A Perfect Day in the Desert

Yesterday was just about perfect. Another welcome reminder of how blessed and fortunate I am to live in such a unique and inspiring place. I have come to love the Sonoran Desert and am always excited to share it with the friends and family who visit. One of the best ways to enjoy all the desert has to offer is to get out there and experience it. Yesterday, I took my aunt and my sister on one of my very favorite hikes; camera in hand, hoping to capture the beauty of the desert in the Spring, just beginning to bloom, teeming with life.

The Usery Mountains and Tonto National Forest are pretty much our backyard and no matter how many times I hike the same trails, there is always something new to discover.

Always something that takes my breath away.

Always something interesting and unique.

The <PHOENIX sign on the mountain (our version of the HOLLYWOOD sign) was done by the Boy Scouts in the 1950s as a directional marker to the airport. Some people don’t like it but I think it is a little bit of interesting history and for us, always a  “welcome home”.

Hike after hike, I am still in awe of the harsh and beautiful landscape that is home to us. The surprises I always discover when I slow down and take the time to take it all in.

What is harsh and threatening to some is safety and home to another.

Each Saguaro is unique and incredible. They amaze me.

It really was a perfect day.

If you live here too, I hope you’ll get your camera and get outside. If you don’t, I hope you have the chance to visit and experience it for yourself sometime.

“When through the woods and forest glades I wander
And hear the birds sing sweetly in the trees;
When I look down from lofty mountain grandeur
And hear the brook and feel the gentle breeze;
Then sings my soul, my Saviour God to Thee; How great Thou art!”