Drought Dread

This & the next:  same Soaptree Yucca in First Arroyo

64F when we started off this morning, though it did feel hotter when Willow, Frio and I hit the trail.  The sun was blazing down, and there was almost no breeze.  The desert floor can feel like a skillet while you're trekking out there, especially when the land has a very low moisture content (as it does now).

I've been worried about this drought in the West for years, but recently it's become ever more alarming.  I've been hiking in the desert for decades, and I honestly don't think I've ever seen conditions this dry.  Plants seem incredibly parched, even in this most arid of environments.

We can only hope the monsoon season brings abundant rain this year, but I'm not holding my breath.

Small Mesquite Tree

I'm looking through you

Yucca leaves and observatory

Mesquites

Frio and Willow on break

This and the next:  deadwood

Mesquite branches

Large Torrey, small Mesquite

Little lizard

Mesquite tree bark

Mesquite leaves and flower

The rest:  Mexican Palo Verde (Parkinsonia aculeata)