Yesterday was a sunny but hazy day and we decided to head out to South Mountain Park. We had been there 2 years ago when we wintered in Mesa. The views from the top give an excellent view of Phoenix and the surrounding valley. South Mountain park is the largest city run park in the United States. The road to the top winds around small mountains with some switchbacks. The hillsides also had lots of cacti with blooms on them. But these particular mountains consisted of mostly dark brown and black rocks. They simply are not as pretty as the mountains in Tucson or up in the Superstition Mountains around Mesa and Apache Junction.
It was going to be 95 degrees so we thought it might be just a bit cooler on top of South Mountain. Wrong! It was STILL hot! The heat also had the flies and gnats out in full force! You could hardly hold the camera without having to keep swatting the flies away from your face. I guess they are attracted to all the blooming yellow bushes that are so abundant on the South Mountain hillsides and at the overlook. The only place they would not bother us was inside the shade of the brick walled and covered viewing open air building. We had snacks with us but had to eat them in the truck because the flies were so bad. In the third picture, you can see the tall buildings of downtown Phoenix. I also got Doug to pull into the horseback riding rental area so I could pet the horses!
It was just a way for us to pass the time as we wait to leave Mesa and head further north. Sine we were in that part of town, we stopped at the large outlet stores mall to get a walk in for some exercise. At least it is nice and cool inside and every little bit of exercise helps! That way we can have ice cream, which we both love!!!!
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