Photos and comments from Arizona and around the world
You may need to click on this image to see the detail. This is Goblin Valley in central Utah and the Henry Mountains in the background. This reminds me of the George McDonald book, The Princess and Curdie. I guess it is the juxtaposition of mountains...
Historically, there were 20 to 30 million of these animals in North America. Often called buffalo, they are really American Bison. You might think they are like large, shaggy cows, but a full-grown bison can weigh over 2000 pounds. One late evening in...
Sometimes we look at something and it is so strange that our eyes cannot sort out what we are looking at. At these times, we either stop looking or try to apply some previous experience to explain what we see. This image is one of those unrecognizable...
Succulents and cactus are usually associated with deserts, but this particular yucca plant is growing at almost 8000 feet up in the Rocky Mountains. Some cactus also grow at high altitudes and in extreme temperatures. This is a testimony to the extent...
Some places have fortunate names. This beautiful formation is in a city park called "The Garden of the Gods." Without such a name, the whole area, might have been gobbled up by the subdivisions that lie just at its edge. There are several places I know...
Rock spires are a major natural attraction because they seem to defy gravity and reason. It is unreasonable to think that a rock could stay standing without some kind of substantial support. Considering the size of rocks that I have seen fall off of cliffs,...
This is a child's slide in a playground. Pleasant enough to give the little dears nightmares for a week. I haven't ever seen a Gila monster outside of a zoo or botanical garden, they are relatively rare and very shy. They are poisonous but they have to...
I captured this typical Mesa couple just as they were crossing the street at McDonald and Main.
Unless you get up very early in the morning or stay up all night, you will miss some of the most spectacular cactus flowers. These are the cactus that bloom only at night. But the time the sun is up and the day begins, the flowers are already closing...
Even in troubled times, Liberty shines like a beacon in the darkness. Lifting her torch so that we can all see the blessings of living in the home of the brave and land of the free. Reminding us, as Thomas Jefferson said, "The price of freedom is eternal...
I couldn't resist another shot of the Ironwood trees in bloom. This time with saguaros also in bloom. The colors in the desert are subtle astonishingly beautiful. There isn't anyplace else that has the blue of the sky set off by the deep greens and grays...
Saguaro cactus are not the largest in the world, but they are the largest in the desert in Arizona. I have noted before that saguaro have become identified with the idea of desert to the extent that they have been included in graphics for areas where...
Taken through a dark special filter. Mesa is too far south to see a complete annular eclipse but here are some shots when it was as full as it got. The bottom picture is of the weird shadows caused by the eclipse. The rest of the pictures are so dark...
I thought this photo had a little Vincent van Gogh feel to it. It is surprising what you can see when you really start looking for light and patterns around you. It is probably fun to go to exotic places to take photographs but I find that there are plenty...
Not everything in the desert is brown and dark green, sometimes there are surprises. Technically, this is not a cactus, but a succulent. Some of the most iconic plants in the desert, such as agaves and ocotillo are not cactus at all. Walking through the...
These flowers bloom at night and last only until mid-day, one or two days a year. If you catch them while they are blooming they are spectacular, but if not, all you see is small rounded and unimpressive cactus. Some people are like that, unless you see...
Many of the slot canyons of the Southwest are hardly visible until you get right to the edge of the canyon. White Canyon in Southern Utah is no exception. It is a deep steep sided canyon. But its very nature is also its attraction. I am fascinated by...
Summit of Pike's Peak, Colorado USA in USA Pike’s Peak is a mountain in the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains just west of Colorado Springs, Colorado. The mountain was named after Zebulon Pike, Jr., the explorer who led an expedition to southern Colorado...
Here are four different photos of waterfalls. None of them are the thundering cascades but they each have a charm and attraction. Being from the desert, I have noted many times, my fascination with water. It still amazes me to see rivers...
Campus Overview, Air Force Academy, Colorado Springs, Colorado USA in USA The campus of the the United States Air Force Academy is located on 18,500 acres, just north of Colorado Springs, Colorado in a lovely mountain setting at an altitude of 7,258...
When the rest of the world is anticipating cooler weather and changing leaves, we swelter down here in the Salt River Valley with temperatures over 100 degrees. But we can always imagine what it would be like to have cool running streams with fall leaves...
You know, I have to admit that this picture did not come from Arizona. There is moss in Arizona, but it is dry most of the year and only turns green after a period of wet weather. There are a few springs and creeks where you can find moss covered rocks,...
Main Street and Scottsdale Road, Scottsdale, Arizona USA in Arizona This Panorama shows the statuary at the intersection of Main Street and Scottsdale Road in Scottsdale, Arizona. Main Street has been a mecca for winter visitors and shoppers from all...
Cactus exhibit perfection in both form and function. It is hard to imagine anything you could design that is adapted so perfectly to its environment than a cactus and at the same time has such a perfection of form and beauty. Frank Lloyd Wright implemented...
