I went on my first hike of the 2008 season on February 25th. The normally dry creek that runs parallel to the Pine trail heading up towards the Highline trail had running water. I saw my first sign of the bears coming out of hibernation and found an ancient rock pit.

My first break was one mile up the Pine trail to the intersection of the Highline and Pine View trails.

Here"s a view looking east at the beginning of the western end of the Highline trail. There is water in the normally dry creek from the snow melt so this time I had to find a way to get across without getting wet.

Before crossing the creek I took a moment to get some pictures of the normally dry creek with running water.

Here"s a closer view of the previous photograph.

After crossing the creek, I decided to leave the trail and bush-whack my way up one side of the creek. It wasn"t long before I found some bear scat indicating that they are coming out of hibernation. The weather was nice with a high of 60 degrees in the shade.

This shot here is looking up out of a clear spot to the other side of the creek.

I did not bring my 75-300mm zoom lens so this is the best I could zoom in of the rocks on the side of the mountain. I"d like to investigate that rocky area some time for signs of ancient civilizations. The whole rim country is marked with remains of ancient civilizations.

I noticed a man-made shelter on the other side of the creek so I took off my pack and grabbed the camera to venture over to the other side.

It"s too dark to see the entry way into the structure in this photograph from my side of the creek.

After crossing the creek without getting wet, I slowly approached the entrance after throwing a few stones into the structure. I did not want to startle any bears taking a nap while standing in the doorway.

I"m close enough now to look inside. It is actually a shelter made by the people who thinned this section of the forest. It"s easier to stay close to where they are working rather than go back into town every night. I have seen several of these shelters throughout the rim area. Once they"re done thinning the forest, the local critters and animals use these structures that"s why I had to be careful approaching the entrance.

After leaving the creek I headed east for a few more miles. I then stumbled upon a rock pit about 5 feet in length and 4 feet deep.

Here"s a shot of the pit with my pack next to it for size comparison.

You can see my toes at the bottom of this photograph looking into the pit.

The rock pit has definitely been there a long time the mold is well set in the nooks and crannies and I found no signs of burning like in a cooking pit. I"m guessing the ancients would stand in it and wait for game to come by.

I didn"t see any other odd objects in the area that"s why I think it may be some sort of ancient game capturing device. There were no signs of mining, no shotgun shells, brass, or signs of modern day projectile weaponry.

The Pineview trail heading back always has a nice view of Pine and the Strawberry Mountains. The trail was a little muddy and the mud on my shoes made them heavier.

The local concrete and land moving company has been doing some blasting in their rock quarry.

Without my 75-300mm lens this is the closet shot I could get of the quarry.

Here's a view of the Mazatal Mountains with snow caps looking just west of Payson.