Securing a Porous Border

February 24, 2016 - Gilbert Ray Campground, Tucson Mountain Park, near Tucson, AZ

We came across more of the southern Arizona desert yesterday from Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument.  All along our southern AZ border with Mexico there is a huge Border Patrol presence.  We've seen many patrol vehicles, vans, pickups, 4-wheelers, etc. and have been stopped at numerous checkpoints.  It's not easy patrolling a porous border, and in the Organ Pipe National Monument, they continue to make almost 4,000 arrests each year.

Most of the border has very little fence, or it might have fencing designed to prevent vehicle traffic like this:

Occasionally we saw substantial (15 ft high) fencing to prevent human crossing.  But the costs are enormous.

We visited an outstanding Oasis/spring, called Quitobaquito spring, that has been used for thousands of years and his home to some wildlife found nowhere else on the planet, including these little Quitobaquito desert pupfish, they taste surprisingly like chicken!

Our last night at Organ Pipe we participated in a cool little nighttime Full Moon hike.

Now on to new adventures in the Tucson area, in one of our favorite parks here.

Gorgeous desert flora in the Sonoran Desert

January 21, 2016 - Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument - near Ajo, AZ

We've been hiking and taking guided Ranger Tours here at Organ Pipe and have extended our stay!  Lots of beautiful desert cacti and other plant life here in the Sonoran desert.

Here's our campsite #89 with gorgeous desert sunrises and sunsets.

This area features the northernmost range of the Organpipe Cactus, which are particularly susceptible to freezes.

Then you've got your fishhook barrel cactus, prickly pear and the majestic Saguaro.

They have 7 varieties of Cholla cactus in the park, here are a few:

Braided, or chain-fruit Cholla

Pencil Cholla (about the diameter of a #2)

Teddy Bear Cholla

Other typical desert flora include Ocotillo

Pincushion cactus

Palo Verde

Pink flowering, Fairy Dusters

And the mountains in the park are pretty interesting including some rock arches in the Ajo Mountains:

And there is a mining and ranching cultural history to the area.  We hiked to the Lost Cabin Mine this morning (an 8+ mile hike).

Now on to the next adventure!

California to Arizona, Heading East again!

February 19, 2016 - Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument, Twin Peaks Campground, near Ajo, AZ

Loved our stay in Joshua Tree National Park, hiked every day, interesting geology:

Including Ninja Turtle

Skull Rock

And cool rock and boulder formations

Liked all the different desert cactii, like this barrel cactus.

And these California Fan Palms at 49 Palms Oasis.

Next we headed for a night at the Salton Sea State Recreation Area (best to avoid this place, stinking sulphur smell coming from the lake, lots of dead fish on the shoreline, a real treat!)

Then on to Yuma, AZ, or approximately 20 miles north of Yuma, next to the Yuma Proving Ground, and generally known as the BLM, Imperial Dam camping areas where we stayed at Squaw Lake campground, a little bend in the Colorado River, next to some other reservoir impoundments.

Entrance to the Yuma Proving Grounds.

We had very friendly camping neighbors, camping in this weird sort-of parking lot, real nice bathroom/shower facilities, access to good clean water, and nice enough views at times:

But it was like living in a parallel Universe.  Literally thousands of campers living off the grid (no water or electrical hookups) almost everybody has Solar setups like us, and many ran generators in the hours they were allowed.  But the desert was just a barren, rock strewn wasteland.  Just strange that so many people would come here and spend their winters bopping about.  Many from Western Canada (most of the folks at Squaw Lake were Canadians), British Columbia, Saskatchewan, Alberta, Ontario.

Our Campground:

Long Term visitor area with hundreds of off-the-grid campers.

They even had a "Liberry!"

We did manage to hike every day, even though we were in an unseasonable heat wave 90deg+.

But now we're in a MUCH MORE BEAUTIFUL desert, the Sonoran desert incorporating the northern range of the Organ Pipe Cactus, green and beautiful. The Ocotillo are even flowering!

Chang (the RPod) Rides Again!

February 10, 2016 - Joshua Tree National Park - Black Rock Campground, near Yucca Valley, CA

The R-Pod Chang rides again!  We had a smooth crossing from Surprise, AZ (outside Phoenix) to Yucca Valley, CA into the Mojave Desert yesterday.  Arrived and set up at our lovely little campsite in the far Northwest corner of the Joshua Tree National Park.

 

Very pretty site, and with little light interference and at 4,000 ft. elevation the stars are pretty spectacular as well.

Today we got up early (sunrise is now at 6:30am, here in the Western Time Zone), and despite trying to diagnose a battery charging issue, we decided for a hike on the Panorama Loop Trail, and a side spur up to the Warren View.  A total of 1100 ft. elevation gain, and a 3 hour 7+ mile hike.  Pretty exhausting, but beautiful desert scenery, lots of skinks, some birds, and panoramic views.  Quite nice.

Oh, and lastly, an early Happy Valentines Day to all of you!

 

South Rim of the Grand Canyon in Winter

Superbowl Sunday - Feb. 7, 2016 - Grand Canyon Village, AZ

Had great flights back from Hawaii and landed in Phoenix in a thunderstorm (of all things!).  Spent a couple of nice days with the Cooks in Surprise before heading up here to the South Rim of the Grand Canyon for a few days.  Between a recent snowstorm (and the resultant icy trails) and Con and I both working our way through rough colds,  we haven't done too much strenuous hiking, but have been enjoying miles and miles of the Rim Trail. Just awe inspiring to gaze into the vastness of this 277 mile canyon.  We've taken a number of ranger guided tours which have been very interesting in presenting the cultural an geologic history of the Canyon.

Pretty amazing stuff!  2 Billion years of rock types, eroded over the last 5 million years by the Colorado River to give us the big hole!

PS Didn't bring the R-Pod on this excursion (40's during the day, and down to single digits at night here at 7,000 ft altitude.)