Six Zones of Separation Lack of water is one constant factor on the Arizona Trail. Change is the other. As we head north from Payson, the trail is about to display its chameleon character. Leaving the Sonoran Desert , we climb to the Mogollon Rim, the great escarpment that marks the edge of the Colorado Plateau. Here in the transition zone, ponderosas offer some shade from the glaring sun.
Temperatures are cooler.
In the distance, I see a blinding white cloud in an otherwise flawless sky, and after squinting to be sure, I realize that what I am seeing is snow atop Humphrey's Peak, at 12,643 feet, the state's highest point. Arizonans are fond of pointing out that their state contains six of the seven climactic zones in North America, the ecological equivalent of walking from Mexico to Canada. All rights reserved.