Desert SOUTHWEST (Phoenix, Vegas - and a little Chicago!)

[MayDay]

Mods, since most of the shots are of Phoenix, I figured this belongs in N-Z photos. I went to Phoenix/Scottsdale for a family event; my partner spent a few extra days with family and friends in Vegas; some photos were taken. Enjoy

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I'm usually able to only see Key Tower before takeoff, this time I saw Cleveland's four tallest:


PNC (Previously National City) Bank complex near West 150th:


Fairview Hospital and the Metroparks:


Due to lake effect clouds, not much of a view of downtown this time:


In case you needed a better description of lake effect clouds:


A peek at Cedar Point:


South Bend, Indiana:


Gary, Indiana (sorry if that results in a song stuck in your head):




We had a brief layover at Midway, so I was happy to at least get some nice Chicago shots:










Call me kooky, but I love seeing this patch on my trips to Phoenix - 1. from the air, it looks like a modern art piece on a mega scale (check google maps and the area where Kansas, Colorado, and Oklahoma meet) and 2. means we have less than an hour until Sky Harbor:


Speaking of Colorado, we saw some of the wildfires:


Not long after, we were in the Valley of the Sun:


Who'da thunk, the view of Papago Park and Camelback on the descent into Sky Harbor have become somewhat sentimental over the past few years:


We arrive at our hotel, the W Scottsdale:


View of the Scottsdale Waterfront complex from our room:


Apparently, there was a fashion show sponsored by Ferrari that night (we happily missed it but I knew some of you would like to see the vehicles )




Not far from the W are these nifty condos - huge terraces, lots of extensive and well-tended landscaping...






Old school Scottsdale:




New school "Snotsdale"


One thing Scottsdale does right are the funky/sculptural bus shelters that actually provide shelter from the elements. Cleveland gets the funky part, but not the functioning shelter part:


The peak of Camelback Mountain - one of these times, I'll hike to the top - not this time around, though.


Saw this hotrod and had to get a pic:


Lobby bar of the W:


Time to head to the family event in the Troon North area:






So okay, the views of the desert sunsets were alright








And uhh... a crescent "moonset"? The black silhouette is Camelback Mountain. One of many moments in my life where the photo simply does not begin to do justice. This was absolutely surreal:


Back to reality, Scottsdale-style
















Last night in town, view from our room:






Time for me to head out...


And pass the baton to my partner who took the rest of the shots in the thread during his trip to Vegas:

The Strip:


The newly-constructed City Center:




Paris casino and surroundings:


Back to City Center:








The Palms, west of the Strip:


Rio casino - also west (I think):


Back to City Center:




New York, New York:


Veer Towers at City Center:




And I end this thread with a welcome Hope you enjoyed!

[AusHou]

Beautiful set of photos!

In that second pic of Cleveland, you can see some great looking housing stock down below.

Those views of Chicago are exactly what I saw recently. Just amazing.

And I can never get enough of the Arizona landscape. I agree about Camelback and the park you mentioned.

[Centropolis]

That shot of the moon is great, and I love the desert.

[xzmattzx]

Great pictures! I particularly liked the desert sunset and night pictures, since I have never had a chance to go into a desert before.

[plinko]

You're making me homesick! Luckily I'll be there in about 10 days.

[volguus zildrohar]

Originally Posted by xzmattzx

Great pictures! I particularly liked the desert sunset and night pictures, since I have never had a chance to go into a desert before.

DO IT! I was in Vegas for a scant three days and was enamored with the desert we flew over than the city we were in. I need to get back.

Now I've got Camelback fever too, MayDay. Thank you.

[Leo the Dog]

Great shots of Scottsdale! I used to hike Camelback once a week, you should do it sometime, but bring water!

[stepper77]

The sunset shots are definitely the highlight. And lucky you to get a nice downtown shot of Phoenix from the plane. No matter how many times I've flown though that airport, I never manage to sit on the right side of the plane to get a good one. Great photos, thanks!

[xzmattzx]

Originally Posted by volguus zildrohar

DO IT! I was in Vegas for a scant three days and was enamored with the desert we flew over than the city we were in. I need to get back.

Now I've got Camelback fever too, MayDay. Thank you.

I want to. I've thought of renting a car and driving around Arizona at some point but I can't afford it right now. I'd love to see some of these random Western towns, ghost towns, and desert landscapes.

I too went to Las Vegas (twice), now 5 and 6 years ago, and I was so fascinated with seeing a desert for the first time from a plane (on my flight back the second time; other flights were at night) that I took a ton of pictures from the plane of random desert aerials. I put them up online and one of them was used in an AT&T commercial.

[Buckeye Native 001]

The desert shots are incredible