Out of the East

East of Tortugas, looking south--Franklin Mountains in distance

Dr. K, Becca and I did a fairly long hike out of the Monte Vista area of the Tortugas Mountain Trail System.  We did a lot of bushwhacking through the desert, enjoying a pleasant morning made occasionally cool by a slight wind.  During our trek we only saw three people:  a mountain biker in the distance, a woman we passed who was hiking with two Pitbulls on leads, and a man just starting off on a jog around the mountain.

Becca leads the way down a steep trail

Dr. K descends carefully

The Organ Mountains to the east

On a trail through a Creosote Bush forest

Poised to head down another precipitous trail