Our Saguaro at LDSP

 Some of the photos I had lost had to do with the Canyon Vistas Hiking Club and a saguaro at the Lost Dutchman State Park. Most of the lost photos were an easy fix...drive back to the park and retake the photos. We did just that the very next day.

"On February 8, 2011 Joe O'Rourke chairman of the Canyon Vistas Hiking Club shared information from an article he read regarding a new program proposed by Friends of the Lost Dutchman. Joe proposed our hiking club donate $100 from club funds to the Adopt-a-Cactus program to show our support and appreciation for the hiking opportunities in the nearby Lost Dutchman State Park. Hiking Club members enthusiastically endorsed Joe's proposal and voted to adopt two saguaros for $200. At the meeting a hiker, Curt Ehresmann, donated $20 and challenged other club members to match his donation."

"Curt shared he had triple bypass heart surgery the end of July and was so pleased his recovery allowed him to hike with the group for his sixth season. Other hikers signed a pledge form and the challenge was on. At the end of the meeting an additional $300 was pledged allowing for the possible adoption of four saguaros. By the end of March $600 had been donated by many of the more than 100 hiking club members. Joe contacted the Friends of the Lost Dutchman and shared the interest of the Canyon Vistas hiking club.

On Monday March 21 Mitzi Rinehart (front row left, standing in black) and Micah Goldberg (front row left, standing in white) of Friends of the Lost Dutchman attended the hiking club meeting where they were presented with a $700 cash donation. The large donation allowed the club to sponsor a senior saguaro within the park entrance." ~ A.O.D.B.E. Gold Canyon Ledger, April 2011

Someone from the hiking club went to the state park and took a photo of the saguaro designated by our donation. Unfortunately, I don't have that photo as it would be interesting to see how much our saguaro has grown in the past 10 years.  

Superstition Mountains at the entrance of the park

* * * * * * * * * * 

We stopped to grab a geocache along the road. I noticed a gecko so grabbed the camera and waited patiently, snapping photos until the gecko heard Hubby returning to the jeep and disappeared in a flash.

We also stopped to grab a geocache by one of our favorite geocache hiders. This was a field puzzle, meaning we had to figure out some information when we got to ground zero. JFOW used children's wooden blocks to create a story that tested our reading comprehension skills! But we persevered and did find the hidden container and log sheet. So creative!

To help keep the geocaching game interesting, Headquarters staff has created another challenge urging geocachers to get out and find hidden treasurers. I have found seven of the needed souvenirs to complete this challenge and have started on the next challenge, Solar System Wonders.