Canine Crew Encounter

Just after dawn start

When Becca and I were about two-thirds of the way through our morning trek we saw a few distant runners heading toward us on the loop road.  Becca immediately ran off the trail and dropped into her herding posture.  I saw why.  The runners had a dog with them.  Then I saw a second dog.  A third.  Fourth.  Fifth.  Three of the hounds were off the trail exploring the desert, but by the time they reached us they had all grouped up.  I said to the two men with the dogs, "That's quite a crew you have."  One man smiled and said, "How are you two doing this morning?"  Several of the dogs peeled off to approach Becca, and it was an equally friendly encounter.  The men called for the dogs to follow, and they did.  The canine crew was well behaved, as was Becca.  The rest of the way up the road, though, she took every opportunity to sniff where the other dogs had been.

A quarter way down to the lower desert

The way we just came

The living and the dead

Part of a small Torrey Yucca forest

Torrey Yucca and the Potrillo Mountains

Warm weather has tricked this Ocotillo into producing new leaves

Fall-colored leaves on an old Ocotillo

This Ocotillo is over 15' tall

There's a dog lurking in this photo

By now Becca and I were bushwhacking

Well off the beaten path

Something's burning in the Mesilla Valley

Flank of Tortugas (left) and the Organ Mountains

Wispy clouds

The runners with dogs we encountered

Placid sky