Midden Removal Day

Bushwhacking west of the mountain

Becca and I did a long hike west of Tortugas Mountain this morning, and, although the sun was shining brightly, it was even colder than yesterday:  44F when we started off.  I felt cold at first, but warmed up quickly as soon as we got out of the mountain's shadow.  When we got back home, Dr. K was waiting to help me remove a packrat midden in our front yard.  The industrious rodents had used the base of an old dead Century Plant to make a home, pulling cholla branches and other debris around it to block the entrances.  When we first got started raking out the debris we saw one of the rats take off.  It took us about an hour to dump everything--including the somewhat heavy stump--into one of our garbage dumpsters, which we took out to the street and parked for tomorrow's pick up.

Becca is always spotting something

Ding dong

She sees somebody heading up the mountain

Heading down a wide arroyo

View from inside the arroyo

The arroyo narrows at this spot

A sunny morning in the Chihuahuan Desert

Sun through an Ocotillo

Long view of Tortugas (left) and the Organ Mountains

West of Tortugas

She's coming back to see what's taking me so long

Ocotillos yellowing out and losing leaves

Ocotillo forest in the middle ground

Blackfoot Daisies