Category: Scenic

Hallelujah Jordan

A scenic view of a broken old saguaro with two of its arms lifted high, taken in McDowell Sonoran Preserve in Scottsdale, Arizona. Taken on December 30, 2023. Original: _A673198.ARW

The 118th Street Trail is a service road out to the electrical towers that also links two of my favorite trails into a loop. It has charms all its own, Bear & I have seen four of his favorite creatures on this short stretch: mule deer, coyotes, cottontails, and even a Gila monster. Kestrels are here too though the pup doesn’t care about those.

We also get Hallelujah Jordan, arms raised in permanent praise to the glory that is the Sonoran Desert. I’ve thought about renaming him as one of his arms has fallen off and he reminds me more of the Statue of Liberty these days. I decided against it as though he has changed, his joy is everlasting. Both pictures taken on dog walks.

1st Photo:
📷: Sony A6700 | Sony-Zeiss 24mm f/1.8
🗓️: December 30, 2023

2nd Photo:
📷: Sony A6700 | Sony-Zeiss 24mm f/1.8
🗓️: December 14, 2025

scenic view of a broken old saguaro with one of its arms lifted high, taken in McDowell Sonoran Preserve in Scottsdale, Arizona. Taken on December 14, 2025. Original: _A671177.ARW

Missing Entries

A black-and-white shot of a distant Weaver’s Needle as shadows fall across the foothills. Taken in McDowell Sonoran Preserve in Scottsdale, Arizona on February 19, 2023. Original: _RAC4307.ARW

A telephoto snapshot of Weaver’s Needle when I was teaching Bear to hike and having fun documenting how different it was compared to walking Ellie in Portland. I looked in my hiking journal to see if I had any notes about the day but there was a big gap, with the next entry coming a month later noting “I’ve been hiking a ton since December, but they have been dog walks with Bear in the preserve and I haven’t been documenting them. Which is a shame, and I regret it.”

From then on I wrote up our walks in the desert just like any hike, which is fortunate as almost all of them since have been with him.

📷: Sony A6700 | Sony 100-400mm + 1.4X
🗓️: February 19, 2023

Into Shadow

Shadows creep towards the mountains from atop the Marcus Landslide Trail in McDowell Sonoran Preserve in Scottsdale, Arizona on November 22, 2024. Original: _Z720869.NEF

Shadows crept towards the mountains as Bear and I looked down from atop the old landslide. We were like Frodo & Sam about to head into Mordor. Except we only had a mile and a half to go. On well-groomed trails. In perfect weather. With no one hunting us. And plenty of water and snacks.

Otherwise just like Frodo & Sam.

📷: Nikon Z 7II | Nikon 27-40 f/4
🗓️: November 22, 2024

Christmas Presence

A woman in a red jacket walks on the trails in McDowell Sonoran Preserve in Scottsdale, Arizona on December 25, 2021. Original: _ZFC1111.NEF

One of my favorite Christmas traditions is to get up early and go out for a hike, you have the park mostly to yourself until families are done opening presents and the trails get busy. On this Christmas a few years ago I saw a kindred spirit as I looked back to the mountain behind me.

📷: Nikon Z fc | Nikon 24-200
🗓️: December 25, 2021

Sonoran Gothic

A crucifixion thorn grows next to a saguaro skeleton on the 118th Street Trail in McDowell Sonoran Preserve in Scottsdale, Arizona on August 8, 2021. Original: _CAM3378.ARW

A nod to Grant Wood’s “American Gothic“, even if only the saguaro skeleton keeps to the long vertical lines of the iconic duo in the painting. The crucifixion thorn is not to be contained and confined, it is an explosion of life, a dancer in the desert, the beauty of being true to yourself.

📷: Sony A6500 | Sony 16-50mm f/2.8 G
🗓️: August 8, 2021