It's hard to find the words to describe how beautiful the Gila River Wilderness is. It was challenging because it required finding a way through the awesome debris left over from the destruction of 2013 flooding, but enough time has passed that a trail has been remade throughout most of it. All I can say is that it felt like we were wading in knee-high water though a stone cathedral for a week.
It sprinkled on and off over the days, causing us to hesitate or pull out our umbrellas, but it never rained heavily. The mornings would be cold and then as the day would warm our feet would begin to appreciate the cool river crossings more and more. It was slow going over the slippery river rocks and through brush, but more time was spent gazing upward at our surroundings.
One of the highlights was Jordan Hot Springs, which is technically a warm spring, since it's temperature only reaches 96 degrees. It still felt like heaven to soak there that night. We shared the campsites above the pools with a nice French couple (non-hikers) who had quit their lives in NYC to travel and live out of their car. We shared stories over the fire they had built and watched the stars until late.
It was one of the coolest hikes I've ever done and I found myself reaching for my camera at every turn. Everything seemed photo worthy. Hiking with Delightful made it especially fun and almost easy. I would live that experience over again if I could...
Eventually we caught up to Sunjay and Banana Pants and spent a night camping with them. They are both fast hikers and hilarious guys. I guess that was the 5th of May. The next morning we made our way out of the canyon toward Snow Lake, weary but highly satisfied from our Gila adventure.