When one thinks of Arizona, they think of sand, heat, and cactus. All of that is accurate, except most people don’t realize that Desert Mountain in Scottsdale, Arizona, is located within the Sonoran Desert. The Sonoran Desert is a North American Desert that consists of 120,000 square miles and is in Arizona, California and the Mexican states of Sonora in Baja California and Baja California Sur.
Desert Mountain is located as far north in Scottsdale that one can travel and the altitude at the entry gate is close to 3,000 feet in altitude. The highest point above Chiricahua Golf Clubhouse is well over 4,000 feet.
This is a good thing in that the temperatures at Desert Mountain are cooler by 8 to 10 degrees compared to downtown Scottsdale and Phoenix. Residents of Desert Mountain live within a community that requires the residents to maintain and keep the indigenous plants of the Sonoran Desert around their homes. Walking one of the many trails and sidewalks within the community always provides a panoramic view of a myriad of cactus plants, wild flowers, and “critters” only found in the Sonoran Desert.
Once in a while, a storm comes through from the West or Southwest that brings unusually cold temperatures to Scottsdale. Those residing closer to downtown will have some ice and the occasional snow flake, but Desert Mountain will get covered with beautiful, pristine white snow.
My remembrances of snow at Desert Mountain include the delay of the senior golf tournament, The Tradition over ten years ago, and a wonderful blanketing of snow that lasted for two or three days in March of 2006. One of the biggest problems for the local authorities in 2006 was traffic control for the thousands of cars driving up from other parts of the Valley so people could see “real” snow. Many of them, especially children, had never seen snow in their lives.
I’m sharing some photos taken this morning, February 27, 2011, of the entrance to Desert Mountain and a very telling photo of the first green of Renegade golf course. Yes, there is a flagpole in place. Can you find it?
