Tag Archives: Photography
Bursting with Vibrant Color
A bee wallows in the pollen filling this yellow prickly pear bloom.
At this time of year the Sonoran desert is filled with flowering cacti. These samples of prickly pear flowers are all from the Desert Botanical Garden, but you can encounter them throughout the Arizona desert. These hardy plants adapt to suit their location and are found throughout the state, from lowland deserts to high elevations.
A bee is making an interesting approach to the flowers on this pricklypear.
This prickly pear has lovely yellow blossoms and very long spines.
Englemann’s Prickly Pear (Opuntia engelmannii) has pink buds but yellow flowers.
This Beavertail Prickly Pear has bright pink flowers.
A delicate orange flower on a large opuntia, or Prickly Pear cactus.
A Bunny Ears Prickly Pear Cactus. Opuntia microdasys
Brilliant orange flowers cover this large prickly pear.
Arizona’s desert climate: just add water.
Now you see them…
Now you don’t! Monsoon rains brought plenty of of moisture to Arizona this summer.
What must seem commonplace elsewhere is a real treat in dry Arizona. Now just add sunlight and the mountain will be back.
Hiking the Kachina and Weatherford Trails
The Kachina Trail runs along the southern side of the San Francisco Peaks, shown here, at the 9800 foot line. The highest Peak is Humphreys Peak at 12, 643 feet. This is the highest point in Arizona. This photo was taken from Schultz Pass Road at about 7000 feet elevation. Flatlanders planning on hiking the area should allow time for acclimation.
The Kachina trail is named for the Kachina Peaks Wilderness through which it runs. The San Francisco Peaks, or Kachina Peaks are sacred to many tribes including the Havasupai, Hopi, Navajo and Zuni. The trail head shown here is located just below the Snowbowl ski area outside of Flagstaff, Arizona.
For much of the 6.8 miles, the Kachina Trail winds through massive groves of Aspen trees.
The Kachina Peaks Wilderness area covers over 18,000 acres. and only foot travel is allowed. The ecosystem is fragile, and hikers are encouraged to stay on the trail.
Quaking Aspen trees line the edges of the many grass and fern covered meadows.
Everywhere are reminders of the violent origin of this mountain, a stratovolcano, which last erupted 1.4 million years ago.The original 16,000 foot summit collapsed, maybe in a blast such as Mt. St. Helens, creating the caldera now named the Inner Basin. Ice ages have passed this way previously, and glaciers scarred the slopes. These peaks are the centerpiece for a huge volcanic field which was last active in AD 1100, when indigenous peoples inhabited the area. Here you can see various layers of lava flows now hung with delicate greenery.
Looking south from the high elevation you can see far into the northern Arizona countryside, spotting some of the 500 cinder cones of the volcanic field.
Looking north you can see the tips of several of the San Francisco Peaks, which are above tree line. Here are Agassiz, Fremont, and Doyle Peaks. The tallest, Humphreys, lies hidden behind the others. If you imagine drawing a line to connect the sides of these slopes up in the air, you can get a picture of how large this volcano once was.
Summer weather around the San Francisco Peaks can change rapidly. What starts out as a sunny day with a low chance of precipitation can change quickly. Do remember to bring plenty of drinking water on your hike. Elevation sickness can be eased by staying hydrated.
The sunny sky can suddenly darken with rain-laden clouds. Hail is a common occurrence. Come prepared for heavy summer monsoon storms with possible lighting and loud thunder.
Fields of wildflowers join the ferns in the meadows. These are Verbena macdougalii.
The ferns are huge and grow tall in the sunlight. Can you spot the trail? It’s there…
Luckily, we hike with our dog, so staying on the trail was easier.
Can you see me now? Here’s the trail!
There are some long uphill slopes and some very rocky passages.
Some of the trail leads over and through huge boulders.
Eventually the Kachina Trail begins to lead downward towards Schultz Pass and the Weatherford Trail. The trail dips into several ravines carved long ago in the volcanic slopes.
The Weatherford trailhead is located at Schultz Tank at 8800 feet elevation. As you descend toward it, the vegetation changes and you find dense stands of spruce, fir and Ponderosa Pines.
Some of the tallest and healthiest Ponderosas along the trail are a good reminder of why these pine trees own that name. The tallest known pine on record is a Ponderosa. Arizona hosts the world’s largest contiguous stand of these trees. Mature trees have orange-brown bark, and some say they smell like vanilla.
After the rain, the insects come out of hiding, and go back to work. This fly is on a Lupine flower.
The Kachina Trail intersects with the Weatherford Trail and the Freidlein Prairie Trail.
The Weatherford Trail is an old road that once was an enterprise to take Model T Fords to the mountain top. It has been closed to vehicular traffic. It must have been quite an adventurous ride in a car, back in the day.
Looking back toward the Peaks from the Weatherford Trail, you get another nice view of a dense grove of Aspen.
Since the Weatherford Trail itself leads uphill again, we take the lower section that leads down to Schultz Tank where it is possible to park a car. There are also bathrooms at Schultz Tank. We left a car at the Snowbowl, hiked one way, and used the second car at Schultz to retrieve the first one.
