Reviving an Interest in the Winter Southwest

Years ago I used to like this sort of Southwestern scenery:

 But a person's tastes can change over time.  Now I want to see more life and less rock.  I yearn for rich topsoil, green leaves, bunnies disporting across a forest meadow, and maybe even a young shepherdess with long and lustrous hair blowing in a gentle breeze.  

Who knows how much of my initial interest was just an imitation of snowbirds who come to Arizona to escape the damp dark icy weather of the north.  They aren't doing anything wrong, considering where they are coming from.  But their needs are different than mine.

And yet I might be able to extend an interest in the Southwest by shifting to colder locations.  If nothing else, the camping will be less crowded.  But there might be even more to gain.

It takes some effort to go for a walk right at sunrise.  But imagine how heavenly it can be it there is no wind!  Granted, the chilliness seems a little alarming when you start off.  You can imagine a crunchiness to the ground that probably isn't there;  but your mind is imagining crunchy snow or ice.  But it doesn't take long for the mere act of walking to warm you up.  It is a good thing to do more more walking in the winter, lest you wear out your interest in mountain biking. 

The winter world is so clean!  Absolutely bug-free.  No rattlesnakes or creepie-crawlies.  My little dog explodes with enthusiasm.  Call me simple-minded if you wish, but I never get tired of exploring arroyos; and the word "exploring" is honest here because the internet is not telling me exactly what I am going to find.  I always try to make a loop out of the walk.

There is a perfect moment when the sun is just a couple fingers above the horizon, and your dark winter parka is exactly perpendicular to the rays of the sun, and you can just barely feel the warmth, while at the same time feeling your chilly numb fingers.

There is virtually no chance of running into a "winter visitor."  I don't say that because they are 'evil' or something.  There are just so many of them and they are so predictable in their bourgeois stereotypes.

The telephoto lens makes the reef look 100 yards behind my camper.  In fact, it is a mile away.