Tag: Arizona

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

Sonoran Sprouts

A close-up of a saguaro flower bud resembles Brussels sprouts in McDowell Sonoran Preserve in Scottsdale, Arizona on May 23, 2023. Originals: _ZFC6740.NEF to _ZFC6814.NEF

I was thinking of Brussels sprouts when I took the picture but when this green grows it is the start of one of the desert’s greatest sights that doesn’t involve a lizard. This tip of a saguaro flower bud will bloom into a large white flower, kicking off a feeding frenzy of birds, bats, and insects. Another feeding frenzy follows when the red fruit ripens.

📷: Nikon Z fc | Nikon 105mm Macro
🗓️: May 27, 2023

X Marks the Spot

Shadows fall on a wooden X adorned with ribbons in Scottsdale, Arizona on December 29, 2024. Original: _A678172.ARW

Bear and I pay our respects at the grave of someone who was important or at least well-loved, given the many colorful ribbons on their marker. They must have died long ago as this area is surrounded by subdivisions now. Perhaps someone who got rather lost trying to find the Oregon Trail. Perhaps a member of the Donner Party who was lucky enough to be spared the arduous journey through someone’s bowels.

The Embrace of Old Friends

A close-up view of the root of an old saguaro wrapping around the waxy base of an old ocotillo in the Sonoran Desert, taken on the Chuckwagon Trail in McDowell Sonoran Preserve in Scottsdale, Arizona on October 8, 2023. Originals: _Z729938.NEF to _Z729969.NEF

As long as she stands the Elephant will be my desert favorite but this is my favorite close-up. The woody bit in the lower left is the exposed root of a saguaro, the rest the glory that is the ocotillo. I like to think these two old friends grew up embracing, shading each other from the unrelenting sun but one never overshadowing the other.

📷: Nikon Z 7II | Nikon 105mm macro
🗓️: October 8, 2023

Subtle Hints

A great horned owl perches in a palo verde while a massive saguaro towers in the background in McDowell Sonoran Preserve in Scottsdale, Arizona on

I’ve seen a number of owls while walking Bear the past couple of years and have focused on taking environmental portraits to highlight how different their home is here compared to the other places I’ve lived. In this picture I used an extremely subtle hint to suggest this owl lives in the Sonoran Desert.

📷: Sony A6700 | Sony 100-400mm + 1.4X
🗓️: May 11, 2024