I’ve been feeling extremely burned out lately. Writing these blog posts on past trips sort of helps me deal with the burnout a little better. It used to be easier for me to keep pushing through and hustling but ever since the pandemic started, I’ve been trying to focus a little more on self care and giving myself sufficient time to relax and recover. Nonetheless, the burnout is extremely real when it comes to finding balance between working a more-or-less full-time job, freelancing, and trying to live a little. So here it is - I’m taking a break from writing about local hikes in Washington - because I felt the need to catch up with places I went to during a road trip I did in October of last year.

Hyping myself up

I’ve been wanting to see saguaros for a while now but Arizona seems so far away whenever I’m planning a trip even though visiting Arizona has been on my bucket list. Aside from the saguaros, there wasn’t much I was excited about Arizona. All I know is that it’s hot and it’s dry. And nobody really cared about the pandemic down there. But I’ve always dreamed about seeing the saguaros so I was determined to head over there this time. I’ve visited Arizona many times growing up. I owe it to my dad that really enjoyed driving cross-country and taking the family everywhere. I didn’t know how to appreciate nature back then. But as I grew older, I find myself longing for simplicity and I began feeling the urge to get away from the city despite growing up in one of the world’s most densely populated cities. Fast forward to the present, I am determined to go experience the places I didn’t know how to appreciate back then.

Arizona had always been part of the itinerary for this 2.5-week long road trip. I planned on staying in Arizona for 2.5 days including the night spent in Sedona and perhaps doing some hikes in that area. But my friend decided that it was time for her to head back to the city. Nonetheless, Sedona was still in the books since we had already booked our Airbnb. But the plan was to spend half a day in Sedona exploring the area and driving into Phoenix the next day. That part didn’t change too much. After I dropped my friend off at the airport, I continued on. Now that I was doing what I was best at - solo traveling, I decided that I wanted to spend a little more time with the saguaros. So all the places I ended up visiting were related to saguaros. Unlike the red rocks in Utah, I didn’t get tired of them. I wanted to see even more of them. I couldn’t stay in Arizona forever though, although I would have been extremely happy if I was able to bring a saguaro back home with me.

As you can see, I am extremely well-organized (just kidding). But that’s as organized as I get when it comes to trip planning. I love using Notion to plan my trips because 1) I like the UI and 2) it’s easy to share the link to family and friends so they know my whereabouts. I think it’s extremely important to have an overview of where you will staying for the night and have that handy. It’s a way to keep your family and friends in the loop just in case something does happen. I basically pushed the plan of driving to Joshua Tree to a day later while I spend an extra night in Arizona.

First stop: Lost Dutchman State Park

Don’t be like me and try to visit Arizona in October. I can’t even begin to imagine what it’s like to visit in the height of summer. I thought the temperatures would be a little more forgiving but I was wrong. The daily high was still in the 100s and I was absolutely melting in the heat even though it was just dry heat. But humid heat or dry heat, I just don’t like heat in general. I was feeling ambitious when I got to Lost Dutchman State Park. I initially planned on camping here but I was glad I didn’t because I couldn’t imagine trying to sleep in a tent out in the desert even though I end up doing that when I was in Death Valley a few days later.

I attempted to hike the Siphon Draw Trail but due to the heat, I turned around. I’m not a huge fan of bright sunlight either because I don’t have UV or CPL filter for my lens yet. I really should invest in one of those. I obviously didn’t quite enjoy the heat so I snapped a few pictures and decided to explore the rest of the area in the comfort of my car. I probably should’ve listened to the ranger that was manning the entrance because she advised all visitors to potentially visit the park at a later time. Due to time constraints, I didn’t really have the option to come back later as I had plans to take a leisure stroll at the Desert Botanical Gardens.

Lost Dutchman State Park

Seasons: Park is open year-round
Camping Fee: $25 to $35 for a campsite, $15 for a second vehicle
Number of Sites: 134 with picnic tables and grills!
Park Entrance Fee: $7 per vehicle

Please follow CDC guidelines and park rules when visiting as we are still very much in a pandemic.

Second Stop: Desert Botanical Gardens

I’ve been eyeing the Desert Botanical Gardens for a while now. I first learned about the place when one of the girls I follow on Instagram visited this place a while back. I thought it was super interesting because I essentially get to see a lot of the different cacti species all in one spot. When I was doing research on the place, I also knew they had some of art installation going on. I knew I had to see this place for myself. I learned my lesson from the heat in the morning but I also was planning to head over here after a Zoom call I had with my mentor. So when I reserved tickets online, I decided that coming to the gardens during the late afternoon would be my best bet. Obviously, it was still in the middle of October so the sun set pretty early. I only wish I had more time to take my time walking around the garden. The temperatures have definitely cooled down and it made the walk a lot better than the hike I attempted during the day. It was nice to see all the different species while also enjoying the animal installations that were situated right in the middle of the cacti and plants.

Prior to entering the botanical gardens, you are welcomed by an army of meerkats.

By the time I made to the ‘saguaro mountain’, the sun was starting to set and it was setting fast too. Even though a lot of the art installations lit up at night, none of the actual pathways were really lit. It was also a little sad to see a lot of the popular spots were blocked off due to the pandemic. Heading towards the mountains of saguaro was the closest encounter I had with the saguaro that night. But it made me even more determined to go visit Saguaro National Park the next day.

The art installations coupled with the cacti really reminded me of Wild Lights at the Woodland Park Zoo. I worked there for 5 years so it was always free admission for me and it was always enjoyable to walk past the lit up installations. The ones at the botanical gardens were a little different. Instead of string lights, they were actually acrylic installations. I have to admit some of them look fairly creepy at night and I wasn’t expecting to see 12 penguins or 12 wolves in a row but that was exactly what happened.

All in all, I really enjoyed experiencing something that was more relaxing. I didn’t run into a whole lot of people either. Since I was in Arizona, I was happy to not have run into anybody because nobody seemed to really care about the pandemic. After visiting the botanical gardens, I attempted to order takeout from a local Thai restaurant only to find out that they were closed on the day I was in Phoenix. Feeling a little discouraged, I decided that I was going to treat myself with sushi since I knew I was going to be camping for the remainder of the week. I better fill my belly with something good before I am stuck with tuna packets and tortillas.

Sunset at the Garden

I personally would try to visit the gardens either early in the morning or during sunset. I have no sense of direction so I just follow wherever the sun takes me. I wanted to make sure that I was able to take photos of these cacti as the sun was setting. I wouldn’t say I timed it perfectly but I was at least able to catch the last light of the day. I’m still learning a lot about how to take better photographs in low-light situations and these were the ones that turned out pretty okay.

I feel like desert sunsets are really something else. Staying in the lowland deserts meant that I didn’t have to worry about racing against daylight to get back to the trailhead or my car and that really gave me the opportunity to just stare at the sky as it turned into violent shades of blues clashing with reds and oranges.

Desert Botanical Gardens

Tickets: $29.95 for Adults (requires advance reservations)
Hours: 8am to 8:30pm (winter hours)
Trails: There are many loops that can be done in the gardens, check the website for updated information.

Stay tuned for a follow-up post dedicated to Saguaro National Park. I know I hyped myself up way too much prior seeing the saguaros but they definitely did not disappoint. I do wish that I visited Arizona during the cooler months and have more days spent in the area to do even more trails. If I could do this again, I would definitely want to spend a day or two in Sedona and spend more time on hiking trails near the Phoenix area as the Superstition Mountains are known to have some amazing trails and views 🌵

Exploring Phoenix