Photo: Rain runoff through McCormick Ranch Golf Course

The Indian Bend Wash flood control project runs the length of Scottsdale, with a greenbelt of parks, bike trails, and golf courses.  The Wash is dry except for a few days each year after a hard desert thunderstorm.

The McCormick Ranch Golf Course is just upstream from the horse statues that I showed the last two days.  This is a photo of rain runoff water streaming through the middle of the golf course just after the rain storm last Sunday.

Parts of our Valley of the Sun received as much as 2 inches of rain in less than one hour.  We receive only 7 inches or rain per hear, and the broad, flat Valley experiences water runoff problems for an hour or two after the sudden, intense sumer thunderstorms.  The green belt is such a better solution to flood control than the concrete ditches that they have in Los Angeles, which Scottsdale refused to allow in Scottsdale and used a greenbelt approach to flood control instead.

This week we are showing photos of Cabra Castle, a castle-hotel northwest of Dublin, Ireland, on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Photo: Egret at McCormick Lake

Here is a photo of a majestic, elegant great egret at McCormick Ranch Lake in Scottsdale.  It is late afternoon and there is a hint of the colors of the sun in the water.

I like reflection shots.

This week we have photos of the architecture of ancient Cambodia posted on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Photo: Poetry of Ducks and Sunset

Here is a photo of ducks at sunset at McCormick Ranch Lake.

Such a wonderful scene to experience.

We have new travel photos posted at Viva la Voyage from our wonderful trip to Buddhist Bhutan in the Himalayas.

Photo: Ducks at Sunset

Here is a photo with the last sunlight reflecting on the water with these lovely ducks gracing the path.

Indian Bend Wash and McCormick Ranch are full of lovely scenes like this. So go take a walk before it gets too hot!

Today is Sunday and we have new travel photos posted at Viva la Voyage.  This week we are sharing photos of Bhutan, which is in the Himalayas next to Tibet and located between India and China.

Photo: McCormick Ranch lake, apartments and Camelback Mountain

Camelback Mountain is visible from virtually all of Scottsdale and from much of the Phoenix metropolitan area.  In this photo, Camelback is visible on the horizon, across this lake that is part of the chain of lakes in the greenbelt that runs through McCormick Ranch.

My mother lives along the Indian Bend Wash greenbelt that runs the length of Scottsdale.  We can ride bicycles from the area next to her patio home all the way up to McCormick Ranch, about 5 miles away, and beyond.  We can also ride more than 5 miles in the other direction, south down the greenbelt past central Scottsdale towards Tempe Town Lake and Arizona State University.

This week we have photos of Peggy's Cove in Nova Scotia on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Photo: McCormick Ranch lake, golf and houses

Here is another photo of the ambiance for the houses in McCormick Ranch, with golf courses, lakes, bike trails and other community amenities running throughout the master planned community.

McCormick Ranch was the last large cattle ranch within the City of Scottsdale. In 1970 the family sold 4,236 acres (1714 hectares) for a master planned community to Kaiser-Aetna. With the concurrence of the City of Scottsdale, the City Planner was hired by the developers to plan this lovely community.

The McCormick family also donated 100 acres of land to the City, which became McCormick Stillman Railroad Park, with old train cars on display and small trains that ride around the park.

We have photos of the stark landscape of the Atacama Desert of northern Chile this week on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Photo: Duck family

An advantage of living on a lake is the opportunity to enjoy observing the water fowl, which is something that you would not ordinarily expect in the middle of the Arizona desert. Scottsdale has a series of lakes and ponds running the length of the original city limits.

The Indian Bend Wash green belt provides pleasant hiking and bike trails and golf courses along what was originally proposed to be a big concrete drainage ditch like they have in Los Angeles. Thank goodness Scottsdale had the foresight to insist upon a natural greenbelt.

We have photos of Chicago during different lighting conditions this week on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Photo: McCormick Ranch Lake and Golf

After the long series of photos of the mine and desert jeep trail that I have shown recently, I think it is time to rest the eyes on a relaxing Scottsdale scene of a lake, palm trees, and a golf course. If you lived in one of the patio homes on the right, this would be your view every afternoon.

McCormick Ranch is a masterplanned community on the site of the former ranch purchased by the McCormick family in the mid 194o's. The original purchaser was the grandson of the inventor of the McCormick reaper. The McCormick family bought the ranch as a winter home, as they also owned homes in Quebec; Pleasantville, New York; a farm in Illinois; an apartment in Chicago; and a villa on the French Riviera.

I will share some more information about McCormick Ranch in the future.

We have photos of Chicago during different lighting conditions this week on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Photo: Fore!

Scottsdale has many lovely golf courses.

Here is a photo of one hole at the McCormick Ranch Golf Course.

