Gilbert is one of the very nice towns within the Phoenix metropolitan area. One reason I like it is because of the Gilbert Water Ranch, where processed waste water is used to form multiple ponds that attract birds and other wildlife. With six or seven large ponds, hiking around all of them in one day is beyond me, so I chose a trail around two or three ponds. Each pond seems to attract somewhat different varieties, though I have no idea why. Here are some of my results from the most recent visit.
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| Female Ring-necked Duck |
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| Gambel's Quail |
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| Eurasian Collared Dove |
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| Verdin |
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| Anna's Hummingbird |
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| Chipping Sparrow |
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| Great Egret |
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| Killdeer |
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| Sandpiper |
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| Curved-bill Thrasher |
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| European Starling |
The park also has an abundance of bunny rabbits hopping all over the place.
Another reason to visit Gilbert is the Mormon Temple located there, one of five in Arizona and one of three in the Phoenix area. Along with the Gila ValleyTemple (see travelogue
Globe, Central and Huachuca City, AZ), it is one of the newer temples, opening in 2014. Until now, I had no idea there were enough Mormons in Arizona to warrant five temples, yet a sixth one is under construction in Tucson.
My plan was to arrive a little before sunset, get photos of the building and grounds during daylight, then hope for a colorful sunset behind the temple. Unfortunately, sunset fizzled that night, so I came back the next evening when the sunset was somewhat better.
As usual, the building has dramatic architecture, including a tall (in this case, 185 foot) steeple with the golden angel Moroni on top. The building itself is 85 feet tall, requiring an exception to the city's 45 foot height restriction.
I enjoy the grounds as much as anything, and these were certainly stunning in their beauty.
One side of the building features four "waterfalls" that flow into a series of tiled "cascades".
The second night proved to be worth a second trip.
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