McDowell Sonoran Preserve – Page 12

On Top of the World

A couple of weeks ago as Bear and I had Balanced Rock to ourselves I was forcefully struck at how I was happier than I had been in a very long time. Not that there hadn’t been plenty of happy times in the years prior but that after several months of leave my mind had finally unwound and let me stay and revel in each little moment. Surprisingly rather than the euphoria slipping away with the realization my leave was about to come to a crashing halt, it stayed with me as we hiked back out through this stunning land.

📷: Nikon Z fc | Nikon 16-50 DX
🗓️: January 26, 2024

Sprawling Arms

A phainopepla and a house finch take refuge in the sprawling arms of an old ocotillo, which also nestle a young-ish saguaro as its older aunts and uncles look on from afar.

📷: Sony A6600 | Sony 100-400mm | Sony 1.4X
🗓️: October 26, 2023

The Old Man and the C’s

I’m a big fan of public art, even if it’s very much with a lowercase ‘a’, even if it’s just a bit of whimsy. This photograph is me feeling playful at the end of a wonderful walk with Bear at Granite Mountain, I love how they lined the parking area for horse trailers with old horseshoes. Perhaps they’ll regret it down the road if it makes it more expensive to resurface the lot, but I like the reminder that not everything – and everyone – needs to be some flavor of beige.

📷: Nikon Z 7II | Nikon 24-200mm
🗓️: January 9, 2024

Trail Rescue

This is the fire department’s ATV that passed Bear and I yesterday, if we had one of these our hikes would go a lot faster! I promise we’d only use it for good, like running over people who don’t pick up their dog’s poop or handing out Dr. Pepper and donuts to hikers who’ve overextended themselves. My thanks to the pros and volunteers who help out with trail rescues.

📷: Nikon Z fc | Nikon 16-50mm DX
🗓️: January 14, 2024

Air Evacuation

As Bear and I hiked to Balanced Rock via the easier wide path (to be kinder to his paws) we were passed by the Scottsdale Fire Department on their way to a trail rescue. On the way back we took the narrower rocky paths to stay out of their way if they needed to evacuate someone, but they must have called for air support as when we were far along this helicopter came past and hovered near the rescue site. Hope they’re OK.

📷: Nikon Z fc | Nikon 16-50mm DX
🗓️: January 14, 2024

The Four Corners of the Earth

Precious Cargo

Bear towering over Four Peaks after our hike to Balanced Rock. I’ve been trying to take a variety of shots to help me remember my leave of absence as I gird up to get through one last year of work, I’ll never step far away from him but by now I trust him enough to move a few feet away for a picture, as long as there’s nothing of interest nearby.

📷: Nikon Z 7II | Nikon 24-200mm
🗓️: January 9, 2024

I Always Feel Like Somebody’s Watching Me

A canyon towhee keeping an eye out for scallywags, ne’er-do-wells, trouble-makers.

📷: Sony A6600 | Sony 100-400mm | Sony 1.4X
🗓️: May 28, 2023

Stirring

A while back I decided to not use my leave of absence as a trial retirement but instead to let my mind go quiet for a while. There’s a part of myself I’ve kept in hibernation for a very long while and I’m not ready to let him rise from slumber, as if he stirs it will be too hard to go back to work for the year or so before real retirement. I have relented a little in the weeks of leave that remain, small awakenings I don’t think I’ll regret. One that caught me by surprise was a desire to play around with black-and-white photography as usually I only shoot it in desperation. I don’t think I’ll ever shoot much of it, the point is to let my mind wander into new territory, but not only did I love this quick snap of The Muppet as Bear and I hiked in the desert, so far it’s my favorite picture I’ve taken of this saguaro.

📷: Nikon Z fc | Nikon 16-50mm DX
🗓️: November 21, 2023

Bear vs. The Nemesis

Sadly this is about as close as I’ll ever get to an actual mountain lion. Thankfully this is about as close as I’ll ever get to an actual mountain lion. Bear usually wants to stop and stare at the animal sculptures at Fraesfield, he knows they aren’t real but can’t quite make out what they are. It’s the mountain lion that really gets his interest, there is also a jackrabbit and a javelina nearby. This morning he walked right on by, there were lots of people and dogs with it being Christmas Eve so I think he was a little too distracted to appreciate art.

📷: Nikon Z fc | Nikon 16-50mm DX
🗓️: December 18, 2023