Road Trip: Arizona

We left a few days before Dan's birthday and headed out to New Mexico. Instead of traveling on the highway, we decided to pass through Tonto National Park, check out the Petrified Forest, and then get to Albuquerque in the evening.

Of course right as we left there was the typical desert scenery that you get used to spending time in Phoenix. Personally, I love desert plant life (from a distance) so I enjoyed the view as soon as we left populated areas.

Pretty soon after leaving town, the elevation started to slowly climb and the plant life started to change. More and more trees, less cacti. At one point, on the left side of the road it was forest like and on the right side it was desert like.

Life in the Desert - South Mountains, Arizona

Our second Arizona hike was in the South Mountains, a long range south of the Phoenix airport. What turned out to be a four hour hike, we saw beautiful views of Phoenix, a wide array of flora and fauna. I figure this is a great opportunity to have the photos speak for themselves. Oh, and if you don't want to read my commentary, feel free to click on the first image and scroll through them in all their glory.