Close to Home

We took a break from our sightseeing today and stayed close to home. Our walk this morning took us to the nearby primitive camping area on Brantley Lake. Primitive is the word for it—no marked sites, no facilities, no signs, not much in the way of even slightly improved roads. The only amenity we saw was some trash barrels. Only a few campers were in view. The big draw for staying in this area would be access to the lake. (The developed campground where we are staying, Limestone Campground, has beautiful lake views, but no water access at all.)

Typical camping opportunity--just pull off the road and set up camp.

Nice access to the lake, but watch out for soft soil. We saw some very deep tire tracks in the mud.

We had the campground pretty much to ourselves this morning, but by this evening several of the campsites were occupied again. We've been surprised to see quite a few tents, and even families with kids here in tents over the weekend. We stopped to talk with the campground host and inquired about the second (empty) host site. He said there are supposed to be two hosts, but it's hard to find volunteers during the summer. We commented on the summer heat, and he said when it got to triple digits, they just take their folding chairs down by the lake and sit with their feet in the water. I don't think we'll volunteer to join them.....

We spent some time trip planning today, especially trying to find possible dispersed camping opportunities between Phoenix and Flagstaff. Some possibilities near Cottonwood, AZ, would allow easy access to Sedona and the Red Rock Area.