Hint of Autumn

Despite the sun, a cool start

When Becca and I left home this morning it was 61F, and in the shadow of Tortugas Mountain it felt a bit chilly--especially because of a persistent breeze.  That certainly was a welcome relief from our hot summer.  In fact, last month was the hottest July on record for New Mexico.  The most pleasant surprise this morning was discovering that the small Ocotillo I rescued a month or so ago looked really good after recent rains, most of its wands covered in new green leaves.  This is the young Ocotillo that I propped back upright after some yahoo drove over it with his SUV, driving, by the way, on a single-track trail where the only permitted vehicles are mountain bikes.  You can see the Ocotillo pictured below.

Steep arroyo on the left

Who's that hunting there?

Ah--a Roadrunner

The shadow is where the arroyo's deep gorge runs

Looking up the chasm

Almost in the gorge here

Rainwater running down the mountain flows really hard here

Becca is a little impatient to keep moving

Tug of war

Ants fighting over a small roach?

Rugged terrain west of Tortugas

Ring of Barrel Cactus flowers and buds

Almost looks like candy

Becca stares at people climbing the mountain

This Jackrabbit approached while we were drinking water

It gave us the universal Jackrabbit "peace" sign

Coy

Bored

Slightly interested

The small Ocotillo I rescued

Heading back up the mountain

Another Barrel beginning to bloom

Some of the flower buds

Climbing milkweed