Cold April Bushwhack

View from an arroyo

Even though I wore a long-sleeve shirt this morning I was glad I'd decided to wear my Marmot PreCip jacket as well; although the temperature was a bearable 42F the strong winds made it feel damned cold out there today.  Of course the Heelers--dressed in their finest fur coats--didn't mind the chill one bit.

We hiked from the CR-V near Tellbrook partially up the long dirt road before veering off to the east into the desert.  As usual, though I didn't plan on any serious bushwhacking, we did a long exploration of an area we hadn't hiked in before.  I knew if we struck for Tortugas Mountain we'd end up on a ridgeline I'd hiked often in the past with Becca, but when we got there I lost my bearings because the desert was greened out in such a way as to disguise ordinarily recognizable landmarks.  From on high I saw the arroyo we'd trekked through yesterday, and when we started down for it I realized that we were in the exact spot I'd wanted to be in.

From there we followed the disused dirt road back to the southernmost loop road and took it west until the intersection with the animal trail we've been using to cross back to the long dirt road.  Then it was simply a matter of trudging back through the east/west arroyo and up the steep hill to the waiting CR-V.

This and the next:  Torrey Yucca blossoming

This and the next:  same Claret Cup Cactus

This and the next 6:  yuccas in bloom

Claret Cup

Riparian area

Heelers hankering for a taste of Jackrabbit

This and the next:   more blooming yuccas

This and the next:  ribbon of green

View from the CR-V

Long dirt road