Wednesday November 22, 3.5km/2.1mi

East of Gila Bend Canal (227.2/790ft) to Gillespie Dam Bridge (229.3/760ft) (AZ)

We had a short hike this morning, barely over an hour to get to our planned pickup spot at Gillespie Dam. We started at 6:45am, and it was nice to walk in daylight.

After a few miles near the powerlines, we hiked next to the Gila Bend Canal, which was mostly dry.

When we got to the crossing point of the canal, the little bridge was gone. Since it was dry in the bottom, it was easy to scramble down/up the slanty concrete sides of the canal.

We then crossed the Gillespie Dam Bridge, an ancient truss bridge over the Gila River.

The retired Gillespie Dam was just upstream.

Roger picked us up at 7:30, and we drove to the nearby town of Buckeye, where we ate a diner breakfast. I stuck with the softer foods, ha.

After a frustrating visit to the Buckeye post office (incompetent employees), we rode an hour to Roger’s house in the Phoenix area. I had met Roger and Peg last summer, and TopShelf has known them for a long time. It was a nice break to be indoors for a couple days – a bed, refrigerated beverages, and the friendly dog Jenny!

We had a productive afternoon of grocery shopping, and REI trip, showers, and laundry. Everything has to be done today, since most things will be closed tomorrow for the Thanksgiving holiday.