Since I was twelve years old, I have always wanted to go to the White Mountains in northeastern Arizona, USA Whether it was for scenic hikes, birding, photography, or just cool weather, there were so many things that enticed me to visit this special place.
In August 2020, I finally had the chance to take this long-awaited trip. While our family had originally planned to go to Olympic National Park in Washington State this summer, due to COVID-19 we switched our focus and spent five days exploring all of the treasures found in the White Mountains. My family consists of my dad, who supports my photography and is a creation-lover like myself; my mom, who loves hiking, being outdoors, and always makes sure I eat enough (as I tend to forget to when I’m focused on photographing wildlife), and my brothers who also enjoy being out in creation, and although they are generally against waking up at dawn they are great to have along and have found many cool animals and birds over the past couple years.
The White Mountains of Arizona cover approximately 5, 015 square miles (1,298,879 hectares). They are owned under three types of land: State Land, National forest Land and Native Land. And while you need to acquire special permits for hiking on Native Land, I found that there is plenty to explore without going on the reservation. At the highest point (Mt. Baldy), the elevation reaches 11,421 feet (3,481 meters), the second highest in the state. This mountain range boasts the best opportunities for finding high elevation bird species in Arizona, such as Dusky Grouse (Dendragapus obscurus), American Dipper (Cinclus mexicanus), Pine Grosbeak (Pinicola enucleator), American Three-toed Woodpecker (Picoides dorsalis), Gray Catbird (Dumetella carolinensis), Canada Jay (Perisoreus canadensis) and Clark’s Nutcracker (Nucifraga columbiana). This range is also an important refueling area for migrating hummingbirds in late summer. There are nearly forty lakes and reservoirs in this region which provide vital stopover and wintering locations for many species of waterfowl and shorebirds.
Because of its high elevation, this area has not only stunning fauna but exquisite flora. Quaking Aspen (Populus tremuloides), with their white trunks create a wonderful contrast with many species of pine and conifers. The creeks are lined with lush green grass and willows in summer, while in autumn, the aspen foliage turns a shimmering gold color that is incredibly striking. Although some of the area is fire-scathed from the 2011 Wallow fire which encompassed 469,407 acres (190,109,835 hectares), it is still ruggedly beautiful. Additional tree species include Quaking Aspen (Populus tremuloides), Ponderosa Pine (Pinus ponderosa), Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii), White fir (Abies concolor) and many others. The true splendor of this area is realized when hiking the Mt. Baldy No. 94 trail.
This scenic 16-mile round trip hike follows the Little Colorado river and climbs about 2,000 feet (610 meters), from around 9,200 feet (2804 meters) to 11,200 feet (3414 meters), as it winds its way through corridors of aspen and conifers as well as open meadows filled with wildflowers. It is a spectacular and picturesque hike, arguably one of Arizona’s most beautiful. We started the hike at 6:50 am and hiked for four hours to the end of the West Baldy Trail which was about two hundred feet from the summit. Because the land at the summit is owned by the White Mountain Apache tribe this area cannot be accessed without a special permit.
One of my target birds for the trip that I wanted to photograph was the elusive Dusky Grouse (D. obscurus). This large gallinaceous bird is seldom seen though highly sought after. I was lucky enough to find a pair along the trail, and once found these grouse are quite tame, which allowed me to make some nice photos. I also found a pair of American Three-toed Woodpeckers ((P. dorsalis), two American Dippers (C. mexicanus), four Canada Jays (P. canadensis), and many more. The Canada Jays (P. canadensis) were particularly photogenic because of their habit of hanging around people for handouts. These jays are also gregarious; they travel in groups of four to six making them much easier to locate. Nevertheless, Canada Jays (P. canadensis) are an exquisite, inquisitive, high-elevation specialty species.
The American Dippers on the other hand were quite skittish, not allowing close approach. Over the course of about half an hour with plenty of patience and stealth however, they gradually became used to me crawling up to them on my stomach. Consequently, I obtained some very pleasing images. Along the Baldy Trail there were also numerous active chipmunks, squirrels, and a pair of Mule Deer (Odocoileus hemionus) that posed for me. It rained the entire hike back; the rain was both a blessing and a curse. We were soaked to the skin and quite cold, but on the other hand lots of birds and animals became more active during the rain and I was able to get a cool shot of a male Western Tanager. I had an amazing time hiking this wonderful trail!
On one of our days in the White Mountains we decided to explore Sipe White Mountain Wildlife Area. Sipe is one of many wildlife areas well-managed by the Game and Fish Department. This area is a major migration stopover for hummingbirds. Sipe lies near the foothills of Escudilla Mountain where one of Arizona’s last known Grizzly Bears (Ursus arctos horribilis), a large boar named “Old Bigfoot” was killed.
