Reading and Rambling

Books read: Germinal by Emile Zola Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adiche A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess Gilead by Mailynne Robinson The House of the Spirits by Isabel Allende Trails walked: Superstitions Black Top Mesa (Feb 8 th ) Superstitions Charlebois Springs 17-mile loop (Feb 13 th ) Camp Creek Falls (Feb 17 th ) White Tanks Ford Canyon Willow Canyon Loop (Feb 19 th ) McDowell Sonoran Preserve North (Feb 26 th Granite/Cholla loop).    McDowells Tom’s Thumb/Windgate Pass/East End Loop (Feb 28 th ) Other stuff: Valley of the Snow drive (Feb 22 nd ) I sure did walk and read a lot for such a short month.    February is just about the best time of year to walk in the desert, especially if there have been good rains during the fall and winter, and there have been this year.     On February 21 st and 22 nd we had epic snow in the deserts around Phoenix.   Even the McDowell Mountains in northeast Scottsdal...

Books Read: Men Without Women by Haruki Murakami Killing Commendatore by Haruki Murakami To the Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf The House of Mirth by Edith Wharton Becoming by Michelle Obama The Satanic Verses by Salmon Rushdie Trails Walked: Superstitions La Barge Box Battleship Saddle loop (Jan 10 th ) with daughter and dog Superstitions Weaver’s Needle Loop from Peralta Trailhead (Jan 17 th ) Skyline Regional Park Pyrite Summit Loop (Jan 23 rd ) Cave Creek Trail #4 from 7 Springs to Spur Cross (Jan 30 th ) Welcome to 2019!   The 100 th anniversary of Grand Canyon National Park!   I plan to get up there this year to at least procure some 100 th anniversary gear.   We are so lucky to be able to live in a state with places as magical as the Grand Canyon.   I started my 2019 reading list with two books by one of my favorite authors, Haruki Murakami.   My son introduced me to him a few years ago by giving me The Wind-Up Bird C...