Arizona State Trust Land

When the territory of Arizona was created, two sections of land were set aside in each township towards the funding of schools. When Arizona became a state, two more sections in each township were added to the trust. There is now approximately 9.3 million acres in the state that are managed as State Trust Lands to provide funding primarily for schools. Total income from the trust was over $300 million in 2013.

As the Arizona State Land Department 2013-2014 Annual Report states, "Since the ASLD’s inception, its mission has been to manage the Land Trust and to maximize its revenues for the beneficiaries. All uses of the land must benefit the Trust, a fact that distinguishes it from the way public land, such as parks or national forests, may be used. While public use of Trust land is not prohibited, it is regulated to ensure protection of the land and compensation to the beneficiaries for its use." That second sentence has major implications for RVers and others that desire to use the land for recreation (Emphasis added). Each individual (or family) must have a current, signed Recreation Permit with them any time they are on State Trust Land (STL.) That annual permit also allows for up to 14 days camping (annually) on STL.

For some time, geocaching was illegal on STL. They recently changed that ruling when they realized the geocachers provide significant support by reducing the littering problem. To show our thanks, friends organized an early morning Cache In Trash Out event.

I headed out as the sun started to rise with the canoe on board since I was heading to the lake afterwards.

Folks started gathering & gabbing

while the parking filled up. We all grabbed a plastic bag or two and headed out looking under and around every tree and bush for trash. At first glance I thought the area was pretty clean but by the time I got 1/2 mile out my bag was getting full, just as I spotted an old wheel & tire. It took a while to get that lopsided tire and my bag of trash back to the entrance.

I was surprised at the number of tires that were found and the pile of trash. Later, I heard that there were three truckloads of trash collected in a couple hours that morning.

If you're going to use STL, please don't trash the place, and do a bit of cleanup while you're out there.

Quail Trail

I had so much fun with a geocache out in Gold Canyon that I went looking for another placed by the same person. This second cache took me to a trail I'd never traveled. Just too lazy, I guess. I headed out to the Broadway trailhead east of Apache Junction to wander through the forest, Arizona desert style.

Not only did I experience a wonderful forest of Saguaro, Ironwood, and Palo Verde, but I enjoyed the mountain views as well. The south side of Flat Iron was different from the western side I normally enjoy.

I was supposed to be looking for some caches, but I was having lots more fun enjoying the view and watching the rabbits and birds.

The first section of the trail was reasonably smooth, but once I turned onto the Jacobs Crosscut trail,

the trail got much rockier. I was very pleased to be wearing my hiking boots and using my trekking poles. I think the trail could be a real ankle-turner if you were unprepared.

If you continue the trail beyond the cache that was my goal, you eventually reach the Broadway Cave in the Superstition Wilderness. The cave is the dark area near the center of the picture.

There were lots of quail running around. Once in a while they'd sit in a tree and ignore me unless I got too close.

I loved the area, the hike, the views, and the quail.

By the time I got home, I had several caches in mind to create a caching trail featuring the area. For those that haven't visited MtnShasta's Band-Aid cache, these may give them additional excuses to visit.

My caches published near midnight on the 9th. Apparently they were a bit tougher than I thought!

Salt River Wandering

For months, BJ & I have been talking about a series of caches just north of the Salt River between Water Users and the Blue Point Bridge. We finally decided the weather and our schedules were right for a bit of wandering.

We parked the truck at the Blue Point Bridge parking lot and headed east. Part of the area is relatively dense mesquite which wasn't high on our list but it quickly became apparent that we could skirt that area.

We wandered east into the rising sun, enjoying the saguaro forest and a wide trail that had been created by the feral horses that wander through the area. I was a bit surprised to only see one horse all morning - they must have been closer to the river.

I always enjoy saguaro. Every one is different. Some can't make up their mind.

And a few have fallen, leaving just their skeleton to reflect their former glory.

The palo verde and ironwood trees were robust along with jojoba, creosote, and multiple types of cactus. The trail was reasonably level and sandy smooth, sandwiched between the lowland growth and the rocky hills immediately north of the trail.

We walked out to the east end of the section and started locating caches as we returned to the west. Many of the caches on this day were put in by Team Evil Fish including this one that was complete with a trail sign.

A couple of the caches included scrambles up the hills which left us with great views. Both of us enjoyed the morning including

one cache that was poorly guarded by a fine looking rattle snake. He or she didn't seem concerned when I grabbed the cache on the other side of the rock. We finished up the series and headed home for a bite of lunch and a chance to log our finds. Just as I finished logging, e-mails started popping up with newly published caches, including two more in the series we'd just finished.

BJ stayed home while I headed back out in the hopes of getting a First to Find. Met two other cachers at the trailhead and headed off as a team to visit the new cache. On the way back, we met another snake who wasn't as laid back as the one in the morning. A two snake day and a First to Find - can't ask for more.