It was 3:40 PM on Sunday, April 4, 2010.

At first, I didn’t feel a thing. But then it seemed as if my chair were moving ever so slightly. The hanging light fixture over the table was swaying.

Janet, who spent many years in earthquake-prone California, said, “It’s just the wind.”

The windows were open, but it wasn’t that windy. When Janet’s eyes remained fixed on the swaying light fixture, I knew that even she didn’t believe her own words.

And then it was over. We talked for a few minutes about the unlikelihood of it being an earthquake in Arizona. We thought it might be a large truck driving down the road or perhaps a passing train. Someone joked about “the big one” in California giving all of us in Arizona waterfront property. Conversation turned to other things, including the nasty habit of some train engineers who liked to blast the horn as they drove through town.

The area earthquake map at 8:22 PM Sunday night. The blue and red squares are earthquakes within the past day and hour; the big blue one is the 3:40 PM event.

Three hours later, when I returned home, I fired up my computer and pointed the Web browser to the USGS Latest Earthquakes in the World page. There had been a lot of small earthquakes in Southern California and Baja California in Mexico over the past hour. I scrolled down and hit paydirt: a 7.2 magnitude earthquake in Baja California, Mexico, 38 miles south of Mexicali.

Could this be what we’d felt? A trip to the home page for AZCentral.com confirmed that the quake had been felt in Phoenix.

We did some more research and even made a report to the USGS using the Did You Feel It? page for the event. By this time, hours after the event, more than 44,000 people had reported feeling the earthquake as far away as Wyoming. Our report was one of a dozen made from Wickenburg.

The trail system will become part of the official Arizona Trail System and was selected from some of the many trails that exist in the area. As shown in the map, trail A has two internal connector trails, trails B and C are loops, and trails D and E lead to the Hassayampa River and Box Canyon via Dinosaur Wash. All are well marked with carsonites (signs). These trails are for riders, hikers and mountain bikes only. Trails for motorized vehicles are being planned for the future.

You can also download the following two items:

• A GPX file (track and waypoints) for use in GPS units
• A map of the trail system in PDF format

The trailhead complex consists of day use parking with kiosk, a horse staging and RV parking area and an overflow staging area. Camping is permitted in the staging areas. No other facilities such as water, toilets or trash containers are provided at this time.

The area is typical Sonoran Desert landscape with stands of saguaro, ocotillo, palo verde and mesquite trees and various varieties of cactus. Wild life may make an occasional appearance: deer, a family of javelina, desert tortoise and the ubiquitous coyote and jackrabbit. The trails provide wonderful views with a backdrop of the magnificent Weaver and Bradshaw mountain ranges. Springtime can cause a spectacular wild flower bloom that depends on the amount and timing of the winter’s rainfall.

To reach the trailhead turn north onto El Recreo Road (just east of the Hassayampa River bridge in downtown Wickenburg) from U.S. 60. El Recreo Road merges into Constellation Road. Travel 3.2 miles on Constellation, then take a left on Blue Tank Road and travel for 1.4 miles to the trailhead. These roads cross wash areas that may be flooded and eroded during and after storms.

A special thanks is extended to the many other groups and individuals for the effort and cooperation necessary to make this happen: Foremost is to the Wellik Foundation for the initial grant to hire a professional trail planner to design and implement the trail complex, Arizona Fox Trotters Association, Grantham Fence Company, Lone Rangers Riding Club, Carson Construction, Johnson Lumber, Ace Hardware, Arizona Power System, Tommy Riggs and Rupert Lemons. Job well done!

The calendar is accessible from two places on this site:

• In the navigation sidebar’s Read These First! area, you’ll find a link to the calendar. Click the link to open a new browser page with the calendar inside it. You can use buttons on the calendar to switch between day, week, and month views and move forward or backward through dates. Clicking an item may display additional information about it.
• Farther down in the navigation sidebar’s Upcoming Events area, you’ll find a list of the next five scheduled events. If no date appears for the first event, that means it’s today. If two or more events are scheduled for the same day, the date will only appear for the first event that day. You can also find anotehr link to the interactive calendar at the bottom of this area.

Our Calendar of Events lists only those events we’ve been notified about. This is all the information we have about these events. We do not have any information about any event that is not listed. Do not contact the Webmaster with questions about any event — she cannot help you.

If you want to list your organization’s upcoming events, send details that include the dates, times, event names, locations, and, if available, a Web link to more information. You can use the Contact Us button at the top of any page to get this information to us.

The Wickenburg Horsemen’s Association (WHA) is a group of horse enthusiasts who get together regularly to ride. The riding season in Wickenburg starts in October and runs through May. Throughout the season, the WHA board of directors and members set up a ride schedule that usually includes rides every two weeks or so. Members meet at predetermined parking areas, saddle up, and ride out behind that ride’s designated leader.

The WHA also sponsors the Land of the Sun Endurance Ride on the last weekend in January. This event, which is well-attended by endurance riders from all over the southwest, is an extremely well-managed fundraising event handled by WHA member volunteers.

Jerry Hanson, who has departed to that great trail ride in the sky, was instrumental in keeping WHA alive years ago when membership and activities were failing. The WHA hosts an annual trail ride and steak cook out for its members every December, shortly before Christmas, in remembrance of him.

The weather for this year’s ride was perfect. Cool and slightly overcast, but considerably more pleasant than recent years. A record turnout of 73 riders showed up at the Rodeo Grounds parking lot to saddle up and ride out. Nancy Halsey, WHA Treasurer and the new Endurance Ride Manager, led the ride. She followed one of the Endurance Ride trails south from the Rodeo Grounds, taking us along twisting trails on ridges and in washes, past lichen-covered rocks and cactus-covered hills. For most of the ride, the trail was wide enough for two horses to walk abreast, so many of us rode side-by-side with our partners, friends, or new acquaintances. My husband and I were riding in the middle of the big group of riders, where we could see the string riders in front of us and behind us, winding through the desert.

Back at the Rodeo Grounds after our 2-hour ride, we unsaddled our horses, brushed the sweat out of their thick winter coats, and tied them up to our trailers. Then we joined other WHA members who hadn’t ridden with us for a huge potluck steak dinner. The WHA provided the steaks, which were grilled by volunteers over charcoal and mesquite on the Rodeo Grounds’ big barbeque pit. The members provided a wide assortment of accompaniments, from breads and salads to potatoes, beans, and vegetables. And for desert, there were pies, cookies, cakes, and the precious kringle sent to the group by Jerry Hanson’s son in Wisconsin each year.

It was a great event (as usual), made even better by the big crowd of riders and friends. A wonderful way to welcome in the Christmas season in Wickenburg.

Interested in joining the WHA? Membership is $20/year and includes a monthly newsletter of past and upcoming rides and the annual steak cook out. Call President Hans Ryser at 684-1405 or Secretary Pete Vergalla at 684-2245 to learn more.

Technorati Tags: horses, rides, Wickenburg

I have scheduled the trip for Saturday, December 9, 2006. If there is any interest, I will post the details later.

You would need an all terrain vehicle or a four wheel drive, high clearance vehicle to go on the ride. The terrain we will go over is not dangerous, just very rough. A two wheel vehicle would have a tough time traversing the trails.

A camera would be a must.

I look forward to you joining me on this ride to relive a part of the past so that it might be carried on for future generations.

Please post in the Comments if you are interested in participating.

November 27 Update: Tom Riggs will be joining us on the 12/9 ride. He has forgotten more of the history of the area than I will ever know. Start time will be 10:00 AM from the rodeo grounds. With Tom along, the ride that will be absolutely fascinating!