Arizona Adventures
I’m headed back to Arizona with my oldest son Zach this next week -but have stories from Cape Cod, Boston and the “Boom Boom Room” in Bellevue, Kentucky in queue to post during my absence. We’ll pack a video camera in addition to my trusted Nikon and hope to record some of our better hiking moments.
Our plans include hiking/biking near Sedona, photographing Antelope Canyon, floating around Horseshoe Bend, hiking into the Grand Canyon and -oh yeah! A college visit. We also hope to climb Camelback Mountain near Scottsdale again. Here’s what happened the last time…
Originally posted on April 9, 2008.
If I’d spotted it creeping across my carpet, I’d have crushed it into a paper towel with a shiver and no shame. But as this bug was moseying across red sandstone on Camelback Mountain, I instead dropped down to the best camera angle, thinking it quite spectacular.
As was the view… Camelback Mountain rises some sixteen hundred feet above downtown Phoenix. The incongruity of this heap of a mountain is striking as one gazes down into the flat basin of desert city below. Similar lumps of reddish rock loom in the distance, bold backdrops to Sky Harbor International’s constant air traffic. During my recent visit, a friend and I clambered up a trail labeled “strenuous” hoping for a good late afternoon work-out.
We got our work-out and then some! As a cardio-nut, I didn’t find it strenuous so much as “scary.” And altogether
lovely… Sheer drop offs, sliding gravel, and the occasional wind gust made an inward lean preferable. Ascending the uneven terrain was akin to stepping up the equivalent of three or four stair steps at once. The climb required focus and a constant momentum, more than a little bit of nerve, and a lot of photos.
Camelback’s granite base soon gave way to sedimentary rock cemented with a pleasing rust colored sandstone that provided wonderful contrast to the sparse foliage along the way. Purple lupine sprouted steadfastly in unlikely places. The occasional palo verde tree clung tenaciously at cliff edge. Cacti such as yellow brittlebush, jumping (or “teddy bear”) cholla, hedgehog and barrel provided occasional splashes of color and texture.
The ascent was the easiest part. After a water break and panoramic elation, the rapidly approaching sunset chased us back down the mountain. We descended quickly, knowing how fast the flash from afternoon to darkness can be when shielded by a mountain. Climbing down felt a lot like downhill biking with the brakes on and made for good “jello” legs when we finally walked contentedly out from under Camelback’s shadow.
“If I’d spotted it creeping across my carpet, I’d have crushed it into a paper towel with a shiver and no shame”. This is quite true for me too.
Heather-now you’re making me nostalgic. I lived in Arizona for seven years and can still see in my mind’s eye all the rugged, spectacular beauty of its mountains and deserts. Sedona is so beautiful. Have a fabulous time!
Rainfield: I don’t mind ‘em on a trail or in my yard, but bugs are not to cross the threshold into my house!
NothingProfound: We’ve been planning to do this for a while and are really looking forward to the hiking time together. Sedona and the Grand Canyon will be return trips for us (love them!). It will be our first time to Antelope Canyon. From the southwest to the east, huh? That’s a dramatic change in geology and just about everything else, I imagine!
You brought me back to the places I have traveled too in my RV last year, like Phoenix… I remember that I have read somewhere the words “Camelback Mountain”. I was in Sedona for 2 days, it’s just beautiful! And then of course I saw also the Grand Canyon – but, to go to photograph the Antilope Canyon was the weather not good enough, so we decided to drive on.
I’ll be back reading and looking to the pictures, Heather. Thanks for sharing.
Susanne
Some bugs look nice others give me the creeps, but as long as they all stay out of my way they will be alright.
Suzanne: I remember your journey (and all the wonderful photos!). Weather is always the deciding factor, isn’t it? I’m seeing high wind warnings for the day we plan to hike the Grand Canyon and am wondering if I can switch our plans around!
Donald: I’m better with bugs than I am with mice and bats. And yes, there are stories to back me up on that!
Sounds like fun… Good luck with the college tour. It’s a great time of year for a visit. Not too hot, not too cold. Have fun and take lots of photos for us!
Love lupins, they seem to sprout up in the oddest places, even on strenuous trails like this one. I can imagine how wobbly those legs must have been after the the climb back down.
Intrepid: We had it all: hail, blazing sun and everything in between! Made for an exciting time, though!
Cate: My son and I hiked an even tougher trail this time around, and as we scrambled up slabs of barren rock towards the top there were bits of vegetation along the way. And unbelievably, at the very top (2704 feet up)? A hummingbird.