Monday, March 26, 2012

Winter's Last Gasp at the Grand Canyon

Winter has been almost non-existent in the state of Arizona this year. Granted, Arizona is hardly known for its wintry weather, but the high country in the northern half of the state usually gets its fair share of the white stuff. Well, not this year. After a couple of decent storms before the holidays, a warm and dry pattern set in that pretty much lasted through the entire season. Temperatures remained warm enough that the wildflower bloom (what there was of it) began in February in the southern deserts...much earlier than usual...while the ski areas to the north struggled to remain operational.

February poppies in the Superstition Mountains east of Phoenix

Well all that changed when, on the last two days of the official winter season, mother nature decided to throw a doozy of a storm at the state. This resulted in lots of badly needed rain in the lower elevation deserts, while the northern half of the state got nailed with a good ol' fashion snowstorm. It was about freakin' time!