Trio Trekking

1st 3:  ocotillos and sky

Dr. K, Willow and I did our usual trek today in somewhat brutal weather conditions; the only saving grace was a consistent light breeze.  We hit 102F yesterday, and we're well on our way to that mark again today.

We saw no other nature enthusiasts in the desert, with the exception of a few lizards; and I'm not sure they're exactly enthusiastic about the desert on days like this.

We stopped in the shade for one water break, but passed up the second chance to do so because, perhaps, we were all in a hurry to get back to the CR-V.

 

Dr. K and Willow

Who's hiding in the mesquite tree?

Desert sky

Willow looking cute

This & next:  barrel cactus with buds

This & next:  prickly pear fruit in varying degrees of ripeness

Barrel cactus mandala

Buds and budding

Happy Hawk Day

1st 2:  ocotillos and sky

Dr. K went grocery shopping this morning so it was Willow and me on the regular hike.  Hot and a bit humid out there, but there was a slight breeze.

We followed the usual route, stopping in the shade several times.  Best part of the outing was seeing a Swainson's Hawk in an ocotillo, but I couldn't get a decent shot of the raptor due to bright sunshine behind it.

Seems both Willow and I were happy when the trek came to an end and we were able to hop back into the CR-V and fire up the air conditioning.

Ocotillos and Tortugas Mountain

 

Swainsy the backlit Swainson's Hawk

This & next:  barrel cactus flower buds

Swainsy

Barrel Cactus buds

Wils

This & next:  Prickly Pear pears on the same Prickly Pear

Climbing the steep hill west of Right Branch Arroyo

Distant view of Tortugas and the Organs

Buggy, Hot, Humid, Smoky

Unless otherwise captioned all images are leafed-out ocotillos

Dr. K had the lingering effects of a migraine so opted out of this morning's hike.  It was Willow and me on the regular route today.

Weather conditions were quite unpleasant:  too many small bugs, too hot, too humid and a a bit too smoky.  We had hoped the smoke from western wildfires would have headed in another direction by now.

We had been away in the high country for five days so it came as a big surprise to find so many ocotillos all greened out in the desert.

 

Willow headed down LDR-A

Wils

Barrel buds

Prickly Pear Cactus "pears"

Mountains Early, Desert Late

We did a forest hike behind the cabin before returning to finish packing for our trip back to the low desert.

I had to stop along the Baylor Canyon Road to take photos of the barrel cacti and Nipple Beehive Cactus that were blooming alongside the road.

Got home okay.  House is still cooling off from five days without aeration.