desertDJ’s Halo Halo

In light of today’s valley wide rainstorm in the Phoenix area, and the 1 year anniversary of going back to the Philippines, I thought this self pic would be great for today.

This was up in the mountains in the Philippines. We went up to escape the heat and check out a waterfall. This pool was fed by fresh waters flowing from the rain forests in the jungle. After coming back from the hike to see this magnificent waterfall, the skies opened up and out came the rain. It would be one that would receive national news attention in Phoenix, but probably just an extra strong storm for the island of Negros Oriental.

Rain brings dread to the Filipinos, but to this guy from the desert, it brings excitement (as you can see from everybody’s facebook and twitter posts from people in Phoenix!) So I made the best of it and had my wife take this fun shot of me in the pool.

(As always click on image to see full size)

It’s been a while since I posted a “weekly photo” (it’s been more like yearly photo) but here is a special photo I would like to share for the Weekly Photo’s grand return!

On one of the last weekends cool weekends in the year before the hot desert son scorches everything in it’s path,  my brother in law Josh and I hiked the famous Superstition Mountains.  The alien like rock formations have always intrigued me. Visible from my 10th floor office view, they create the backdrop for the sunrise for myself and most of the East Valley. 

It wasn’t until about a year ago I found out that there is a hiking trail to the top. (Flatiron Trail)  The opportunity presented it self and we were off, early one May morning. My GPS app on my phone was off capturing my every move while I broke in my brand new Camelback for hydration, key for any desert hike.

The hike was tough, but gave me confidence in my hiking ability after making the 2,717 ft elevation climb. (See my hike stats below the photo) The awesome part of such as drastic climb is you are changing climate zones. You go from small shrubs, to tall trees. Along the way I captured this colorful cactus. The bright purple bloom is in stark contrast to the reddish brown rock that was surrounding it. Another contrast is the sea of yellow needles surrounding and seemingly protecting the delicate prize in the middle.

This was just one of the several snapshots of nature I captured on the hike.  I recommend you try this hike as soon as the weather permits! Like I said, it’s not easy, but the panoramic view from the top is a worthy reward. (Pack a sandwich to eat on top of “flatiron”)

 (Be sure to view (and download!) the full size version by clicking the image, check out the pollon on the petals) 

This week temperatures dropped to the 60s for the high, bringing back memories of hot chocolate, Christmas lights, sweaters, and for some of us, snowboarding. Before I got into snowboarding we did the next best thing, sledding.

In 2005 a freak snow storm in March extended our winter season just a bit longer that year. Even in Sedona, the normally rusty red rocks were all but covered up with the white snow. In our attempt to reach Flagstaff for some snow play (read blog story about the accident), we only got to Prescott, which had over a foot of snow there.

Right near the trout farm in Oak Creek Canyon is a campsite I’ve visited many times when I was younger so I wanted to capture the snow with Oak Creek. This shot was taken right on the bridge that goes over the river to the trout farm.

Remember, be sure to click on the photo to see the full resolution version.

Snow in Sedona