what cost?

Vulture Peak, Arizona

Vulture Peak has a special history for me. It’s a unique rock formation found in the middle of the desert, southwest of Wickenburg. There’s so much variety of rocks, minerals, vegetation, and animals that I could write a book about it! Not to mention the history of Henry Wickenburg, his Vulture Mine, and the settlement of the surrounding communities. It’s always been a diamond in the rough for hiking destinations- most people don’t want to head past Wickenburg for the hike. People who are entranced by tarantulas and Gila monsters and rare minerals know that it’s a gold mine of hiking destinations (pun intended)!

When my children and I first found Vulture Peak as a hiking trail in the early 2000’s, it wasn’t included in the regional park system. There was an outhouse, old-fashioned trail registry, and carved wooden sign. The parking lot was a small clearing in a huge dense jungle of spiky teddy bear cholla that emit a special glow during Golden Hour. It was fun to walk through to begin the hike. The hike is split into 3 sections- the first section includes a rambling trail amongst cactus, rolling hills of volcanic rock, and dry river beds, heading slowly up to the base of the peak. The second section is a series of switchbacks along the side of the volcanic peak, with increasing birds-eye views of the western side of the desert, ending at the saddle of the mountain. The third section concludes the hike with a quick straight shot up to the top of the peak, with 360* views of the desert. The boys actually hiked to the top of the mountain, and when we were done, we went to the Chamber of Commerce so they could get their Vulture Peak certificates of completion! The kids were very proud, and also very impressed with the train depot next to the city buildings. The city officials were floored by my 4-year-old’s achievement. We celebrated with burgers and fries at Screamer’s, a must-stop diner found at the outskirts of town.

I was so impressed with Vulture Peak that I’ve been back at least 20 times. It’s a great spot to bring out-of-town visitors, so I’ve brought friends, close/extended family, and even groups of my students (who were friends with my son). I’ve seen tarantulas, a Gila monster, a secret waterfall, and many vultures along the way. I’ve had two family members accuse me of trying to kill them from the strenuous stretch before reaching the saddle. The rest of the world caught onto this special place, and it was included in the regional park system. They improved the parking lot and included a copper fence, bench, and gazebo structure. But that was it, and although I met a few more people along the rambling trail, it wasn’t too overcrowded.

Last week I checked the Milky Way location/schedule, weather forecast for the week, and the timing of the moonrise, and realized that that night was possibly the best night for astrophotography for a while during the fickle monsoon season. I packed up my car and headed out at sunset. The drive up Hwy 60 was very calm, and I had great views of the desert sunset. Where was I going? Vulture Peak, of course! I was excited to see it under the stars, which was a bucket list item for me for decades. It’s far enough away from Wickenburg to get some good views of the astrological night sky.

I reached the turn-off from Vulture Mine Road as the last rays of the sun disappeared below the western horizon, and the sky settled into the blue hour of the Twilight Zone. And that’s when I felt I had truly entered the Twilight Zone. The road was closed, with large razor-wire security fences enclosing a menagerie of construction vehicles parked for the night. There was a large sign, stating that Vulture Peak was closed until April 2025 for the construction of a park/ campground. April 2025?! No Vulture Peak for 3 YEARS??? I was heartbroken. I wanted to scream, cry, rip out my hair. Plus I was immediately frustrated with wasting precious gasoline that night to not shoot the Milky Way. I parked the car to mull over what to do. The “No Trespassing” signs were taunting me.

I decided to try to get to the trail with another route. After getting out of the car, I packed up all my photography gear, backpack with plenty of water and flashlights, and proceeded around the security fencing, watching carefully for last-minute heat-soaking venomous reptiles. I found my way to the dirt road, and walked for a mile to get to the trailhead in the very last rays of daylight. That’s when the reality of what was happening became more real. The parking lot was gone, swallowed up by bull-dozed piles of the desert landscape, cactus and vegetation brutally ripped out into a large mound of desecration. It was hard to find the trail because the fence was gone, and so was the jungle of teddy bear cholla. It was shockingly surreal that in the name of improvement, so much of the unique landscape was blown away like an atomic bomb went off. I kept walking and found the trail, and it wasn’t touched… yet. I felt a little bit better.

As the dark blue skies ebbed into the inky blackness that reveals the galaxy and millions of twinkling diamonds overhead, I set up my gear to shoot the Milky Way. I am finally figuring it all out. It helped to be bedridden for a week with Covid in May- I spent many hours reading tutorials, watching videos, and listening to advice. I am not the best, but the challenge of improving is the lure for me. Astrophotography may be the most addictive hobby I’ve ever taken on. You KNOW what’s out there, and capturing it successfully as digital images is a blend of artistic talent, science, and math. Since I’m not great at 2 out of the 3, I just keep trying.

The tripod was ready, camera securely fastened, and I searched my bag for the intervalometer, which I carefully packed this evening. Then I realized in my blind rage of defying the No Trespassing signs, I left it in another bag. Only a mile away. Only… I sighed. This was my 3rd workout for the day, and I was bone-tired. It was already past my bedtime! I was emotionally spent. Dare I walk 2 more miles to get this device that will keep my camera from moving while holding the bulb open for 30 seconds? Ugh. I have steady hands! So I just held my breath every time I held the button down, and about 50% of the shots did work out. It was a gorgeous 2 hours under the countless collection of stars. There were many shooting stars, and as the night progressed, you can see wisps of the Milky Way with the naked eye. It was mostly peaceful, and then I received visitors. A family of screech owls perched along the cactus around me and screamed at me for the entire time. I must have been close to a nest, but I was not moving! They seemed to be okay with me there, but shared their locations every minute.

As I held my breath for 30 seconds for each shot, I thought about our planet, and how it’s slowly becoming more damaged and decayed every day. The pollution, increasingly dramatic climate change, melting glaciers/ icecaps, garbage in the oceans, and even the bulldozed area I walked by. Yes, it will have nice campsites and picnic tables, but will I be able to shoot the Milky Way there after they install the lights? Probably not. We keep trying to improve our lives by adding more and more, but at what cost? Maybe we should just enjoy what we have.