As predicted, the plentiful rains this fall and winter led to an abundance of wildflowers. This stand of golden poppies and lupine is a testament to the abundant moisture received this season… even though the photo is “fake news.” Time for me to fess up… Due to travel schedules and two hikes in February rain cancelled, I didn’t set foot on a trail in February. I saw the wealth of wildflowers in photos captured by my friends on Facebook who did happen to get some hikes in. Indeed, there are still wildflowers out and about and I hope to capture some on this week’s trip to South Mountain. But I digress, what’s fake news about this photo? It was captured in Estrella Park in Goodyear, that’s true. It’s of spring wildflowers. True as well… However it was captured during the last great wildflower season in February 2016. That day we hiked a loop of Toothaker Trail to Butterfield Trail and back to Toothaker.

About the photo: This image was captured on my Samsung S6 cellphone on one of our Thursday hikes in Estrella Mountain Regional Park. It was never previously published and it was processed via Lightroom and Luminar 2018. In most browsers, you can click on the image to enlarge it for a better view.

John Steiner

Sonoran Desert, Arizona.

This week, Jen H. asks us to think about the new year, “anticipate beginnings, changes, and opportunities for growth” in this week’s challenge. You can read her entire challenge post here. 

Having recently returned to Arizona after leaving Fargo North Dakota’s cold winter, this challenge reminded me of the iconic succulent that only grows in the Sonoran Desert. The saguaro (suh-wahr-oh) cactus is a long-lived variety and it’s shape in a photograph instantly identifies the location in the great southwest. The Sonoran Desert covers southern Arizona, extreme southeastern California and northern Mexico.

A young saguaro (the taller, more slender cactus on the right) grows slowly, this specimen is between 24 and 30 inches (60-75 cm) tall. The first decade in a saguaro’s life might only see growth of two inches (5 cm). The individual in the photo above is probably 30 years old or more. Don’t confuse the younger saguaro with the similar fire barrel cactus. Fire barrel cactus only grow a few feet high, have longer, more curved needles than a saguaro and have a purplish spiral appearance. As seen in the image below, the saguaro pleats are vertical and the short spikes radiate from the high points on the pleats.

Though the “typical” saguaro is depicted with two arms in popular illustrations, the appendages don’t start appearing until the plant is somewhere around 7 decades old. The example below is typical of new arm growth and is probably 80 or more years of age.

In reality, the number of arms increases with age and it’s common to find specimens over two centuries old. The multiple arms don’t always point skyward as in this example below.

Older plants often show the appearance of much damage as does this example. The saguaro is a favorite nesting home of the Gila Woodpecker, the openings created by the woodpecker’s long beak. The excavated cavities are called “boots” where, inside the cactus, the chicks can stay safe and cool in the hot desert environment. Other birds, such as owls and kestrels are known to use abandoned gila woodpecker nests to raise their own young as well.

As to maximum growth, the two giant saguaro in the image above probably reach between 40 and 60 feet (12-18 m), typical for the species which is the largest cactus variety found in the United States. The image above features my wife on a cool Arizona winter day standing next to two very old saguaro that happen to be living next to the Rainbow Valley Trail in Estrella Mountain Regional Park in Goodyear, Arizona.  You can find more information and images of the mighty saguaro in an earlier post of mine here.

May you enjoy much personal growth in the new year.

John Steiner

Goodyear, Arizona.

This week we hiked in Estrella Park, a normally dry and brown landscape, but this spring, it is verdant and full of spring life. Wildflowers are beginning to make their appearance. In addition to the green ground cover, several areas of the park are springing to life with a collection of spring blossoms. Click on the image to enlarge it to view the small flowers more easily. The larger yellow flowers are Mexican Gold Poppies. The tiny yellow flowers in the foreground are fiddlenecks. There are also two types of purple flowers, a little harder to spot in this picture. The smaller purple blossoms are scorpionweed plants and the taller blueish purple flowers are lupine.

About the photo: This image was captured with my Samsung S7 cellphone. Exposure details: f/1.7 1/1250 sec. ISO-50. The rule for Cellpic Sunday is simple. The image must be captured on a mobile device.

John Steiner

Goodyear, Arizona.

This week’s Cellpic Sunday image was taken on Saturday at the intersection of Dysart and Butterfield Trails in Estrella Mountain Regional Park. Now that we are back in Arizona, we started hiking regularly again. Maricopa County Parks is sponsoring their second annual 100 Miles in 100 Days Challenge. We’ve been hiking an average of 8 miles a week on the theory that by the end of 100 days, (November 1 through February 8); we will have our 100 miles completed.

It’s a good theory, but since we are traveling home to Fargo around the Christmas holidays, we won’t be able to hike, putting us almost three weeks off schedule. So, starting next week, we’ll be adding an extra day of hiking. By adding an extra day of hiking, we won’t burn ourselves out with extra long hikes on any given day, and we should be able to pick up the missing miles before February 8.

You can read about the challenge from a post I wrote last year. Click here. If you are in the Phoenix area and would like to participate in the challenge, the rules are here. The challenge is 100 miles for hikers and trail runners, 200 miles for mountain bikers and horse riders.

The rule for Cellpic Sunday is simple. The image must be captured and edited with a mobile device.

John Steiner

Goodyear, Arizona

This week we are challenged to find the longer way between two points. From the challenge post: “The quickest way between two points might be a straight line, but it’s rarely the most interesting one. From strolling around a new city to browsing the shelves at a neighborhood bookstore, it’s so often the unexpected turns that give meaning to our journeys.” You can read the original photo challenge post here.

The engineers who design hiking trails often opt for the longer way up sloping terrain. That straight line may be the shortest distance, but it’s often the most arduous. Hikers don’t call them “zigzags”, the term most used is “switchback”. I submit for your considered study in back and forth, my take on the challenge Zigzag.

In the photo above, the view from the Rainbow Valley Trail in Maricopa County’s Estrella Mountain Regional Park features a switchback that could have been carved by the mighty sword of a giant “Zorro”. Most switchbacks are less sharp in their zigzags as demonstrated by the photo below of a less pronounced example. By the way, trail managers highly discourage taking the shorter path. Human feet trample the natural turf in the area being “cut through”, and an unlucky hiker may just find a nasty ol’ rattlesnake that isn’t too happy to have its turf ruffled up.

Enjoy the views from the hiking trail. Take the extra time and steps to stay on the trail. Sometimes the quickest way between two points is clearly the least desirable.

John Steiner