DOWN SOUTH

On paper, the northern end of our state has a lot going for it: Monument Valley, the Grand Canyon, Canyon de Chelly. The southern end isn't punctuated with household names, but there's no shortage of natural beauty down there. Although most people head south in the winter, we suggest a summer trip. A PORTFOLIO EDITED BY JEFF KIDA AND KEITH WHITNEY PRECEDING PANEL: Monsoon clouds gather over a sprawling grassland in the San Rafael Valley, southeast of Patagonia. The valley is bounded by the Patagonia and Huachuca mountains and the Canelo Hills. JEFF MALTZMAN

LEFT: Leafy ocotillos thrive beneath Baboquivari Peak, a distinctive landmark near Buenos Aires National Wildlife Refuge. The 7,737-foot peak, sacred to the Tohono O'odham people, is protected by a 2,040-acre wilderness area, the smallest in Arizona. JEFF MALTZMAN CANON EOS R5, 1/100 SEC, F/16, ISO 400, 100 MM LENS ABOVE: After a period of heavy rainfall, a “superbloom” of summer poppies blankets a hillside in the Tumacacori Highlands, a region just west of Nogales. This area is marked by sharp ridges, steep slopes and an overall feeling of remoteness. JACK DYKINGA ARCA-SWISS F-FIELD C 4X5, FUJICHROME VELVIA, 3 SEC, F/32, ISO 50, 80 MM LENS

ABOVE: Tender new growth contrasts with the red bark of a manzanita during a monsoon storm in the Santa Rita Mountains. The Santa Ritas are one of Southern Arizona's "sky island" ranges, and attractions there include Madera Canyon and the Mount Wrightson Wilderness. NORMA JEAN GARGASZ

NIKON D850, 1/100 SEC, F/4, ISO 250, 50 MM LENS

RIGHT: Riparian vegetation grows on the shores of a small reservoir in Ruby, a ghost town west of Nogales. Ruby dates to the 1870s and once was one of Arizona's most productive mining towns; these days, numerous buildings remain at the site, which requires a permit to visit. EIRINI PAJAK CANON EOS 5D MARK III, 1/125 SEC, F/11, ISO 100, 15 MM LENS FOLLOWING PANEL: Sotol stalks reach skyward along the road into the Huachuca Mountains' Garden Canyon. This canyon is part of Fort Huachuca, a U.S. Army installation near Sierra Vista, but is open to the public. PAUL GILL

CANON EOS 5D, 1/30 SEC, F/22, ISO 400, 24 MM LENS

A distant monsoon storm drops heavy rain in a view from the San Rafael Valley. The Santa Cruz River, a key waterway in the region, begins in this valley and flows into Mexico before turning north and re-entering the U.S. near Nogales.