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| Desert Dog |
SUNSHINE, SAGUAROS & SCONES (AND MUCH MORE)
Sheila and I are settled in and happily pursuing our chosen desert lifestyle - write, hike, read. Most mornings we are at our writing table after breakfast, each pursuing their current project. (Today, the blog.) After lunch we find a good hike and set off. Most trails are off limits to dogs, so Barkly stays home to "guard the house." There are a few trails, however, that allow canines, and Barkly has had a couple of desert adventures. He's pretty good at avoiding cactus, although he did have quite an adventure yesterday.
BARKLY, NO! A CHOLLA IS NOT A TOY!
We have occasional walking companions, Chris and her Labradoodle Spirit, on our neighborhood walks. The neighborhood streets are pretty quiet, so we let the pooches off leash and let them chase and pummel each other.
The other day, we meet Lisa and her pooch, about as big as a box of Kleenex. While we chat, the dogs play. One of the women yells. I look. Barkly is chasing a four-inch long piece of cholla! I grab him before he can take a bite. (I can't imagine what would ensue if he got a prickly cholla in his mouth.)
I notice, however, that he has two similar cholla chunks on his driver side rear leg. He is not happy. I grab him and hug him tight to immobilize him and calm him while Lisa runs to her home to get a comb. A comb is best, but in a pinch you can use two rocks to grab and remove the offending cactus. (Right! Hold a panicky 70-pound dog with one hand, and use your other two hands holding rocks to pull off the cholla.) Lisa returns and it is quickly evident that none of us knows how to do the job any better than we could perform surgery.
Then, the cavalry arrives, disguised as a circus. Three adults and two dogs, Danny (a black lab) and Palomita (a yellow lab), two of Barkly's new friends. Palomita goes a bit crazy at seeing her pal and tugs on her leash, barking frantically. Lisa and Chris begin to yell to Larry for help. Dogs barking, women yelling and Larry (my age and as hearing-challenged as I am) is yelling, "What? What?"
Barkly, firmly in my embrace, is the calmest at the scene, except for the other adults with Larry, who seem too bewildered to speak. Larry approaches while I hug Barkly and hope like hell the other two dogs don't come any closer. Larry sizes up the situation, takes the comb from Lisa, bends down and before Barkly can react, quickly gets the comb close and flick both cholla chunks off Barkly's leg.
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| Barkly's Nemesis - Cholla |
SUNSHINE
There's a lot of sunshine in the desert, of course. That's why we made 1,600-mile trek from Minneapolis. We are happiest when hiking under the desert sun or sitting on our south-facing patio absorbing the sun's warmth even on "chilly" fifty degree afternoons. Under the intense southwestern sun, fifty degrees is the new seventy. I totally get why the rattlers like to stretch out on a sunny rock.
A week ago, a rainy cold front moved in for a few days. We adapted our routine - no hiking, but a lot of writing and reading, and one cool cavern tour. (More on this in a bit.)
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| For two days, the Catalinas had left the area... |
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| ...and then returned! |
SAGUAROS
Saguaros are everywhere! Our home for the winter is surrounded by desert dominated by the majestic cactus. They'll obviously appear in my photos, but I promise not to go overboard. Here's my homage to the saguaro.
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| One Tall Saguaro! |
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| Yikes! Alien! |
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| Young saguaro in the embrace of its "nurse tree." |
Your desert fun fact for today: Young saguaros thrive in the nitrogen-rich soil of its "nurse Tree," the palo verde.
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| Three Amigos |
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| That's a lot of arms, all the better to hug you with. |
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| Saguaro National Park |
SCONES
I began traveling in retirement, first to California and now to Tucson for the sunshine and warm temperatures in January and February. But there's another story. I also travel to Santa Barbara for raised glazed donuts. Eller's bakery makes a raised glaze like no other I've had. Their raised glaze is as light as a Parisian croissant, without sacrificing the sugary thrill. (I have searched for a better donut, to no avail.) So although the climate draws me, I feast there (and nowhere else) on Eller's offerings.
And in Tucson? Scones! On Sunday mornings, Sheila and I take our New York Times to Raging Sage for their very good coffee and their out-of-this world scones. They have a crispy outside surrounding a light chewy inside, with a large variety of delicious flavors. Jalapeno sage jam with pecans, blackberry with toasted almonds, and so many more - every one baked to perfection. How do they do that? I'm not much of a fan of scones to tell the truth, but a Raging Sage scone is as great a highlight here as a hike in the desert. (A nod here to my friend, Jan MacKenzie Polanski, in Minneapolis, whose scones I never pass up.)
There is always a line at the Raging Sage, so get there early. Sitting outside on their patio in the sun by the orange trees isn't heaven, but you can see heaven from there.
