Red-letter hike

Well, a red-letter day is a holiday (a day where the number is written in red on the calendar so it stands out). We all agreed that today was a red-letter hike for two reasons: the weather was perfect and we saw all sorts of red flowers as well as a creature with red stripes.

Spring and fall find the Green Mountain Trail dressed up with flowers. Any time is a perfect time to “saunter.” I recently came across an explanation of the origins of the verb saunter: from à la Saint[e] Terre, traveling to the Holy Land. While this is probably just a pleasant story, walking in the woods or the wilds is no less a pilgrimage and the walk would be less enjoyable if we didn’t stop to greet the plants and flowers.

I find I have been observing more and photographing less, so here are today’s highlights.

A glimpse of Thimble Peak and the Santa Ritas.

Santa Catalina Indian Paintbrush. Castilleja tenuiflora

Indian Paintbrush, possibly Castilleja lanata

Arizona Mountain kingsnake, our friend with the red stripes on black.

A little green to complement the red!

Mountain marigold frames the dry creek.

Manzanita meets madrona, adding to the variety of reds.

 

Out and about

Dateline: 8 April 2017

I took a recent opportunity to explore the chaparral region of California’s Santa Monica Mountains by heading up to Will Rogers State Park in the hills above Sunset Boulevard. The park is nestled in the hills next to Topanga State Park and next time I’ll take a longer stroll. This time the Inspiration Point Loop was just right. It had rained overnight and even late in the morning the plants were sparkling with water drops.

The showstopper of the day left me so entranced that no photos were taken – a flight of wild parrots. I also thoroughly enjoyed the twining snapdragon, but the photos were underwhelming. It turns out that blue-flowered Solanum Xantii, unlike many of the nightshades, is a native of the Santa Monica chaparral. There was lots of ceanothus, in fruit and in bloom. Here’s a small selection of what was in bloom.

Big pod ceanothus.

Ceanothus in bloom.

Bright yellow along the trail

Blue and yellow brighten the side of the trail.

Native nightshade

The vine and the shiny shrub intertwine.

Looking toward the ocean on the way down from inspiration point.

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On the way to inspiration point.

Jewel of the Desert

Dateline: 30 March 2017

If you’ve never heard of Aravaipa Canyon Edward Abbey’s essay is a good place to start. My three word summary is: Best Creekwalk Ever! My two pieces of advice are: don’t delay, head there as soon as you can, and if you wear low-top shoes find some gaiters to keep down the sand and gravel. We did a two-day through hike from east to west and a longer trip would have given us more time for exploring the side canyons. The flowers were blooming, the creek was at an easy wading level, the reflected colors in the water were mesmerizing, the company was grand, the canyon wrens provided a near-constant daytime serenade, and I could sing the praises of this trip for quite a while. I’ll let the pictures do the talking.

The bright green of the new leaves is reflected by the water.

Watercress amidst the cottonwood fluff.

The stream widens at the west end.

The banks are lined with stately trees.

Saguaros nearly down to the level of the creek.

Looking up a side canyon.

Contrasting rock colors: cream over chocolate.

In Spanish this plant is called batamote.

Eroded cliffs along the way.

The trail meanders in and out of the creek.

View at our camping spot near Booger Canyon.

Undercut cliff with a small window.

The cliff rises to form a shelf for the saguaros.

Charming grey-white frogs splashed in the stream.

Light shining through the twining snapdragon.

March Spectacular

Dateline 14 March 2017

Mid-March is typically the best for wildflowers around the Tucson Basin and this year was no exception. Here is a selection of the most obvious blooms – there were also Blue Dicks, Cryptantha, Desert Evening Primrose, and a few others that escaped the gaze of the camera. Some of them we fondly call “bellyflowers,” meaning they carpet the ground and you have to be on your belly to see them eye to eye.

A stand of lupine.

Rafinesquia or desert chicory.

Crossosoma or ragged rock flower.

In the genus Pectis.

Water in the creek!

Common fiddleneck or Amsinckia.

Arizona blue-eyes or Evolvulus arizonicus.

Poppy field delights the eyes.

White woolly daisy or Eriophyllum lanosum.

Poppies sprinkle a wash with color.

Filaree or Erodium cicutarium.

Poppy portrait.

Marah, a wild gourd.

Blue phacelia (I think).

Lovely owlclover or Castilleja exserta.

Davidson Canyon

Dateline: 4 November 2016

With the temperatures finally edging into cooler weather, the bit of the Arizona Trail that runs by Davidson Canyon became a more appealing option. Our objective was to amble through the Cienega Creek Preserve, so we didn’t cover much territory. We did enjoy the cool underneath the cottonwoods which were still very green for this time of year. We encountered a local red-tailed hawk who watched over us for a time.

