The Desert After A Winter Rain

Keith and I try to take the dogs out every day—that's what we tell ourselves, but what we really are doing is taking ourselves out every day! Today, the first pretty day after several days of light rain, we decided to head for the Lost Dutchman State Park for an easy hike.

But let's begin a day before. This picture was taken yesterday, from my apartment complex overlooking Sherwood Park. It shows the rainclouds heading our way, not a common sight around here. But today dawned clear and crisp.

Even though I know the desert greens up after a rain, I didn't expect to see so much green, especially from the quick-growing grass.

Cholla cacti were also profuse. These are called teddy bear cholla because they look soft and fluffy.

They are not.

We also noticed the teddy bear cholla was bearing a lot of fruit (flower buds). These fruits are edible, though there's a bit of work in picking and preparing them.

Ella loves hiking.

All that grass, though—!

The brittlebush are blooming a little early this year, I think.

Lilly, Ella, and me

The picture below came out especially well, and I don't really know why. Keith and the dogs and I were in cloud shadow while the Superstitions massif was in full sunlight. I used the HDR setting on my phone camera.