This week’s Photo Challenge is to celebrate Spring in photos. Sadly, here in Minnesota we have had the wettest April in 130 years and our Spring is very far behind. We don’t even have leaves on the trees yet nor do we have our gorgeous spring flowers. Instead of lamenting on how awful the last six months of weather has been here in the nordic Midwest, I thought I’d share some beautiful photos from our Spring break trip in early April to Tucson, Arizona.
Springtime in the desert is one of the most beautiful places to be. If you have never been to the Southwest before in the spring, it may sound ironic that spring inside a desert can be green. Yet Arizona experiences a beautiful, green spring with tons of rebirth, brilliant flowering plants, trees and cactus, and song birds from all over the place heading north for the summer. It is a wonderful time to visit Arizona.
Here are some of the lovely Spring photos I took during our recent visit to Tucson. You will see that it is the perfect time to visit!
Cactus are budding and blooming…
And flowers are blooming…
Flowering trees….
And fun times hiking, playing, horseback riding and enjoying spring in the desert…
Hike to Maiden Falls, Ventana trailhead
View of city of Tucson from the top.
Hike with Grandpa in Sabino Canyon
Visit to Reid Park Zoo, Max and Sophia
Feeding the giraffes at Reid Park Zoo.
Being silly after a winter cooped up indoors!
Sophia’s first time horseback riding!
Happy Trails!
Enjoy a picnic and hike in Sabino Canyon
It is hard to believe that it has already been a month since we’ve been back from Spring Break. We were sure hoping that we would finally get our share of beautiful spring weather here in Minnesota but not quite yet. Instead, I will daydream about spring and keep looking to the sky for some much needed sunshine!
Stay tuned…
This post was inspired by the Weekly Photo Challenge: Spring! To see more entries, click here.
I love the flowers, particularly the red one – I think flowering cacti are beautiful, spiky and pretty at the same time…
Thanks Melanie! 🙂
Your lovely photos warm me up. Another dump of snow forecast for us. Definitely no green trees yet. The desert flowers are so stunning!
Thanks! It is finally warming up here and will be 80 on Thursday. This is so Minnesota. One extreme to the other!
Sounds like Calgary 🙂
Oh you live in Calgary? Such a beautiful place! My husband and I went to Banff and Jasper and loved it so much. 🙂
Yes we are so lucky although the weather has it’s challenges 🙂
Wonderful photos… 🙂
Thank you!
Beautiful cactus through your lens! Love these beautiful cactus flowers!
Thanks Amy! I just love flowers and the cactus ones are so amazing!
We are having much the same kind of spring here in Ontario Canada as you are in Minnesota. No leaves yet, lots of rain.
I just love the Bougainvillea. Wish we were there.
Leslie
It has warmed up a little this week and Thursday will be 80 degrees. We have such extremes. Leaves are now starting to pop. Hope they do for you soon too! Living in the north is hard at times, isn’t it?
Yes the leaves are beginning to come out here too. This week is a little better here also. Just maybe we will get a nice summer.
Leslie
We normally get an amazing summer here and fall. That is our saving grace!!!
With global warming we were getting some 4-5 weeks of a moderate winter. Last winter it started in November and if you check some parts of Canada, they may still be getting some snow. It just won’t quite.
Leslie
So true. Where in Canada do you live?
We are in Mississauga, which is part of the (GTA) Great Toronto Area..
Leslie
I love Toronto! It is a great city!
Yes it is quite an interesting city now. Lots to do and lots to see.
Leslie
Lovely post and such beautiful photographs. We hope the weather improves in Minnesota soon and you get your Spring to enjoy!
Thanks! It is getting better now finally. Will be shorts and -t-shirt weather by Thursday. Such extremes in this place!
What a wonderful series of images. They made my morning.
Thanks Jo! 🙂 Arizona is very beautiful. I love it there in the springtime but any season is nice except summer is quite hot!
I bet summer is really hot. Not sure i would like it there in the summer. Too much heat does me in.
Yes summer can get to 115 degrees F! But the only saving grace is it is a dry heat so actually it is tolerable. I can’t stand humid hot heat! 🙂
I really like the beauty of cacti so thanks for sharing those. All the photos were very spring-y. In Chicago, we’re only a little way into spring but hopefully it will warm up soon. My grass, however, needs cutting very badly but it’s too wet right now. 🙂
janet
Thanks Janet! It is finally warming up here and I’m sure similar in Chicago. 80 by Thursday but thunderstorms! Can’t win can we?
This is so beautiful, thank you for sharing !
You’re welcome and glad you enjoyed! 🙂
Wondrous Spring images, Nicole Love the tortoise one with your two sweet children. 🙂 Hope you get some warmer weather soon. 🙂
Thanks! It is finally getting better slowly but surely. What a bad stretch of weather. Oh well.
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way kewl 🙂
Thanks!
Nothing more special in spring than blooming cacti! You brought back lots of great memories for me with your photos Nicole. Hope spring arrives for you very soon. 🙂
Thanks LuAnn! Spring is inching its way here now….finally!
Wonderful post! I wish here in Maryland the weather would allow me to plant different cactus, because I love them!
Thanks! 🙂
Wonderful photos, Nicole! I hope it starts to heat up soon!
Thanks…..spring is coming now….slowly but surely!!!
Oh, wow! Desert Spring is bursting with unique, colorful blooms. It’s like taking a peak into a magical world unknown to most of us. Thanks for taking us to this great adventure. Max and Sophia are growing up fast. Their Zoo trip is a lot of fun. All the best to you and your amazing family. Thanks for telling me about the popping ads from wordpress. It’s been annoying me too. I will have to check on it further or just stop the wordads all together.
Thanks! Yes the kids are growing up so fast, it is sad. That is why we need to enjoy each and every day right! As for the WordAds, I’m surprised they would put the ads on each image!!!! Crazy.
The Southwest is one of my favorite sanctuaries. Cactus are underrated plants. Their flowers are such wonders. It’s great that you introduced your children to the marvels of this part of our country.
Yes I just love the Southwest. I’m lucky that my parents have lived there for over 20 years so I’ve been there many many times and I always love it.