting in the back seat for over a year, just gathering dust. Luckily, the forecast is for great weather.
The last 10 miles or so of the drive to Roper Lake was gorgeous! The spring bloom is starting and whole hillsides were covered with little yellow flowers and California poppies. Unfortunately, I didn't feel comfortable pulling over for photos - but, wow, it was stunning!
Roper Lake S.P. is also stunning! The sites are large, level, separated and have great views of the lake or the mountains. There are lots of walking trails. Usually, there is a hot spring available for park visitors, but it was, sadly, unavailable this time. A few of the gals I was camping with found several hot springs in the area - some with massage and other services. I'll definitely be coming back here!
An 'island' (actually a penninsula) day use area is nicely equipped with picnic benches, a horse shoe pit, and a swimming beach.
This 30 acre lake is surrounded by cat tails and the wetland environment means that there are a ton of birds. Phoebe and I enjoyed listening to them while sitting outside in the sun having breakfast. Of course, Phoebe would have been happier off-leash so she could have chased them.
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| Snow on nearby Mt Graham |
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| Another beautiful sunset over Mt. Graham |
This park is great for birders - I'm not a birder but I saw coots, egrets, herons, red-winged and yellow-headed blackbirds, hummingbirds, various hawks, and ducks.
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| Every morning, over a 100 yellow-headed blackbirds flew through the campground raiding various bird feeders. |
Although I didn't see any, we were warned about local gangs of raccoons causing mischief in the campground. And this trash can shows what some of the raccoons were up to overnight.
I was joining a large group of women (I think 12) from Pueblo RV Resort in Apache Junction. I was invited by a mutual friend, who, at the last minute, got a better offer and flew off to Cancun (well, can't exactly blame her for that!!) - so, I showed up knowing none of the other women. But, they were all so friendly - I was included in all their activities - great potlucks, paddling, music by the campfire. And the weather was really pretty great. What fun!! I'll for sure look up these gals when I'm back in AJ!
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| Dottie gets 'spotter of the day' award for finding lures, a turtle and spotting most of the birds |
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| Barney was a very chill paddler! |
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| Therza navigating one of the little cattail coves |
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| The campground has some cabins for rent. I liked their reflection in the lake |
I feel so blessed that these women welcomed me to their camp-out! They were so much fun. Therza, Dottie and Sue are accomplished musicians who have been playing together for years. They play all over AJ at nursing homes and other venues. Sue plays clarinet with a local symphony.
We were serenaded almost every evening - dixieland, jazz, old songs from the 30-40's, and other camp favorites. I so enjoyed Sue's professional clarinet - she just danced around the melodies.
A great sunset at the end of a lovely week. On to my next adventure.
