Summer finally arrived in Northern Arizona, about 6 weeks later than usual. Good news: no wildfires, thanks to lots of rain. Bad news: I was freezing!

I got out to the Twin Buttes before 7am – and was a little late. Shade is a valuable commodity in the Arizona summer!

In another 10 days or so the summer monsoon will start, my favorite time of year. It will still be hot, but moist air from the Gulf of California arrives with plenty of clouds and thunderstorms. The rain ends the annual wildfire season, while the clouds dapple the already dramatic landscape in ever-changing patterns.

The Twin Buttes Loop is about 6 miles and relatively flat: just a few hundred feet of ascent. But the scenery is anything but flat.

Courthouse and Bell rocks as seen from Chicken Point:

Click to enlarge.

Click to enlarge.

The rocks are a popular mountain biking destination, as the sign in this picture suggests. The double black diamond is for bikers, not hikers. Having hiked the trail, I can assure you that there are places where once you start you are committed to a rapid descent whether you are still on your bike on not.

Click to enlarge.

Click to enlarge.

Finally, another picture: Spring in the Desert. The fruiting body of an agave plant is on the left. These stems shoot up several inches a day and present their flowers for pollination and then, seed distribution. The stem is so large that they can cause the whole plant to capsize, ripping its roots out of the ground.

The desert isn’t easy.

Click to enlarge.

Click to enlarge.

The StorageMojo take
May you always walk in beauty.

Courteous comments welcome, of course.