The end of the trail, or perhaps the beginning, if you choose to hike up to the Snowbowl trailhead, or take the Weatherford trail to up Doyle Saddle.
There’s Fungus Among Us
Arizona’s monsoon rains in the mountains produce a summer crop of mushrooms, toadstools, slime molds and other delights. Here are a few that have appeared already this 2014 season. I don’t know enough about fungi to attempt to identify them for you. Experts can determine if any are safe to eat, but many are deadly poison. Squirrels seem to eat some of them but I don’t know that is an indicator of human tolerance.I think they are fascinating to find.
A Nutty Argument between an Acorn Woodpecker and a Steller’s Jay
An Acorn Woodpecker settles in to feast at the feeder.
Aware of the other birds and squirrels in the area, the woodpecker looks around.
The woodpecker admires the selection of seeds and nuts available.
Always on alert, the woodpecker checks again for trouble.
The woodpecker spots a rival bird.
As the Steller’s Jay lands on the feeder, the Acorn Woodpecker stands his ground.
The jay tries to intimidate the woodpecker by looking tall.
The woodpecker defiantly argues as the jay tries to move in.
A big dust -up between the Acorn Woodpecker and Steller’s Jay ensues.
And the winner is…the Acorn Woodpecker
The woodpecker considers the nut options in the feeder in peace.
Finally the woodpecker settles in to eat his fill!
Macro Monday
Many insects mimic others in their appearance. This bee-like fly is at high elevation near the Arizona Snow Bowl ski area.
You never know what you might find once you start taking macro photos. Sometimes tiny insects pop out in flower photos that surprise you, or the detail on a beetle might be so much more elegant than imagined. Sometimes the play of light inside a delicate flower is amazing, yet unappreciated in the normal view. Here is a selection of recent macro photos from around northern Arizona.
This water skater made an exclusive home in the little red wagon until a hail storm ended his reign.
Spider in flower.
The flowers of the Lupine come in small clusters.
This Crane’s Bill flower plays host to some tiny flying insects.
The Crab Spider is well camouflaged in the white daisy and quickly devoured the smallest insect.
This tiny Thistle bud will grow and eventually bloom with a beautiful purple blossom.
The Loco Weed is easily mistaken for Lupine.
Out of the Den and into my World
The three little kits.
Lots of animals make an appearance in our little corner of the woods. We routinely have elk, deer, jackrabbits, Abert squirrels, chipmunks, ground squirrels and even had a porcupine or two. We have been visited by black bears, coyotes and a mountain lion.
Lately we have been keeping up with our newest neighbors, the fox family. Now that the kits are out and about, we see them daytime and evening. I’m sure they are out at night, as well. The babies have been learning how to climb trees. There are only two kinds of foxes that climb trees, and these Gray Foxes are one of the two.
Many times a day the crows alert us to the movements of the foxes. Whether crossing our neighbor’s yard, or moving around in ours, the crows chase the foxes and make quite a racket. We live on two and a half acres and the farthest corner of our land is almost inaccessible because it is so rocky. This is where the den is located. For many years, ground squirrels, skunks, and other tunnel-making animals have lived in this old rock quarry. At some point last year, these foxes took up residence.
We didn’t notice them until the kits were old enough to be outside of the den, and the whole family began sitting out in the sun for extended periods of time. Now that we are alerted regularly by the crow alarm, we have been taking time out to sit and watch quietly as they go about their day.
A member of the Crow Alert System on duty.
In the evening the foxes eyes are open wide when they come out of the den.
Frequently they watch us watching them.
They remind me of cats in some behaviors.
The adventurous baby is off on an explore.
The crows have been chasing this adult all around the yard. The other adult has climbed a nearby tree.
He makes a decision and moves quickly.
Clearly an experienced climber, he scales this tall Ponderosa effortlessly.
He coolly checks to see if we are still watching. In the photo below, you can see the tangled branches about 20 feet above the ground on the right of the tree where he was perched in this photo.
The two adult foxes are in this pine tree. This old tree has witches brooms of branches from old infestations of dwarf mistletoe. These make great nesting spots for birds. The crow in the nearer tree was silent but clearly concerned.
Immense and yet Minuscule
The Coconino National Forest is over 1,800,000 acres in extent, and impressive even on a micro level. Let’s take a hike and see what there is to see.
A Hike Along Rocky Ridge Trail
An easy and enjoyable hike near Flagstaff, Arizona, Rocky Ridge trail is actually a section of the Arizona Trail. It is 2.8 miles in length and climbs from 7,191 feet to 7,587 in elevation. The trail begins at Schultz Creek parking just off Schultz Pass road and passes through warm south-facing juniper and pine forest with an interesting mix of cacti. Along the upper reaches of the trail you find Gambel Oak and more Ponderosa pine. Besides hikers, this trail is a frequent single track route, connecting to Oldham trail, Brookbank trail, Mount Elden Lookout road, and can be used to access Flagstaff through Buffalo Park.
For a quick hike today, I entered the trail at the 2.3 mile marker, partway up Mount Elden Lookout road, and headed south toward the Schultz Pass trailhead. The trail lives up to its name, and although having some very smooth stretches, passes through many rocky areas as it follows the base of the Dry Tanks Hills near Mount Elden.
Why is Arizona so... 