Northeast Arizona

Hi all, my semester is coming to an end which is why I have not posted as much as I like too. It's a very busy time of year for me as I have finals and what have you. I'm off from school until July so I hope to post more frequently.
Today I have some photos that I took Northeast of Phoenix. I love these pictures because they show how diverse the state of Arizona is in nature. Typically when one thinks of Arizona they picture desert, cactus and palm trees but not all of Arizona looks this way, as you have seen in some of my previous posts. There are portions of Arizona that are flat, not just in the valley, with small hill like mountains. The farther north you go, and not just north but west, east and central, the more the state reminds me of the Northeast part of the country. I hope you enjoy today's photos and please feel free to comment where you like.

Entering Arizona ~ Crossing the New Mexico/Arizona border

Well, by now most of you already know that we love to travel, even if it is only within the beautiful state of Arizona. This past December we took a family road trip, my husband, our son, our dog and of course myself. First we headed to Atlanta, Georgia to visit my Dad and then we headed down to Florida for a visit with my Mom. Needless to say we drove, yes from Phoenix, Arizona, as I do not fly and have not since 2000. That is a whole other in and of itself, so we'll skip that for now. You can only image how many pictures I have from that trip, over 1,000. What can I say I love to take pictures, especially pictures of this spectacular country. The photos I have for you today were taken in January as we entered Arizona from New Mexico. A few of them were taken at a gas station between Tucson and Phoenix. I know that sounds slightly odd but Arizona is just stunning, even at a gas station.
One of my favorite things about Arizona are the uniquely beautiful rock formations. I've traveled the world, well to Australia and the Bahamas, but that still counts, right. But nonetheless, I have seen some beautiful nature, but Arizona's mountains are just breathtaking. It should honestly be a requirement for residents and visitors to sit back and enjoy the view because if you do not, you'll miss so much beauty. Again, I truly hope that you enjoy my photos as much as I enjoy taking in all that Arizona has to offer.

The Desert

My husband and I enjoy driving as often as we can. We always take our son, obviously, and our dog with us when we venture out of the city. There is something about the open road that is so relaxing and in Arizona the scenery is breathtaking. I grew up in New Jersey so when I first moved to Arizona it was quite a shock. I can remember staring at the palm trees, cactus and mountains every time we went anywhere, even to the grocery store. I was in aw of this beautifully state and its natural diversity. Before moving to Arizona I can remember picturing desert everywhere with the lack of "real" trees. I honestly thought that there was just dirt and cactus everywhere. So you can imagine my thoughts when I took my first trip up north. Wow, they have grass and pine trees, it even snows in the winter. I was absolutely amazed by Arizona's natural beauty. Now, my husband on the other hand rarely, if at all, left his little neck of the desert in Phoenix - that is until he met me. I love to travel, that's what my family did, we traveled. So for me to have to stay in one spot was just plain unbearable. When my husband and I, before my son was born, started our little ventures, we would go to places such as Chandler and North Scottsdale. Until on day I had this bright idea to drive two hours north to Sedona. And thus our mini Arizona road trips were born.
The photos I have to share with you today were taken on one of those little road trips in November 2007. Most of them I took hanging out the car window while my husband drove so they may be slightly blurry in spots. I did my best in picking the best photos of the 300 I took, so I truly hope that you enjoy them. I can't be too specific as to the exact location of this photos because they were spur of the moment shots in the middle of the desert. I can tell you that they were taken approximately between 20 and 50 miles North East of Phoenix on highway AZ-87. Please enjoy my photos and comment where you see fil.