A little ride today

[cactusjack]

Since yesterday's ride to Tucson and beyond was rained out, I decided to go on a solo ride since today was sunny, dry, and warmer. I decided to head North this time and went up to Bartlett lake, which is northeast of Scottsdale and near the Town of Carefree. It sits back behind the McDowell Mountains in this big valley inside the Tonto National Forest.

I hadn't been over that way in years and was surprised at how many homes had been built out in that area. After I got to the lake, I turned around and rode through the Towns of Carefree and Cave Creek, back into North Phoenix, where I caught the freeway and headed back home. Total mileage was about 140, and the lake was about 60 miles from my house.

Carefree is a funky old western looking town with a bunch of bars, art galleries, and restaurants. The bars have names like The Horny Toad, The Silver Spur, and so forth. It would be a pretty laid-back place to live, but it would be a long commute unless you were self employed or worked in one of the big corporate centers along I-17 in Phoenix. Gordon Lightfoot even wrote a song about it - "Carefee Highway".

Forgot my camera, so no pictures. Sorry.