The Heat is On

Just leaving the Sunset Area parking lot

Becca and I hit the trail out of the Sunset Area well before 7:00 a.m. because the temperature is supposed to rise precipitously, with triple digits looming ahead over the next few days.  There were quite a number of other outdoor enthusiasts with the same idea gauging by the number of cars in the parking lot.  After our hike, as we were driving out at about 8:30, we ran into our pal Gregg who was just starting out.  He was doing his normal trek to the top of the mountain.

Getting to the high foothills

Cresting

Trail marker leaning against an Ocotillo

Hedgehog Cacti and Ocotillo

Rugged high foothills

Rain Lily seed pods

Rough Menodora

I'm looking through you

Respite

The desert between here and the Organ Mountains

Hieroglyphs

Hedgehog Cactus

Desert Willow

Humid With a Chance of Rain

Puppy?

Becca and I got a bit of a late start this morning, and even though it wasn't hot conditions were uncomfortable because of high humidity.  According to local meteorologists there's a good chance of rain later today; abundant sunshine coupled with ample moisture creates "lift" that often results in thunderstorms.  We'll see what we get in the form of precipitation.  I decided to cut our daily trek a little short because Becca seemed to be bothered by the humidity.  We'll have to leave much earlier in the coming days because we're in for something of an early-June heatwave.

On the steep slope of Tortugas

Prickly Pear with huge pads

Down the bobsled run

Prickly Pear and Bishop Cap

The largest pad is as big as a dinner plate

Senna

Senna

Ocotillo prison

Devil's Head

Heat Respite

Headed out of the Sunset parking area

Becca and I got a really early start on the west side of Tortugas Mountain this morning in order to beat the desert heat, although it turned out we didn't have to do so because it was cloudy and cool during most of our hike.  We started from the Sunset Area parking lot, trekked up the western face of the mountain until we hit the trail that crosses the high flank from north to south.  Then we dropped back down into the lower desert and followed a familiar route along the western side of Tortugas, back up into the high foothills and then down to the outer loop road, heading north until we struck east back up into the high foothills.  From there we followed the trail north along the west side of the mountain back to our car.

At the brink of an old quarry

Evidence that quarry men worked here

Sniffing around on higher ground

Ocotillos and a Torrey Yucca

Along the upper flank of Tortugas

Mesilla Valley vista

We heard thunder in the distance

Headed south on the flank of the mountain

View west from a higher elevation

Picacho beyond the city of Las Cruces

Strawberry Pitaya on the rocky slope

The way we came down the mountain

Strawberry Pitaya all over the mountain

Blooming profusely all over again

Storms are in the forecast for today

Pitaya

On the high foothills trail

Las Cruces and the Robledo Mountains

Normal millipede behavior or is it just happy to see me?

Break time!

Tortugas Mountain from the west

Abundant desert flora

Doña Ana Mountains

Through the Ocotillo Forest once again

Interesting clouds over the Organ Mountains

Turtle icon near the Sunset Area ramada