Revisiting Red Rock State Park

Staying just down the road from this week’s camp is Red Rock State Park. I’ve been here before and enjoyed it so much that I went again while I had the opportunity, but only after researching the gun laws that irritated me so much in my last visit.

Something the State Park does not tell you is that guns are only prohibited in “developed” parts of the park (picnic areas, visitors center, etc) but permitted in the undeveloped areas such as the trail system. How convenient for them to leave that little factoid out… so I did what I normally do, carry.

Due to a recent flood wiping out two of the three bridges and much of the bank of Oak Creek, the scenery had changed a lot at the lower portion of the trail system. This did not take anything away from the upper trails though which remained a beautiful and enjoyable hike.

Always seeking something new out of a trail system, I chose to hike the trails I did not hike in my previous visit. Visiting the House of Apache Fire (a historic house in the center of the park) first I took the Coyote Ridge trail to Eagle’s Nest Loop which brought me to the highest point in the park, and a nice view of the entire place. A walk down the ridge and alongside the washed out river did the trick for a mellow hike on a day off.