Check out our new photos of the Wonders of Egypt at our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Photo: Colorful Sky Over the Water

Here are some interesting sunset colors.

The reflection on the water adds some drama as well.

Check out our new photos of the Wonders of Egypt at our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Photo: Wedding on McCormick Ranch Lake

Here is a photo I took just before the wedding was occurring at sunset at McCormick Ranch Lake.

A beautiful night it turned out for the lucky couple.

Check out our new photos of the Wonders of Egypt at our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Photo: Reflection on the Water

Here is a photo of a late afternoon reflection on McCormick Ranch Lake.

I have been trying to capture a lot of reflection shots lately.

The windows on this office building were very clean and shiny.

Enjoy some of our travel photos of the Patterns of Tanzania at our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Photo: Heron Hiding in the Tree

Here is a smaller heron hiding in the trees at McCormick Ranch Park.

We have a lot of birds along the green belt in Scottsdale.

Many are migratory birds. Some people would not believe we have so many birds even though we live in the desert.

Enjoy some of our travel photos of the Patterns of Tanzania at our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Photo: Boat Dock on McCormick Ranch Lake

Here is a boat dock and a sunset on McCormick Ranch Lake.

We do not have many lakes in the desert and the majority are made by people.

Happy Sunday!

Today is travel Sunday so enjoy some of our travel photos of the Patterns of Tanzania at our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Photo: Sunset at McCormick Ranch

Happy Friday!

Here is a photo of a sunset at McCormick Ranch Lake.

The birds are enjoying the last rays of daylight.

Enjoy critters and plants of Cape Breton Island at our Viva la Voyagetravel photo site.

Photo: Two Palms Against the Blue Sky

Happy Thursday!

Here is a photo of two tall, intertwined palms against the vibrant blue sky that are on a golf course at McCormick Ranch in Scottsdale.

Enjoy critters and plants of Cape Breton Island at our Viva la Voyagetravel photo site.

Photo: Sunset over Mummy Mountain

This is a photo of the sunset over Mummy Mountain, viewed from across the north end of McCormick Ranch lake. This is a typical, clear desert sky.

I have a confession to make. My husband took this photo. I have been out of town on lots of trips lately, mostly for business, so Dave went out and took a few photos for me.

However, the story behind the photo is more interesting than the photo. Dave remained and took some more photos as it was getting dark. When he finished, he looked down to get his glasses from his shirt collar, as he can't see through the cameral view finder with his glasses. His glasses were gone.

Dave then had to look for his glasses, in the dark, without his glasses. He crawled around on the shore of the lake on his hands and knees feeling for his glasses, where hundreds of geese walk around and leave behind, well, you know.

Dave and my mother went back at sunrise the next morning and my mother's dog found the glasses. They were new glasses that cost $600, so Dave was quite appreciative. After Dave went to all of that effort, I certainly had to post the photo that he took.

Today is Sunday, so we have new photos on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site. This week we are returning to the Atacama Desert of northern Chile to show more of the mountains. This is a unique area of volcanoes and the Andes mountains in the driest desert on earth. With all of the publicity about a little more than one year ago with the miraculous rescue of the Chilean miners in the Atacama, you should come visit our site to see how harsh the conditions can be.

Photo: McCormick Ranch Lake

This photo shows a view down McCormick Ranch Lake. This is a large lake. To me, it looks more like Florida, not Arizona.

Former Arizona Governor Bruce Babbitt, who later ran for President and was Secretary of the Interior under President Clinton, caused Arizona to enact pioneering laws in the early to 1980's prohibit developers from using groundwater for decorative lakes and ponds.

McCormick Ranch was a 4,200 acre horse ranch that was developed by Kaiser-Aetna into a master-planned community in the 1970's, with lots of hiking and biking trails lacing through the beautifully landscaped neighborhoods. And, yes, they have lots of lakes to make the 25,000 residents feel like they are not in the desert.

This week we are showing photos of the fall colors in Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia, Canada, on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Last light reflections on McCormick Ranch Office & Lake

This is another photo of the office building on McCormick Ranch lake catching the last rays of the sun.

We have a lot of Spanish colonial architecture in Scottsdale and throughout the Phoenix metro area. And, yes, there is an irony that many people support building a wall to keep out people from south of the border, yet we love the romance of architecture from south of the border.

This office building is the headquarters of Forever Living Products, which is a multi-level marketing company that sells aloe vera products. The building also houses some investment businesses.

This week we are showing photos of the fall colors in Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia, Canada, on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Photo: Great Egret and Reflection of the Mooon

This is a closer photo of the great egret that I showed in yesterday's photo. I moved in for a closer shot and lined up the reflection of the moon with his beak, but there were enough ripples in the water to interfere with the round shape of the moon. I nevertheless liked the white accent of the moon with the white egret.

This week we are showing photos of Canadian Thanksgiving on Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.