While we were at Sipe, I tallied at least 120 individual hummingbirds. There were four different species: Rufous Hummingbird (Selasphorus rufus) by far the most abundant and aggressive, Black-chinned Hummingbird (Archilochus alexandri) (there were only a few individuals of this species as we were there before the bulk of the Black-chinneds rolled in), Calliope Hummingbird (Selasphorus calliope) (the smallest hummingbird in North America), and Broad-tailed Hummingbird (Selasphorus platycercus) (a hummingbird with a large tail and distinctive wing trill).
It was a surreal experience watching and listening to dozens of hummingbirds at any one time flying around and competing for a place at the feeders. It was like a swarm of bees! For a time, I just watched these wonderfully designed little creatures, captivated by their incredible flight maneuvers and fiery dispositions. I then began taking photos of these flying jewels focusing especially on the striking male Rufous and Calliope Hummingbirds (S. rufus) and (S. calliope) respectively. The occasional cloud cover made for the perfect conditions for photographing them. Cloud cover diffuses the light and sends it in all directions thus illuminating the male hummingbird’s gorget from all sides. Although the hummingbirds were very busy feeding, I was able to photograph some that held still for a couple seconds.
Another draw to Sipe Wildlife Area was the chance to see Pronghorn Antelope (Antilocapra americana), the fastest mammal in North America. Although this time we failed to find any pronghorn, we did see a large herd of Rocky Mountain Elk (Cervus elaphus nelsoni) and I am hopeful that next time we will find some pronghorn. During our time at Sipe, I recorded fifty-four species of birds including Peregrine Falcon (Falco peregrinus), Willow Flycatcher (Empidonax traillii), Lazuli Bunting (Passerina amoena), and Barn Swallow (Hirundo rustica).
My family and I also explored the three miles or so of expansive forest similar to Mt. Baldy behind the place where we camped. In this area I found yet another pair of Dusky Grouse (D. obscurus), this pair being even more photographically cooperative than the first. The female grouse allowed me to get within eight feet before calmly walking away! (I know this because the minimum focus distance on the lens I was using is eight feet and could not focus on her)! This goes to show that while these grouse may be difficult to find, if you’re patient and spend enough time in their preferred habitat, you will inevitably run into them. This beautiful area also yielded a breeding pair of Green-tailed Towhees (Pipilo chlorurus) which were busy feeding fledglings, a family of Cordilleran Flycatchers (Empidonax occidentalis), and many Mountain Chickadees (Poecile gambeli). Other photographic opportunities that I had in this area were rabbits, chipmunks, squirrels, horny toads, tiger beetles, and Mule Deer (Odocoileus hemionus). I also set up a hummingbird feeder and succeeded in attracting Rufous, Calliope, and Broad-tailed Hummingbirds (S. rufus, S. calliope, and S. platycercus respectively)to it. This allowed me to photograph the speedy hummers right in our campsite.
Adding to this already stellar adventure, we spent time on Rainbow Lake near the Pinetop/Lakeside area of Arizona. This privately owned lake is unique because its muddy shoreline is especially appealing to numerous migrating shorebirds. Each morning of our stay, I packed my camera and binoculars in my dry bag and headed out on the lake at sunrise in a kayak, searching for water birds to photograph. Being in a kayak allowed me to glide up to shorebirds silently and at eye-level. I have noticed that shorebirds are much less wary of approach from water than by land. This allowed me to get incredibly close to some usually skittish species such as Long-billed Dowitcher (Limnodromus scolopaceus) and Semipalmated Plover (Charadrius semipalmatus). Other species that I was able to photograph were Osprey (Pandion haliaetus), Neotropic Cormorant (Phalacrocorax brasilianus) and Virginia’s Warbler (Leiothlypis virginiae). Photographing Osprey is especially interesting–watching them dive into the water to capture a fish and then seeing them shake off the water is an awesome experience. Osprey are not the only fish-loving birds at this lake. Other visitors whose main diet is fish are cormorants (Neotropic and Double-crested), Great Blue Herons (Ardea herodias), Green Herons (Butorides virescens), and Belted Kingfishers (Megaceryle alcyon). Like all trips it felt like this one went way too fast. All to soon it was time to pack up and make the four-hour drive back home and leave the cool mountains for the 110-degree temps (43 degrees Celsius) of the Sonoran Desert we call home. Our family had a wonderful time hiking, exploring, and photographing this wonderful mountain range–the White Mountains of Arizona. One thing is for sure, we will be back.