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photograph taken at the trail head, pinnacle peak park, scottsdale arizona, february 2011
i wouldn’t call this a stunning photo, and
i’m not sure what it is, but, there is something about this shot that i really like.
maybe it’s just that the image reminds me of how it felt to be there.
the park and trails are close to houses at the trail head.
when the park opens for the day there are people that live in the area that come to take
a hike on the trail that goes up the peak.
it was late morning and the wind was there, and cool. the thing about it though, is that the
houses are all low to the ground, and the sky so big and visible that it and the desert and hills
are the main event.
and the wind, it is the life, the movement, the dry swirling lifting drifts of movement,
that slows and then lifts and then swirls around your head and disappears…just to come
back and do it again.
it’s amazing, the feel of this place. like there is something alive in the air. however, i don’t
think i would want to be there in the summer. temps. above 100º fahrenheit, no thanks.
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A LITTLE SOMETHIN' 
"maybe it's just that the image reminds me of how it felt to be there."That's my main reason for taking pictures (and looking through old photo albums).
I've been to Scottsdale and Phoenix a few times, and also hiked some trails. It is beautiful, in an arid-cactus kind of way, so different from the Northeast.I like the way you said the houses were low to the ground (crouching?) and the sky is so big, leaving the mountains to stand up strong and tall.
I like the photo, it has a three dimensional quality to it. The layers of tone help to create that effect. Beautiful. I'm not sure I would enjoy summer either.I'm feeling a bit more like myself, thanks for asking.
Some places are nice to visit but not to live there. You chose a good time to visit and explore the desert!
it has a very moody feel about it …
The last time I was in Phoenix and Scottsdale (for a conference I was covering) it was June and the temperature by mid-morning had already reached 112. The heat was such an assault after being inside with air conditioning. Night temps were somewhat cooler. My late brother lived in Tucson for a long time and loved the wildness and the heat and especially the open spaces.
I too like the other-wordly feel of the photo — and the sky. Oh that sky.You've captured the expansiveness and mystery well — in the photo and your words.
It's a beautiful photo – I like the "mistiness" of it that gives an oterh-worldly feel to it.When my oldest lived in Phoenix, one of my favorite places to go was the White Tanks – the state park on the other side of the metropolitan area from Scottsdale. The hills and mountains were densely packed, and so you didn't get vistas and landscapes until you reached the top of one.