"Great Dog!"

Becca watches someone descend the mountain

Becca and I were within an eighth of a mile from the trailhead on our way back when we rounded a bend and came upon two women hiking toward us.  They were within ten yards, so I had Becca go to the right side of the trail and lie down to wait for them to pass.  The first woman beamed a big smile and said, "Great Dog!"  "Sometimes," I said.  The two hikers laughed as they continued up the trail.  But Becca really is a great dog, one of the best I've ever known, though when Dr. K and I first adopted her I thought Becca was going to end up breaking me; she was quite a handful.

Heading away from Tortugas

Tasajillo (aka Christmas Cactus)

One of the sandiest sections of desert west of Tortugas

On the slant west of the mountain

Torrey Yucca

The long way around Tortugas (left)

Far end of the loop

Getting ready to head back up the mountain

Single-track through the desert