Pleasant Lake

For my final high desert morning I opted to take a hike out through Marg’s Draw. I followed the trail until it hit a tee then I climbed up onto the base of the red rock formation to the left to get a better view of the valley.

Sedona is a really beautiful spot with a special vibe not found anywhere else. I descended back to the campground and got on the road south.

It didn’t take long to go from pines and junipers to a barren Sonora style desert complete with giant saguaro cacti. I arrived a little early at Pleasant Lake but nobody seemed to mind.

Leveled up the rig and put things in order then decided to see what the lake was about. Unfortunately, the campsites are up on a bluff and it was a bit of a hike to get down to the water.

After several hundred yards on the upper trail, I zig zagged down a rocky bank and hopped into the clear blue lake. Nice and clean with a moderate wind. I took off to the right and headed towards the dam.

Being a Saturday and situated so close to Phoenix, there was a huge number of people in all different types of watercraft on the lake. Ski boats, pontoons, jet skis, kayaks, even a few giant “cigarette” boats like the Miami narcos used to use. I counted 50 at one time.

I did my best to dodge them keeping near to the perimeter of the lake. I passed through the permanent docks where some yacht like house boats were moored up.

After my half circle, I sprinted across the main body of the lake. Not too bad. Hit some big wakes and was buzzed by a fully loaded pontoon boat. Never seen so many people stuffed on board. Made it to the calm bay on the inside of the island fronting the camp.

Four miles of paddling had worked up quite an appetite so I put together a sandwich and ate it on a hilltop overlooking the lake. Beautiful desert spot.

Ran into a couple of burros on the way back. Cute as buttons but wild as weeds.

Rested a while until things cooled off a bit then rode the bike over to the other marina. Not much to see but more burros and cacti.

The vibe here is like the Colorado River in the old days. A bit of drunken revelry going on. A few campsites down upon returning from the lake, a guy backed into the camper and had a big crash. Lots of howling and enebriated gibberish. They’re still going on. Could be a long night.