Echoes of the Southwest

About 40 miles east of Phoenix, and right on the outskirts of Superior, sits Picketpost Mountain. Many enjoy hiking the mountain which is near the Superstition Mountains. The story is told that a mailbox was placed on the top of the mountain and holds the log books for the Picketpost Mountain Trail. We went there in search of Apache Tears and we did find some. I did a post on Apache Tears. Here is the link:  Apache Tears (echoesofthesouthwest.com)

Phoenix, AZ has winters that feel like spring. This past weekend, Sharon and I decided to hike over to South Mountain Park and photograph some of the desert plants and scenery. What a beautiful day!

Praying Monk Walking the path near the mountain at sunset.

The South Mountains were named for their geographic location south of Phoenix. The land is managed by the city of Phoenix and considered sacred by the Akimel O’odham as well as the Sierra Estrella Mountains. Many UFO’s have been reported hovering over the mountains and over 20 communication towers are located on its peaks. There are many hiking paths and a mystery castle found in the foothills on the north side of the mountains. This castle was built in 1930 from weird materials and trash and used as a private residence. Also found on the mountain are ancient Indian ruins, petroglyphs, and pieces of pottery all over the grounds. The day we went for a hike around the base of South Mountain, the rain was pouring down. It made for gorgeous pictures.

Last winter in Arizona, we didn't have much of a winter. The towns and cities in the northern and eastern part of the state didn't get much snow. In the Phoenix, the weather was in the 70s for at least three months throughout winter. Although we enjoyed having our windows open, it sucked for my hubby's AC business. This winter however feels like winter. The northern and eastern parts of the state have been getting so much snow that some of the highways had to be closed. Our ski resorts are loving it. In the Phoenix area, we had lots of rain and chilly weather. Some of the cities on the outskirts of Phoenix got snow. I even heard that Phoenix got some snow flurries but it didn't stick. Phoenix also experienced heavy fog. Sharon and I decided to head back to a couple of abandoned places we haven't seen in a couple of years this past weekend. I will share pictures of what we saw in later posts. On the way back home, we were on a highway where we could see mountai...