Canyon Lake: In Search of Water

Last month was the anniversary of my cousin's death. My aunt and uncle placed a gorgeous wreath of flowers in the Pacific Ocean, and they encouraged friends and family to place a single flower in any local ocean or river. It was such a lovely idea, especially because my family scattered my grandfather's ashes in Katama Bay just over five years ago. But where was I to find water, here in the Arizona desert? Although there are many local rivers--including one right outside of my apartment--but most of them are seasonally dry (at least in recent years, due to agricultural irrigation water use). Even those running this time of year sadly do not connect to the ocean. So I decided to drive north to the Salt River, a tributary to the Gila River (which runs dry south of Phoenix before it reaches the Colorado River, but at least is a large, relatively natural body of water).

First, I went to find a quiet place to place my orchid flower. There's a lovely canyon to the south of the lake with a small creek. Although there were some families escaping the Phoenix heat in tubes and kayaks near the parking lots, there were also paths through the grass with lots of secluded areas--probably intended for fishing--where it was easy to wade into the water.

After standing for a while in the cool water, I placed the orchid in the water and watched it float off.

A variety of water birds kept me company:

American coot (Fulica americana)

Common gallinule (Gallinula galeata)

Female mallard (Anas platyrhynchos) flying over the common gallinule.

I'm not sure what this one was. Any ideas?

The coot, mallard, and gallinule all together.

And dragonflies...

A lovely rust-orange dragonfly, I think maybe a flame skimmer (Libellula saturata)?

Next, I took a short one-mile hike--a short loop from the Boulder Canyon trailhead--all that I could manage in the 100+ degree heat. But it was worth the lovely views of the lake and canyon. I also spotted a few lizards, some photos of which I might submit to #FindThatLizard.

I love how clearly you can see the line of riparian vegetation along the creek,

On the drive back, I stopped at a few view points the cliffs, which are pretty spectacular, especially due to the yellow coloration in certain places that I believe is due to being covered in lichen:

Despite the heat, it was a lovely, calm day of remembrance, away from work and the rest of the world.