Chasing iridescent and irresistibly charming hummingbirds is best done in the canyons of southeastern Arizona’s mountains from April to August.
Natalie Burt

Natalie Burt, a former news reporter at the Review-Journal for 11 years, spends as much of her free time as possible enjoying Southern Nevada’s outdoors. She’s now a teacher and has lived in Henderson for 17 years.
April kicks off the reemergence of desert reptiles. Among the easier species to spot are side-blotched lizards, zebra tails, yellow-backed spiny lizards, and chuckwallas.
For wildflower chasers, March, April and May mean bursts of magnificent color from seemingly mundane plants in the Mojave Desert.
History and nature draws visitors to tranquil Spring Mountain Ranch State Park
Hiking opportunities on the Nevada side of Lake Tahoe are plentiful, varied and often come with stunning views of Big Blue.
Summer in Cedar City lets you pair Shakespeare’s plays with plenty of walking and hiking opportunities in the cooler mountain air.
A two-hour drive from Las Vegas, Hualapai Mountain Park also features cozy cabins for getting away from it all.
Flashes of spring color can be spotted now at Corn Creek in the Desert National Wildlife Refuge, where vibrant winged visitors might include the blue grosbeak, Townsend’s warbler and summer tanager.
The trail’s star attraction is a narrow slot canyon that gets its name from the heart-faced barn owls that occasionally have roosted there.
Sunset Park is a hospitable spot for critters in an otherwise harsh environment, and an open-air escape for people that nurtures an appreciation of wildlife and history.
The physical closure to the public of Henderson’s four libraries has forced some of us to branch out and become more virtual in our library habits. There has been a silver lining.
Bicycles and running shoes shouldn’t be relegated to garages for the next 3½ months of our Hades-like temperatures. They just need to be let outdoors at the proper times.
Absent a “shelter-in-place” order, taking walks, going on hikes and riding bikes remain permissible, and there was plenty of evidence this week of people doing just those things.
Henderson has plenty of in-city walking choices, including a network of paved paths branching within and outside the driving loop through Seven Hills neighborhoods.
Ethel M has been introduced to my late grandmothers, my friends from Alaska and, recently, my 18-month-old niece, who was bedazzled by its more than 1 million cactus garden holiday lights.