29 January 2013
Last night, whilst we slept what began as an overnight rain turned to snow in the nearby Santa Rita Mountains. We awoke to a beatiful sight which got better as the day went on.
Click on the photos below for a larger image.
The view from our front porch at around 7:30 am.
About 2:30 I decided to head up to the mountains for a closer look at the snow.
This was taken at the approach of Madera Canyon.
A snowy Mt. Wrightson (AKA "Old Baldy") can be seen at the far right.
At about 5000' elevation the snow started to show up along the roadway.
Surprise!! The road beyond the Amphitheater was closed. Luckily this is where I had planned to park for my short walk in the snowy woods.
This next series of shots were all taken from the Nature Trail which is accessed from the Amphitheater parking lot.
Some sections of the trail were snow covered, even down this low.
There was about 3" of snow on the bench.
Old Baldy was lookin' pretty frosty!
The best my little point and shoot would do.
When I lead hikes here we always stop at this point to take in the view and read the interpretive sign.
Mighty purty!
The Spikemoss and Agave are used to this and the snow provides welcome moisture.
There were a number of foot prints in the snow and this fella was on his way up the mountain.
Snow covered fruits of the Alligator Juniper.
This yucca made an interesting pattern.
My last look before heading back down the trail.
This coming Sunday I am leading a hike in the upper elevations of the Canyon. It will be interesting to see if there is still any snow left.
Around 6:00 o'clock the Santa Rita's were turning pink.
The saying around here is "When the Mountains turn Pink, it's time for a drink." Yippee!
Adios...