Rainbow Bridge Near Lake Powell

In 1996, Cheryl Fleet guided jeep tours through the red rocks of Sedona, Ariz., and about every two hours she saw a new co-ed group of visitors. She noticed, though, a different dynamic when a group was all women.

Strangers to each other just two hours early, women bonded easily and often met for lunch after a tour. She noticed that quiet women, who likely have said little in a co-ed group, had plenty to share. While, co-ed groups politely listened to information about Native Americans, the all-women groups showed a keen interest, asked questions, and really understood the native connection to the land.

Fleet opened Canyon Calling, an Arizona-based adventure travel company just for women. While leading trips around the world, Fleet offers unique perspective on not only Arizona travel but also how to travel with family or friends.

Q: For someone planning a group trip, including choosing who is going to come along, are there two or three essential points they should consider first?

A: Non-selfish or non self-focused people of generous hearts are ideal in a group situation in the outdoors.  There are many times when traveling with a group that you need to suppress your individual desires for the success of the group.  Interestingly 95 percent of our customers are Democrats. I often wonder if there is a correlation between these two facts.

The group should have a common goal – not just to see Arizona but how to see it – hiking or driving through the national parks for example.

Budget is a hugely important factor – is a sandwich on the run important so you can catch the hike to … Or is spending two hours eating at El Tovar at the Grand Canyon more important than hiking the trail.

Antelope Slot Canyon near Page, Ariz.

Q: What types of trips are better suited for large groups versus smaller groups? What are some Arizona examples?

A: I can’t imagine an adventure tour traveling on a 40-passenger bus!  Site seeing trips work with buses.  Adventure trips work with vans.  How could you possibly enjoy kayaking down from the Hoover Dam and soaking in the hot springs with 40 others along – it would be miserable!

Q: What’s the most common question asked by a first-timer looking for insight on what to expect with group adventure travel?

A: Will I be fit enough – I don’t want to hold anyone up!  I was once even asked this by a marathon runner!

Q: Are people intimidated by fitness demands? How should a group leader accommodate a range of fitness levels?

A: I think it’s almost impossible to accommodate a wide range of fitness levels.  Our trips are for moderately fit women.  If you can hike 5 to 8 miles in a day over undulating ground, you’ll do fine.  When women travel together, they are extremely forgiving of a slower hiker as long as she’s trying.  They are very inclusive and vested in the success of the group.  If the person is a whiner or is excessively  inconveniencing people thru selfishness, women can be as ruthless as men.  As with many things in life, its about what is in your heart.

Q: What are three essential, but not obvious, items everyone should carry on a group trip?

A: Sense of humor is essential.  Ear plugs (sorry i didn’t know i snored!)  Patience.

Q: Is it more difficult when relatives travel together? If so, describe techniques for diffusing potential tension. Or, do relatives traveling  together add a beneficial dynamic?

A: I’ve had mothers and daughters, mothers and daughters-in-law, and sisters.  In 14 years I’ve never had a relative-related incident.  On the contrary I find them to be incredibly supportive of one another – and their stories of their family dynamics are hilarious.

Q: Also, is it good to have a mix of adrenalin junkies and those who prefer more sedate experiences? Or, should everyone have the same general outlook and expectations for a trip?

Devil's Bridge in Sedona, Ariz.

A: The latter is important.  Mixing the former is a recipe not only for a miserable experience but safety can become compromised.

Q: Compare how women approach more adventuresome opportunities such as whitewater or parasailing, compared to men. The stereotype is that men are more competitive and might goad one another while women are more supportive.

A: The stereotype is true. I have women on my trips who often speak about the miserable experience of hiking with their husbands.  They tell me he just charges ahead missing the bird on the trail or the waterfall splashing nearby.  Middle-aged women today are pre-title 9, so they have often been told they can’t do things.  As a result, they need extra support and reassurance.  I am extremely selective about rafting guides etc. who work with my customers. Barking out orders does not work with women, and they respond well to quiet instructions – unlike men, they listen – maybe because the situation is so foreign to them.

Q: What’s your favorite moment of any trip?

A: I really enjoy the inter-generational sharing that takes place.  Its good to watch the 35-year-old listen to the experience of the 65-year-old who divorced with 3 kids in the 60’s and the struggle to raise them when society did not approve of divorced women.  Then, I hear the 35-year-old talk about the struggles of managing an office of 25 mostly men and watch the reaction of the 65-year-old who marvels at the opportunities she never had.

The Arizona Game and Fish Department offers to make watching the stately animals a bit easier with it’s annual Bighorn Sheep Workshops. There are two, two-day workshops: July 31-Aug. 1 and Aug. 7-8.

Visit the agency’s site for the details, but don’t wait too long. Each session is limited to 40 people.

The program includes classroom sessions and a boat trip leaving from Willow Beach for ship viewing.

Cash donations are accepted to offset the cost of the programs.

The plan is to burn 30 acres to 50 acres east of Tusayan ranger District near Long Jim trick tank. The burn is to reinforce containment lines for a later broadcast burn on the Tusayan East prescribed burn project.

The Arizona Department of Environmental Quality will check off on the plan before burning begins.

The annual fire ban limits the odds of starting a brush fire, and lighting up can bring a citation.

“The vegetation in the parks dried out quickly this spring due to the warm temperatures and lack of rain,” said Maricopa County Supervisor Max Wilson, Chairman, District 4. “Not unlike previous years, this has left the parks with a large quantity of ground coverage that could easily catch fire.”

Campfires, fire pits and charcoal grills are banned, but gas or propane grills are allowed in selected areas.
No date is set for ending the ban.

