My lady and I made a quick visit to the mountain range that borders the eastern extent of the valley of Phoenix. We were welcomed with rain storms, immense wind, and even a few snow flurries, providing a multitude of weather variety for our adventure. Our seven-mile hike meandered through the prairie, up to the cliffs themselves, and eventually reconvened with the Siphon Draw Trail that snakes its way through some drastic elevation changes before arriving at Flatiron...
[ Click for full-size images ]
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| Behold, the dramatic western face of the Superstition Wilderness |
. . .
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| The clouds did not relent in their beauty |
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| Some of the locals |
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| Faintly disappearing over the hills |
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| Siphon Draw, the entrance to the western Supes |
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| One of the giant rock formations we explored around during our off-trail side-trip |
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| Like Cathedrals looming overhead |
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| When the sky shone through, it shone incredible shades of blue |
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| Rain storms blowing in from over the Goldfields; City of Mesa in the foreground |
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| Rain storms quickly turn to snow storms |
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| A unique day for lighting and shadows |
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| We descended quickly from our side trip up to this rock face as yet another storm cloud poured in overhead |
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| It's snowin' in the desert... at less than 1,500 ft of altitude |
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| If only the picture could convey the gale-force winds |
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| Flatiron amidst a snowy haze. You can actually see the snow flakes / ice chunks streaking through the frame |
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| Thick 'chunks' of snow / ice |
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| One of the many trickling escape routes for the fleeting rain |
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| IT was amazing how many times this view evolved during the trip |
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| Storms are gone without trace... as if they never happened |
We climbed out of the Siphon Draw drainage following the flowing path of water through the river beds and rock structures through some thick, dense vegetation
The slot canyons were dynamic today with so much noise!
Looking up through the rock basin at Flat Iron, with streaks of washed out sediment striping each wall
The 20-foot fall is actually flowing today
The rain is a welcome addition to the otherwise dry and static rock face. I'm just hangin' out on my island
Negotiating some of the steep rocks, while trying to following the flowing water through the canyon
Yep, more snow... luckily we came prepared. Dry, warm and cozy underneath the layers
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| And the storms are back |
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| There's a nice cozy shelter underneath this massive boulder |
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| Krystal getting friendly with the flora |
What an Epic day!
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| And we're out! |
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| Four Peaks to the northeast is getting dummmmped on |
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| And another quick snow flurry... I guess that makes four total? |
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| Four Peaks Wilderness, we will have to meet someday... |
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