Saguaro Lake in late July 2010

In late July, when the monsoon storms are certainly approaching, there is no place to hide from the heat. Even when you see massive thunder clouds surrounding the greater Phoenix area, somehow or another, the sun always wins out.I think the heat island effect is certainly a part of it. Everywhere else it is raining; Flagstaff, and Tucson, is getting rip roaring floods and Phoenix, nada. Well, today, we got about 5 minutes of an afternoon spit around 6:30pm.
So..the other day I really needed a break. My friend, Jacques, is here from Holland, and will be leaving early next week. I wanted to show him my adopted state of AZ in different climates. We went to the Grand Canyon in December, and it was covered with snow. That was a cold December day..nice thought right now since it's still 100 degrees at 8:30 pm. I told my friend, Elsbeth, his girl, that we should go to Saguaro Lake and have a picnic. Not that Saguaro Lake was going to be a chill place to be,but because being by water, and viewing the massive gorges and wildlife, was going to soothe the eyes, and somehow feel cooler..
It is so pretty at Saguaro Lake. Of course, there are tons of Saguaros, but the wildlife was interesting too. We found a huge Mesquite Tree to shade us while on the sandy shore of the lake. Many squirrels, ducks, and fish were seen right at the water's edge. I guess they needed cool water near by to indulge in.
As we were leaving the lake, I noticed a sign for a road prior to the boat ramp area we were in. So, I took that road for about 3 miles, and it was very isolated, but what did I find? I found a beach area and lots of trees, and only a few people floating on the lake, and most just sitting on their chairs, half in the lake, and half out of it. Next time I go to Saguaro, that is where I'm going to float down the lake..