• Fort Verde State Historic Park
• 
Oracle State Park
• 
Tombstone Courthouse
• State Historic Park
• 
Tubac Presidio State Historic Park
• 
Yuma Territorial Prison State Historic Park
• Yuma Quartermaster Depot State Historic Park

These parks open only on Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays, & Mondays. Park hours are 9 am to 5 pm, except Oracle State Park which will be open from 7 am to 3 pm.

But buying boots for roaming Arizona smacked me with a simple reality: the rest of the country loves, and likely needs, boots lined with waterproof Gortex.

In the Arizona desert, though, Gortex just adds another heat-trapping layer. While Gortex is considered a breathable fabric, anything keeping a hiker’s feet from fresh air when temperatures nudge triple digits is, well, unwelcome.

And does anyone really need a pair of waterproof boots in a state where just a cloud sighting, much less actual rain, gets TV news attention?

Complicating things is Arizona’s geography. Hikes above the Mogollon Rim – the edge of the Colorado Plateau – bring cooler temperatures, the potential for soaking summer rains and snow during the winter. So, Gortex lined boots sound pretty good.

But most folks live below the rim, in the Sonoran Desert cities of Phoenix and Tucson. I’m one of those, and I do plenty of hikes in the high-heat Superstition Mountains.

With boot prices ranging from $120 to $200 and more, the whole thing deserved careful consideration.
The choice seems natural. Find a solid pair of boots, sans Gortex. The trouble is that boot makers design for the majority, which means Gortex and limited unlined options. Throw in personal quirks such as wide, flat or otherwise personalized feet, buying unlined boots becomes harder.

So, my search began with a quick trip to REI. While I’d worn low-cut boots for some time, I was tired of pebbles sneaking over the ankles and into the boot. While salespeople swear ankle support depends more on the rigidity of a boot’s foot bed rather than the height of the boot, I wanted a “real” hiking boot topping out over the ankle.

I turned up a few options. REI offers an unlined, house brand boot. With the Monarch IV, the price is right: $89. These boots, which come in a Gortex version, can swallow a foot, so the narrow footed might have trouble. The construction seemed ok, but the sales person considered these entry-level boots, not a multi-year, break-‘em-in-and-love-‘em investment.

Merrell makes the Ventilator, which comes in both high-cut and low-rise models. Mostly made of mesh material, these hit high on the breathability meter, but I questioned if they could survive the scraping and rock-rubbing common on so many of the state’s trails. For casual desert walkers, a pair of Ventilators offers a good solution, and the price isn’t bad: about $90.

A quick perusal online brought a few more options. Army surplus stores sell the same boots the troops wear in the big sandbox, but they seem a bit overkill for casual hiking. Companies such as Limmer Boot make custom all-leather boots, which are long-term investments.

But, I just needed a pair of unlined hiking boots.

I finally paid a visit to the Arizona Hiking Shack in Phoenix. Nice people and a gear nut’s fantasy. They recommended the Vasque Breeze, which they keep in stock. Lots of mesh. but. unlike the Ventilators, the Breeze retains a bootish stiffness and enough protective material to blunt sharp rocks. The price was about $120.

I was sold, and I’m happy. It’s a specialty boot and definitely not for hiking in the wet. So, next winter I’m going to pop for a pair of lined boots for wear in the high country. As it turns out, Arizona is a two-pair-of-boots kinda state.

Also, the Grand Canyon Lodge North Rim and Grand Canyon Trail Rides both open for the weekend, staying open through October 16, 2009.

The Visitor Center, Grand Canyon Association bookstore, backcountry permit reservations and campground will all be ready for business, according to a National Forest Service news release.

Advance overnight lodging reservations for North Rim facilities may be made by contacting Forever Resorts at (877) 386-4383 or by visiting their website at http://www.grandcanyonforever.com (choose the Grand Canyon Lodge – North Rim tab and navigate to on-line reservations).  For advance reservations from outside of the United States, please call (480) 998-1981. Advance reservations for the North Rim Campground must be made by calling 877-444-6777 or online at http://www.recreation.gov.

For information on Grand Canyon Trail Rides please call (435) 679-8665 or visit their website.

The North Rim lies at the southern end of the Kaibab Plateau at approximately 8,500 feet in elevation, and offers spectacular canyon views. It is approximately a 215-mile drive from the South Rim.  Points of interest include: Point Imperial, Cape Royal, Point Sublime, North Kaibab Trail, and Bright Angel Point.

For a copy of the park’s free Trip Planner please call 928-638-7888 or write, Trip Planner, Grand Canyon National Park, P.O. Box 129, Grand
Canyon, AZ  86023.  The Trip Planner is also available on the Internet. “The Guide” for the North Rim will be available on-line by May 15 at this link.

Payson lawmakers agreed to pay for the additional seasonal staff needed to reopen the park, which closed as a result of budget cuts and the need for repairs.

“We needed to increase the park staff by two people each day to cover those weekends,” said Janet Hawks, chief of operations for the state parks.  “Our seasonal staff rate of $11 per hour is what will be charged to the City of Payson.  The two seasonal rangers will be added into the system in the other parks, which will allow me to release regular park staff to return to Tonto for those weekends.   We will also have our regular volunteers and hopefully some new volunteers to help out this summer.”

The contractor working on repairs will help decide where visitors may safely travel in the park.

Bahl was Director of San Diego County Parks and Recreation, where she directed the rebuild and stabilization of 15,000 acres of parkland and 21 facilities after the 2003 Cedar and Paradise wildfires. She expanded the department and services to the public through completion and opening of a number of new parks. She currently serves as board member of the California Association of Regional Park and Open Space Administrators and has been Southern Regional Director since 2007, and is board member of the National Association of County Park and Recreation Officials, serving as Treasurer and Legislative Affairs Committee Chair since 2008. She is also a member of California Park and Recreation Society and National Recreation and Park Association.