Dirty Air

Looking southwest from the upper foothills

It was quite cool when Becca and I hit the trail this morning, and the weatherman on the early show had predicted strong winds--which we didn't experience on the west side of Tortugas.  The air seemed perfectly clear on our way out, but on the inbound leg we noticed that it looked dirty; this was surprising because the winds hadn't picked up yet.  The last time the air looked this bad was when we were having wildfires in the northern part of the state and the prevailing winds were forcing the smoke south into our region.  Have to keep an ear tuned to the news to see if there are any fires in the area.

It's actually a little chilly in the shade

Down to the lower desert

We just passed that Yucca (center)

Always pushing ahead of the pack

Shady underbelly of the Desert Marigold

Back to Tortugas

Becca is looking westward along  . . .

. . . this road

Ocotillos turning slightly off-green

Packrat and Becca

Beautiful Barrel Cactus blossom

Dayflower

Wooly Paperflower

Is this or is this not a Dalea?