Tapeats Creek, Thunder River, Deer Creek Loop
From Stone Creek, we rode a short distance to Tapeats Creek. We hiked up the creek which had a lush valley with large Cottonwoods. It was a steep, rugged hike over the broken rocks. There were several small Anazasi ruins on prominent ridge points that would provide good surveillance. Continued climbing brought us to Thunder River Falls which was an enormous roaring stream of water pouring from two holes in the canyon wall. Next, we climbed steeply to the Surprise Valley which was a nice desert walk with many desert flowers and expansive views. There were Globe Mallows, cactus of various types, yellow flowers, purple flowers, daisies, and sunflowers. We hiked down into Deer Creek Canyon and viewed the upper falls and down to the patio (a pleasant rest stop) and finally down to the lower falls on the river. During the later day parts of this hike, the sun came out and it got quite hot.