Holy Daze

Ready to roll at a moment's notice

A long Sunday hike in the beautiful Chihuahuan Desert did much to calm the vexed spirit.  Of course, Dr. K and Becca were perturbed that I invited the spirit along in the first place.  Nevertheless, we had a wonderful morning jaunt around Tortugas Mountain.

A solitary mountain biker on the loop road



Looking toward El Paso



The Organ Mountains beneath a brilliant sky

Soaptree Yuccas and Tortugas Mountain

Tour of Tortugas

Friday Frizzies

On the road around Tortugas

Actually, it wasn't quite as humid today; therefore, our chances of rain are much diminished.  Becca and I did a long hike around the outer loop trail near Tortugas Mountain.  We saw a few other intrepid hikers in the outback.

In the afternoon Dr. K and I went to a matinee of "Horrible Bosses."  We laughed our asses off.  I'm sitting on my ass bones as I write.

Ocotillo and the distant Bishop's Cap

Curve to the right

Mesquite tree in an arroyo bottom

Significant Rainfall

Atmosphere heavy with moisture

We had about .60 inches of rain last night; combined with the .25 we received the day before, we approached one inch of precipitation--quite significant considering our prolonged drought.  Of course, that amount will do almost nothing for severe drought conditions.  The air was thick with humidity this morning, and I perspired quite a lot because there was little wind.  Becca, however, never sweats.

The western flank of Tortugas Mountain

Desert after rain

Becca on lead because of snakes

Desert After Rain

Western slope of Tortugas Mountain

We had quite a lightning and thunder show beginning about 8 last night.  We only got .25 inches of rain, but we'll take whatever we can get.  The desert looked a tad greener this morning.


On the slightly less dusty trail



Things a little greener after the rain

Bull S----

Significant overcast often brings out snakes

Snake, that is.  Often when the desert skies are completely overcast, snakes come out to warm themselves on the rocks.  That was the case this morning when we encountered a very large Bull Snake that was completely unperturbed by our presence.


A huge Bull Snake startled Becca and me



Beautiful coloration



This sucker was nearly 5' long!



Look at the size of this beauty

The Chihuahuan Desert

Along the foothills trail on Tortugas Mountain

The Chihuahuan Desert is the largest desert in North America, over 200,000 square miles. Most of the desert lies in Mexico, but it extends into the states of Texas, New Mexico and Arizona.  Its lower elevations are just above 1,000 feet, but most of the desert lies between 3,500 and 5,000 feet.  The desert is cool in winter (temperatures of 18 to 20 Farenheit are not uncommon) and hot in summer (often over 100 Farenheit).  Most regions in the Chihuahuan Desert get less than 10 inches of rain per year.

The seemingly-flat plane of desert

The Potrillo Mountains, southwest of Las Cruces, New Mexico

The Franklin Mountains near El Paso, Texas

Old jeep road through the desert

An Ocotillo in front of Tortugas (Tortoise) Mountain

The western flank of Tortugas in front of the Organ Mountains



Typical Chihuahuan Desert flora