Hairy False Goldenaster

Part of Las Cruces and the desert beyond

Becca and I got an early start this morning on the west side of Tortugas Mountain.  We did only a moderately-long trek because I wanted to get home early enough to do more yard work before the day heated up too much.  We're supposed to hit 90F this afternoon.  The only person we saw out there--and only from a great distance--was our friend Gregg who yelled to us from the mountain road.  We were so far apart his voice barely registered with me.  Don't know how he spotted us, especially since I was bending down to photograph some flowers.

Ms. Happy Hiker

The weather for starts

Big sky

Sempre davanti al pacco

Desert Cottontail

Is there a dog in sight?

Browning Ocotillos

Desert Senna, Range Ratany and Ocotillos

Becca takes her pack off to rest

Hairy False Goldenaster and buds

Hariy False Goldenaster (Heterotheca villosa)