A young saguaro sheltered by a mesquite.

Entering Cienega Creek.

A red-tail observes the creek.

Looking north up Davidson Canyon toward Vail on the Arizona Trail.

Ripples on the creek in the shade of the Cottonwoods.

Box Camp Beauties

Dateline August 30, 2016

In late August after a few rains the flowers on the mountain were in their glory. The Box Camp trailhead starts at about 8,000 feet and the trail descends gently at the beginning. We did a short out and back with a focus on the flowers. Here’s what caught my eye:

Showy beardlip penstemon.

The little creek after the rains.

As the trail descends there are lovely views across the valley.

I’m calling this one stevia – not certain which one.

Striking blue dayflowers.

Spiderwort in its rose colored variation.

Cheerful paintbrush along the way.

Yellow columbine amidst the ferns.

Clusters of lobelia by the stream.

 

 

Sycamore Reservoir

Dateline 4 October 2016

Just a short hike west from site of the Old Prison Camp, now named after the most famous occupant, Gordon Hirabayashi, is the Sycamore Reservoir. Those wanting a longer hike can continue past the reservoir to either Bear Canyon or upper Sabino Canyon. We opted for an out-and-back to enjoy the cooler weather.

At about the half-way point we stopped at a saddle to savor the view to the west where the line of green showed the presence of the trees on the creek above the reservoir. Inquiring minds were puzzled by the sign which reads: “no rubber tired vehicles beyond this point.” If we had a wagon with wooden wheels and the key to the gate could we proceed along the road?

In an interesting variation, the datura along the trail had a strong purple tone. Until you are quite close to the reservoir, the trail is open with grass a a few shrubs. From the top the reservoir itself is not very photogenic but there are lovely views of Thimble Peak. There were flourishing stands of desert mallow along the trail, which had us confused for a moment because mallow is more commonly found in peachy-orange colors. The berries on the holly-leaf buckthorn were changing from yellow to red. The ferns an shrubs took advantage of every little scrap of shade – as did we!

Desert mallow.

Flourishing datura.

View to the west from the saddle.

Ferns line the shady edge of a rock.

Contrasting colors blue and orange.

Can I bring my vehicle with wooden tires?

Thimble peak.

Berries on the buckthorn provide autumn color.

 

On top of Mt Lemmon, with flowers in bloom

Dateline 16 June 2016

I was hiking the Aspen-Marshall loop with a couple of friends that were on the move, so I didn’t catch as many flowers as sometimes. Still it was an interesting assortment – the New Mexico locust was very visible everywhere on the sunny slopes. I saw an amazing “dandelion” for lack of a better descriptor; it was huge as you can see and I don’t know its name. I’m not certain I’m ready to switch to treacleberry for false Solomon’s seal. On the other hand I there’s got to be a better name, one that doesn’t start with “false.”  The ferns and water-loving plants were flourishing by the stream-side.

Hillside with shrubs in bloom.

Bright scarlet penstemon.

Fluffy dandelion-like globe.

One of the ferns at the foot of the fern wall.

Arizona honeysuckle.

False Solomon’s seal.

Dappled light through the New Mexico locust.

 

Forest Flowers – Oracle Ridge

Dateline 16 August 2016

Here’s what August looks like on Oracle Ridge after the rains. There’s all sorts of flowers happening (note the western dayflower and salsify hiding in the background with that beebalm). The “slendertube skyrockets” (aka ipomopsis tenuituba) were a little past their prime which only darkens their color and there was an incredible stream of them down the hillside (who thinks up these names anyway?) I practically did a happy dance when I discovered that I had finally gotten a photo of the nice miniature penstemon that was in focus so I’ve posted two photos of this one which about 6-8″ high in a sort of bushy cluster. I call this trail the land of paintbrush, as while in theory the Rincon paintbrush averages a height of 14,” these plants don’t stop there, they go for closer to knee-high and beyond. Just take in that yellow-red-blue with the primrose-paintbrush-lupine playing off each other. The bedstraw and paintbrush also seem to be friends as they like to hang out together – usually bedstraw is low to the ground but it climbs the paintbrush to grow tall.

Paintbrush and bedstraw are friends.

An insurrection of color.

Slendertube skyrocket.

Tiny penstemon.

More tiny penstemon.

All snack breaks should have a view like this!

Beebalm and friends.

Valley Nights

Out at the Arizona Sonora Desert Museum for an evening stroll, just before the sky opened up and it rained.

Cholla spines at dusk.

The clouds roll in.

Datura waiting to bloom.

Bountiful cactus.