Glove Weather

Looking northwest

Surprisingly cool out there this morning; cool enough to make me wear my gloves for two-thirds of the hike.  Never had to cover my ears, though.  Dr. K, Willow and I followed our regular route today; about midway through the trek we spotted the Basset People hiking along the steep hill ridge, presumably with the hounds who we never saw.  Took a long drive after our outing listening to Matt and Myron on their Sunday Morning show.

Tortugas and the Organs from LDR-A arroyo

Soaptree Yucca and the Organs

Soaptree Yucca in the left branch arroyo

Willow on break

Barrel cactus X

Willow, one cute heeler

 

Trekking with Wils

Cloudy Potrillo Mountains

We got quite a bit of rain yesterday, and perhaps more overnight.  As Willow and I drove east toward the Organ Mountains it was almost as if we entered a totally different weather zone; to the west it was sunny, but on the hill closer to the mountains it was completely cloudy.  The weather changed significantly while we followed our regular route after a slight detour at the start.  We saw no other nature enthusiasts during our morning hike. 

Distant view of Tortugas and the cloudy Organs

Southwest of Tortugas

Ancient Soaptree Yucca in the left branch arroyo

Barrel cactus and assorted desert flora

Cloud shadow and Picacho

Willow taking a break

Young Soaptree Yucca and prickly pear

 

Rain Maybe

Picacho

Dr. K, Willow and I were able to do a hike well in advance of any predicted precipitation; but now, just before 1 p.m., we're getting much-needed rain.  We followed the standard route this morning seeing no other hikers out and about in our section of northern Chihuahuan Desert.

Southwest from LDR-A

This & next:  Black-throated Sparrow on ocotillo

Soaptree Yuccas and the mountains

Wils

Some sky!

Desert flora

Willow again

Deadwood

 

Sky southeast from the right branch arroyo

Tad Humid

Morning crescent

It felt quite humid when Dr. K, Willow and I were doing our morning hike; we're supposed to get rain later today.  Followed our regular route, spotting three hikers with dogs bushwhacking in the desert northwest of us; one appeared to be Two-White-Dogs-Lady.  We saw no one else during our outing today.

Picacho and environs

LDR-A arroyo

Organ Mountains

This & next:  Willow on the cross trail

Willow's tongue

Backlit Black-throated Sparrow

Barrel cactus with a view

 

Warmth

Yuccas west of LDR-A

Much warmer for Dr. K, Willow and me on the morning hike; 52F at the start.  Bright sunshine and no wind made conditions feel quite comfortable, almost balmy.  We followed our regular route, stopping near the ancient Soaptree Yucca for a short break.  From there we thought we spotted Two-White-Dogs-Lady bushwhacking far to the west; we couldn't be sure it was her, though, because we never saw two white dogs--nor one for that matter.  We got some good exercise in today.

Clouds over the Organs

Willow smelling something

Colorized Soaptree Yuccas

Normal color photo of Soaptree Yuccas

 

Trek on Tuesday

Lousy photo of a Say's Phoebe

Overcast the entire time that Dr. K, Willow and I were out on our morning hike.  Despite the lack of sunshine it wasn't very cold, having already reached 50F when we started off.  No wind nor breeze were stirring.  Followed our regular route.  After we returned home I got ready and left for my weekly shopping trip to Albertsons.  Dr. K went to Target after I got back. 

SoaptreeYuccas and the Organ Mountains

Headed up the left branch toward the ancient Soaptree

Willow and Dr. K

Willow at rest in the left branch

The ancient Soaptree Yucca

Triple barrel cactus south of the left branch

Florida Mountains near Deming (58 miles as the crow flies)

 

Kestrel de Nuevo

Willow having a lie-down

Pleasant weather for a morning hike:  lots of sunshine, little wind. We saw Mr. and Mrs. Basset along with their hounds trekking northward on a ridge far east of us.  The hounds barked at us, and Willow, spotting them, wanted to head in their direction.  That was a hard "No."  They've encountered each other before with mixed results.  We followed our regular route seeing no other outdoor enthusiasts today.

Prickly Pear and Soaptree Yucca

Wils having a stand-up

The rest: American Kestrel, perhaps the one we saw yesterday