Dec 11
Chris is climbing an area called Sven Tower (I) this morning so we scouted the trail late yesterday. I spotted several rock faces and one excellent rock tortoise which I named after the trail. If you look behind Chris, you’ll see what looks like dust spots but when I zoomed in to clean them up, I was surprised to see Hummingbirds!
Dec 10
Yesterday morning, Chris and I hiked 7 1/2 miles from the North Access parking area to Gateway Trailhead. We started early enough to be welcomed by spectacular light at the top.
Chris (bottom center) walking below two sleeping giants.
Dec 8
I was extremely excited to spot an American Snout on my own this morning! I first saw it flitting around a Desert Lavender (which are in bloom at the moment) but these butterflies are so small you don’t really notice the snout without binoculars or a zoom lens so I thought it was something else. Thanks to my friends at CAZBA for introducing me to this species 🙂
Dec 7
Pareidolia is an affliction I don’t mind being afflicted with and since the McDowell Sonoran Preserve is filled with faces, my affliction is working overtime 🙂 Anyone want to admit they remember the cartoon character on the right?!
(FYI…You might think Chris was was pasted in but he was actually standing there)
Dec 6
Do you see what I see? This one really made me smile 🙂
Nov 29
The north area of the McDowell Sonoran Preserve has fantastic climbing opportunities and Chris spent most of yesterday trying out some of them. The climbers refer to these boulder areas as walls. The one pictured here is called Half and Half Wall. I call it Sleeping Dragon (does anyone else see it?!). From a distance, the climbing doesn’t look that steep but check out the inset image. (Another climber took this shot of Chris just before I got mine). If you’re not familiar with climbing, the ropes are there to catch you if you fall and then used to rappel down. The rest of the time, the climber uses only his hands and feet to get up.
The Arizona Mountaineering Club worked with the City of Scottsdale for five years to work out a plan for access to climbing in the Preserve. Read more HERE.
Nov 28
Went on an excellent geology hike yesterday led by MSC Steward Dan Gruber. The McDowell Mountains have a wide variety of rock formations and learning about them was fascinating. I probably won’t remember everything Dan shared but one type of rock that made a strong impression was MYLONITE. I’ve seen this kind of rock often and always wondered about it so now I and the 20+ others along on the educational hike will probably never forget it. Thanks Dan!
Nov 27
There are some Buckwheats blooming right now. This, I believe, is Wrights Buckwheat. Two other much smaller buckwheats, commonly called Skeleton Weed, turn red as they age. I’ll bet you’ve noticed these small plants along the trails in the Preserve and along roadsides but have you taken a really close look? They have tiny very similar flowers to this Buckwheat but the same Pink Pollen!
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