Hiking and a ballgame

Phoenix - April 21/18
We arrived in Phoenix last night. Maryann's ankle is feeling much better today so we decided to go for a hike on the Lost Dog trail at the McDowell Sonoran Conservancy. We finally have HOT weather. Shorts & t-shirts all day today. The main loop is about 4 miles, but there are a few side loops if you wish to hike further. It was about 30 degrees so we only did the main 4 mile loop.

 As you can see the trail is not well groomed. It is quite rough in places so you had to step carefully. Don't want another turned ankle. From the summit we looked out over the Sonoran Valley. Spectacular view. It also looks over Frank Lloyd Wright's ranch and winter campus he called Taliesin, which means Shining brow in Welsh.
After our hike we went to try and get on a tour of Taliesin but they were booked until late in the day. We could not hang around so we decided to make reservations for later.
We drove into downtown Mesa for a look around. Not much happening, but we stumbled upon an artisans street market so popped in for a look. It was quite under whelming. Didn't take us long to walk though the whole thing.
We headed for the timeshare resort. We were quite early but asked if we could check in because we had tickets to the Arizona Diamonbacks game. They told us our unit wasn't ready but gave us the key for later.
I was going to drive downtown to the stadium but discovered that there is a light rail train that goes right near Chase Field. I found a park and ride lot beside one of the train stops for the princely sum of  FREE. How civilized is that. Free parking for commuters to encourage them to take public transit.
AND the train cost $4.00 for a ride all day pass. Amazing!! Better than driving through unfamiliar street to try and find parking that would cost probably $20.00.
We met a nice man on the train who chatted with us about Phoenix and things to do. Very friendly.

We arrived in time to get an Archie Bradley bobblehead. Apparently they are not as nutso down here about bobbleheads. To get one in Toronto you have to line up about 4 hours before game time. We were there an hour before and there was not line up at all to get into the stadium. And still lots of bobblehead to be had.

Little Red Dog quite enjoyed the game. However we were sitting the chubby bubby section. The lady beside Maryann, the guy beside me, 3 of the 4 people in front of us and two guys behind us were at least triple XL. We felt kind of closed in.
Diamondbacks beat the San Diego Padres 6-4 so a good night for the home crowd.




Back to the condo for a good night sleep.