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| Blackberry with Toasted Almond |
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| A Raging Sage Kind of Smile! |
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| A Raging Sage Scone, A Cuppa Joe, and the NY Times | |
PACKRATS, JAVALINAS & BIRDS
I hesitate to include birds in this section. Their presence is a delight. Jim and Adam have the patios sprinkled with feeders, and Sheila and I dutifully keep them filled as directed by our hosts. (I am the hummingbird specialist.) Cardinals, quail, hummingbirds and a bunch of others constantly cruise the airspace and the desert floor and sing to us. When he is inside, Barkly watches the birds through the glass as if he were watching Animal Planet on Dog TV. When outside, he leaps and chases, forever hopeful of catching one. He and the hummingbirds taunt each other (playfully, I'd like to think).
On the other hand...
...There are the javalinas and the packrats. I haven't seen a packrat yet, and I don't want to. They (like some particularly nasty squirrels back home) like to climb under the hoods of cars and get into all sorts of mischief playing with wires, etc. Adam warned us and told us that raising the hood and sliding a string of lights under the hood is an effective deterrent to the critters. So far, so good. Fingers crossed.
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| Packrats be gone! |
And then, there are the javalinas. They are regular visitors. Cute critters. And pests!
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| Cute Javelina |
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| Not-so-cute Javelina Vandalism |
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| Javelinas are not our friends. |
FELIZ PASEOS PARK
Loosely translated, I think this translates into Happy Trails Park. Dogs are welcome in the park if the dog and it's human friend obey the rules. It's my regular morning walk spot with Barkly, about a mile and a half of connecting of trails in the desert only three minutes from the house by car.
Yesterday we discovered a path next to the parking lot that was not marked as a trail, so, of course, we went exploring. It wasn't long, maybe fifty yards, and led to a road outside the park. We followed the road a bit and were rewarded with our first coyote sighting.
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| A great place for morning walks with the dog. |
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| Barkly poses in Feliz Paseos Park. |
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| A view from Feliz Paseos Park |
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| You've been warned! |
DO NOT ENTER WHEN FLOODED
And a word about desert arroyos, also called washes - dry creek beds that fill dramatically and rapidly after local rainstorms. The highway department has liberally placed warning signs on roads that cross arroyos. DO NOT ENTER WHEN FLOODED. Still, like the people who have to touch the stove top to see if it's hot, there are many who think, It's only a couple of inches...
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| '64 Rambler That Didn't Make It Across the Wash During a '65 Storm |
The driver of this 2,600-pound car somehow lived to tell her story, even though her car was carried a mile downstream by the current. Later, the woman's briefcase was found another mile down the wash. Six inches of rushing water can knock a person off their feet. Two feet of rushing water can carry a car away.
VISITORS - PETROGLYPHS & CHOCOLATE CAKE
Sheila's son and grandson, Ethan and Foss, paid us a visit for a three-day weekend. She had promised Foss to take him to the desert for his 7th birthday, but since we're already here as his 6th birthday approached, she decided, why wait? They arrived a couple of Fridays ago, bringing with them a lot energy.
Foss and Barkly quickly became great friends. They played fetch and hugged a lot. One morning, I was awakened by a soft whisper in the predawn dark, Barkly! Then, Barkly! Barkly slept on at the side of our bed. Barkly! Barkly remained still. Finally, a small silhouette of a child tiptoed into the room gand got down on the floor with the dog for a few moments. Then two shapes, six legs, silently glided out of the room.
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| Pals |
Ethan and Foss squeezed in a lot of activities in their short visit - the Desert Museum, a long hike in Saguaro National Park, finding petroglyphs ("I see art!" Foss would yell.), a Kartchner Caverns tour, a lot of Mexican food, and finally, Foss being sworn in as a Junior Forest Ranger after completing his workbook. When the swearing in was completed (with Foss wearing the park ranger's Smoky the Bear hat), many of the people in the Visitors Center applauded.
Kartchner Caverns - not to be missed! If you're down this way, set aside a day for this excellent experience.
After our petroglyph hike, they all went into town to a Mexican restaurant for a big lunch. I begged off in favor of some quiet time at home. Very early that evening, both Foss and Ethan headed off for an earlybedtime, but not until we sang Happy Birthday to both of our guests and ate chocolate cake to celebrate. They barely stayed awake for cake before both father and son headed off for bed.
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| Ethan, Foss and Sheila |
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| Petroglyphs |
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| Leaving my mark for future millenia. |
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| More petroglyphs (not mine). |
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| A Very Happy Sheila with Ethan and Foss on the Trail |
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| The Sonoran Desert - Grand View... |
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| ...And up close |
I woke up a couple days ago to see snowflakes falling from the desert sky. I got up and walked to the floor-to-ceiling glass door to make sure my sleepy eyes were not playing tricks on me. They were not. All I could do was laugh out loud.
A few days later, I walked Barkly in 28 degree temperatures and learned that 28 degrees in the desert is quite a bit different than 28 degrees near the Canadian border. At home, I bundle up to fend off the cold. Here, a sweater and my down parka suffice, since the southern sun's rays are quite a bit more direct. By mid-walk, I have unbuttoned my vest and am enjoying what I think of as spring weather.
From a trip into the city:
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| Sheila admires a mural of Diego Rivera & Freida Kahlo |
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| Diego Rivera & Freida Kahlo Mural Detail |
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| Last Light |
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