One thing about Autumn here in Arizona is that if you stop to blink, you most likely will miss the season. If I wanted to have a chance to seeing the changing leaves up around Flagstaff, this weekend was my last chance to do so.
The area I wanted to go explore also has a very limited parking area, and rangers will turn you away after it gets filled, so I knew I was going to need to arrive early. Pulling in just after 7 a.m. and I snag the very last parking space available, but I’ve made it to Lockett Meadow.
Blue skies and no clouds, the aspens are precariously hanging onto the last of their leaves, and the ground is covered in a golden carpet. The deeper I go into the Ponderosa forest, the more magical the scene.
I find photographers galore, taking wedding photos, school and family pictures, even an animal photo shoot. It puts a smile on my face as I keep on climbing up the mountain.
Past the Lockett Meadow I go, and onto the Inner Basin trail. Earlier this week I pulled the plug on a decision I have been contemplating, another walking holiday in Europe in 2021. Pandemic be damned, I can’t continue putting life on hold.
I reach the summit, satisfied with the miles I’ve trekked as I work to train both my body and mind for what’s to come in about a year.
