Taking the side streets

Taking the side streets: mountains

Phillip and I took a drive a couple weekends ago and ended up between South Mountain and the Sierra Estrellas.

We stopped for a minute to decide where to go next. I looked at the part of the Estrellas closest to us and asked how long it would take to get there. He guessed 30 minutes, and we decided to head that direction and find out.

Taking the side streets: mountains

But then Phillip spotted some some side streets he needed to explore. So we drove through this rural neighborhood, into the desert, past an abandoned building, and then we spotted a beautiful little church down a gravel driveway, just out there by itself. It was surrounded by a chain link fence, dirt parking lot on one side, mountains on the other.

Taking the side streets: water tower

We stepped out of the car. For a moment, it was intensely silent. Then this pickup truck full of laughing women drove by. They stopped just over the hill, where we couldn’t see them, but we could hear them talking and laughing and working on something.

Taking the side streets: Gila River church and mountains

We wondered about the church, all fenced in but not seeming abandoned. A little bird landed on top of the cross at the top of the sanctuary and decided to sing. We watched the light transform the mountains.

Taking the side streets: Gila River church and mountains

Taking the side streets:  mountains

Taking the side streets: church and mountains

We forgot about timing our drive to the mountain. Or actually getting there.

It’s funny how sometimes getting sidetracked leads you to a new destination.

Taking the side streets: Gila River church and mountains

3 Replies to “Taking the side streets”

  1. I love this post. The adventure behind it, the curiosity and the eye for your photography. SO great. That church is amazing. It looks like the backdrop in a future Kate Spade catalog!

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