Islands in the Sky: The Chiricahua Mountains

Rising out of the high desert in southwestern New Mexico and southeastern Arizona a series of north south trending mountain ranges form the basin and range province of the southwest.  The San Simon Valley straddling the Arizona New Mexico state line lies between the Chiricahua and Peloncillo mountains in the high desert at an elevation of approximately 4000'.  Isolated and remote the 330 square miles of the valley south of interstate 10 boasts only 3 paved roads but some of the most spectacular scenery around.  Throughout the changing seasons and with different light as the sun moves across the sky the views are constantly changing and something new can always be found just by looking up.  Below is a slideshow of the ever changing face of the Chiricahua Mountains as viewed from the San Simon Valley.