Low Temperature Rain = Snow @ Elevation?!
Imagine our surprise to see snow on the peaks of the Superstition Mountains as we left the Park for a hike after the sun came out on New Year's morning. What were we thinking? that we were in the sunny south?! there's no snow here....
We decided to take a hike from "Needle View" trailhead just east of here. Even though the temps were still in the low 40sF/~5C, the sky was clearing and the wind was calm. So, we had a great walk on the desert looking to spy a central Arizona landmark, Weaver's Needle*. While you can catch glimpses of this rock from many locations, today's hike brought the closest view we have ever had and the tip was covered with snow.
Cellphone photo at a distance
(Rose Lynn left the camera at home😒)
It seems that lots of people were taking a drive to see this novelty; there was a solid line of outbound traffic as we returned to town. They would be rewarded as there were lots of snowy scenes to be photographed.
*Weaver's Needle, named for Army scout and mountain man Pauline Weaver, is one of the all-time landmarks of central Arizona. It was even cited by legendary Lost Dutchman Jacob Waltz as one of the locator marks for his (yet to be rediscovered) gold mine. It can be seen for miles and miles, rising over the mountains just east of Phoenix.
The peak is the remnant of a huge stack of fused volcanic ash that eroded to form the pinnacle. The summit elevation is 4,555 feet (1,388 m).
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