“You two are goin’ up there?” The guy looked like a park ranger, but we’re not sure he is. Or was.
“Sure. Is there a reason we shouldn’t?”
“Well, let’s just see what you think when you come back down,” the man dead-panned. Hmmmm.
It was just supposed to be an “easy”-rated hike up a one-mile trail to the park overlook. There were other trails beyond — miles of them — but we don’t stray too far when terriers are waiting for us in the Toto. We can sense their anxiety. (Or is it ours?) So it was to be just a short jaunt up and down the slope, quick, before temperature soared into the mid-seventies.
Only one of us made it. Yeah.
From a hilltop, the Buckskin Mountain State Park campground. That lazy river is the Colorado — a long section, known as the Parker Strip, sandwiched between two dams. You can see one of many riverside RV resorts hugging the far shore.
Here on the Parker Strip — the stretch of Colorado River between Lake Havasu’s Parker Dam and Bobby D’s Diner in Cienega Springs — it’s all red rocks, sagebrush and the occasional desert bighorn sheep. Also some RV resorts, overpriced gas stations, and a pair of Arizona State Parks (this one, Buckskin Mountain, and River Island, a few miles northeast). There is an expressway of sorts that tracks along the river, and if you drive the speed limit and trust Waze to guide you in from the Walmart in Parker, you will overshoot Buckskin (or nearly so). I took a year off Chief’s brake life making the left turn.
The drive into the park is short, steep, winding, and one-way in a couple of places. That is the nature of this place; hills crowd around a river that looks deceptively refreshing amidst all that aridity. When you approach or depart the riverside, there’s a slope involved. Scenic, though.
We had reserved months in advance, but not enough months in advance, and so our expected campsite was going to be a glorified parking space. But while wasting my life on the tablet computer in Casa Grande — and confirming campsites and dates — I stumbled upon a better site at Buckskin. This one had some shade trees and a nice view of the river. Grabbed it.
Our site was narrow, but had a view, and pleasant neighbors on both sides — and a big lawn for dog-walking right in front.
Sooz and I set out to walk this path up from the river to a viewpoint… but the path proved to be a little “ledgy” and Sooz decided to “guard the campground” while I made the ascent. She’s down there somewhere near the bottom of the hill…
Another avian first for us at Buckskin Mountain: this is a Vermilion Flycatcher.
GBH shows off its gliding skills in front of the lush far riverbank.
Our abbreviated Path Ascent aside, life at Buckhorn Mountain was peaceful. I could go there again. However, I hear that River Island — just a mile or two upriver — is nice, too, so maybe next time we’ll try it. For this trip, we prepared to move on to Cattail Cove State Park on the shores of Lake Havasu.
Spoiler: they have sunsets there.
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