I just got back from Phoenix, AZ for our company annual sales meeting. Except we couldn’t call it that, it was the North American Business Conference – apparently business meetings have some tax advantage that sales meetings don’t qualify for. Plus it was in Phoenix, during the summer solstice, and was 114 degrees out, with 5% humidity. Y’know the adage “it’s not the heat it’s the humidity”? They’re not kidding, it wasn’t the 114 searing heat that drove us inside, it was the soul-sucking lack of moisture. By the end I sounded like a long-term smoker, as the dryness made my voice raspy. Perfect for delivering 4 presentations!
Our hotel was at the base of Camelback Mountain, and I got up early one morning to hike it before work (and before it got too hot).
The front desk guy gave me a 30 SPF lip balm, checked I had a bottle of water, and pointed me towards the trail head. Based on everyone's admonitions to wear shoes because of the rocky gravel surface and big rocks of the trail, I started out in my Five Fingers toe shoes. And while I hike in the VA forests and run on asphalt barefoot, I've never been on the crushed rock of the southwest and thought I should play it safe. After about 5 min I thought - this sucks, my feet are sweaty and the finely crushed rock shifting underfoot makes me feel unsteady. I decided to see if being barefoot on the trail was on option. I peeled off my shoes, an effort not unlike slithering out of a wet swimsuit, and gingerly stood on the gravel, then took a few steps. A big smile broke out and I really started to have fun. Feeling my toes curl around big rocks for stability, the quiet barefootfall, and the pleasant warmth of the ground was fantastic. Plus it made me really proud that my feet could handle it, it was by far the most challenging surface I’ve attempted.
A couple people stopped me to ask about being barefoot, particularly how I was able to do it. A few just said wow, barefoot as they passed by, and one warned me about snakes. My response to that was that snakes out there make noise, and I'm used to copperheads and water moccasins. Plus, is really having my feet covered going to save my life? Like it might not just bite my ankle if I was stupid enough to provoke it? The best wildlife encounter was hearing an unfamiliar rapid birdsong that had a touch of frantic static to it. I looked up and there was a broad-tailed hummingbird sitting on a branch nearby singing his little heart out. After a while he flew a few humming circles around my head and took off.
I’d love to go on hikes like that again. It was such a great part of my trip. If…when…if… my parents retire to the southwest, I’m totally going to scope out the hiking opportunities.
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