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Friday, September 20, 2013

From Low Desert to the Mountains

Somebody's desert gem
Becca and I did a quick hike around Tortugas before we headed up into the Sacramento Mountains with Dr. K.  Because of all the rain we've received we were quite concerned about what we might find here on our property.  Fortunately we had only one dead tree that had toppled over near the driveway.  We do have a lot of yard work to do, though, and we'll have to get to it after our hike tomorrow.  On the upside, we got to meet our new neighbor, Cowboy, who looks to be pure Australian Shepherd.
Tortugas Mountain from a distance

The flank of Tortugas (left) and the Organ Mountains

Tortugas and the Organs

Popcorn clouds above Tortugas

Cloud shadows on the Organs

Midsection of the Organs

In Tortugas's western foothills

Dawdling on the trail

Looking west across an expanse of Chihuahuan Desert

Franklin Mountains near El Paso

From the top:  Hailey, Champ and new neighbor, Cowboy

Cowboy has one brown eye and one blue

What a yawn:  Hailey, Champ and Cowboy getting a pet from Dr. K

Unidentified flowering bush growing in the backyard

Closeup of un-ID'd flower

6 comments:

Dr. K said...

Very striking photos of the dynamic sky that you took on your hike.

JACQUELINE said...

Neighbours of ours have an Australian Shepard, (German bred and just out of quarantine). It barks at Ollie and he goes spare from behind our kitchen back door. The blue dog in the photo looks like an Australian blue cattle dog. They have a bit of a reputation, but the dog in your photo looks placid enough.

Scott said...

Absolutely stunning images today, Packrat. The sky is crystal clear--almost surreal. Some of these are "keepers"!

packrat said...

Thanks, Dr. K.

:)

packrat said...

Jacqui:

Yes, Hailey, the blue cattle dog, is a real sweetheart. She'll sit quietly in front of your with her eyes closed while you scratch her chest. Becca is half Australian Cattle Dog and half Border Collie. I read that cattle dogs (aka Queensland Heelers) were bred using Dingos. Cattle dogs' stamina is absolutely frightening.

packrat said...

Thank you, Scott. Very much appreciated.

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