After having a serious talk with my Doc about my health and the Oprah Winfrey weight fluctations, I felt the need for a power walk. During the summer I am locked up most of the day due to the heat from outside. But lately our monsoon storms have brought us lots and lots of rain here....and cooler temps.
So I took a walk near our running washes that were flowing like a real river does everywhere else!! It was like being back home in Wisconsin. We have life giving water again!
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| Ceraunus Blue (Hemiargus ceraunus) |
And it is sure reflected in the wildlife around the area. Of course so is the human trash. Seriously, look at the pic below. What in the world is a queen size mattress doing in this wash??!!! Unbelievable.
But it was a gorgeous day to be outside and go for a hike. Speaking of hikes, I'll be out of town this weekend on a major one. If you don't hear from me during the next couple days, you'll know why. I'm going on another major adventure to Portal, AZ. I'm hoping it's as epic as birders claim:)
With all this water comes some major wildlife and garden revelations. You are about to witness over the next several weeks some of my finds. The animals, birds, bugs, plants etc will be showcased sometimes individually as they will be a first for this blog and I like to build a base on desert vocabulary:)
A river runs through the Old Pueblo and I challenged myself by only bringing my short lens which made me angry about the picture below.....
This is a new bird species below at the tip of this mini island in the wash. It appears to be a Sandpiper of some kind but I'll never know:)
And the Desert Willow is outstanding this time of year putting forth its second round of flowers. This tree or shrub prefer our washes and grows almost like a weed around them. Of course there were plenty of Costa's Hummingbirds around them as they are a favorite for hummers.
And the Lesser Goldfinches!!! There were so many flying around the area. Again the short lens was used so that's as far as I could get:)
Over the next couple days, I hope to wrap up my Chuparosa Challenge for the year and again, I do apologize if I'm not able to blog a couple days. Doctor's orders:) I'll be putting on jeans and boots as I try and get some important shots.
But I leave you for now with these happy wet desert images of our monsoon season. And of course, more tomorrow....
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Very interesting finds you have in this post. Good you're able to go out and enjoy nature and capture these things. Looking forward to your future posts.
ReplyDeleteLovely photos Chris - great view in the first photo :) Shame about the dumped rubbish - we get it over here in country lanes. Can never understand why people will drive to the country to dump stuff when they could just as easily drive to an official rubbish tip :(
ReplyDeleteHave a great hike this weekend and please look after your health. Take Care! All the best Caroline
Haven't these storms been wonderful? I always want to go out into the desert and walk around in the rain. But I don't want to get into a flooding situation. I'm chicken. :)
ReplyDeleteI'm with you on the flooding and lightning strikes. Rain can be kind of dangerous here sometimes:)
DeleteYes Kreesh you should leave a couple of days not blogging, because i cannot cope opening and commenting on your posts! But i want to go with you on those hikes and looking for whatever is showing on the way. But i don't like mattresses on the river beds. And good for you for not bringing a long lens, at least the bird was not over exposed, LOL.
ReplyDeleteEvil laugh....muahahahahaha:) I brought the short lens because of a previous comment you made. And I thought....yeah, I don't take a lot of shots with the short lens. So this post was a challenge for me. Very difficult when I like to zoom in on things:) You'd have fun hiking here. Well if you never make it here, I'll definitely try to get over to those islands one of these years. That would be a lot of fun. Hope you had a good weekend:)
DeleteExcellent idea these doctor's orders... and we know you will be able to show us something fabulous as always. :-) Good hike!
ReplyDeleteI love the desert washes. Desert Willow though not as deeply rooted as Paloverde and Mesquite are never the less indicators of water close to the surface and great erosion control plants as are true willows.
ReplyDeleteLooks like that one pic of water running through the wash shows it's been mechanically channeled. Cities, what are you going to do.
As long as you have people you will have lazy butts who won't go to the dump and pay a mere few dollars fee to get rid of something. In Riverside County, the very moment they past a rule that Fridges & Freezers require a $75 fee, that was the green light for every lowlife to dump on every county rural side road available.
One maybe you can photo the lovely Purple Prickly Pears out there around Tucson.
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Hello there. I always love your comments. It has been super crazy and sometimes I don't always win this balancing act between blogging, gardening, photography, etc....and this weekend, I just said, "No blogging":) I partially succeeded and had a great hike up the canyon areas.
DeleteAs for your Purple Prickly Pear request....I think I can fulfill that request. Give me several days and I'll randomly post one for you:) I have one that I took in May with the yellow blossoms near our house:) Hope you had a good weekend:) Chris
Power walks always make one feel better! This river wash area looks like a beautiful place to walk. The Desert Willows are gorgeous. Hope you have a great weekend adventure:)
ReplyDeleteThese are excellent photos Chris. Enjoy your weekend outing.
ReplyDeleteThe art makes a wonderful complement to your watery wash. Our wildflowers are getting profuse from all the rain. Loving it. Have a great hike.
ReplyDeleteReally like those murals, which stretch of wash were those on? Have fun in Portal, many, many years back I did some trips in that area and it was really nice. Going up and over or around the mountain to get there?
ReplyDeleteWell Warren, we didn't go to Portal this weekend after all but instead to Miller which was still incredible. I wanted to spend the night but my other half had to work the next day so Portal was deemed too far.....this time. But when we go, it'll be around the mountain through New Mexico. My body is covered in chigger bites right now. This rain we're getting really encourages the mosquitoes to come out:)
DeleteGreat shots of the river and I love the murals or mosaics. It is a shame about the mattress. What are people thinking? Have a great trip and I will looking forward to seeing more of your great photos.
ReplyDeleteNice photos today. Do enjoy the rains that have come. As you had mentioned, Wisconsin is a lot different than whee you live now! Enjoy what is in the moment. You know you can always come back here for a visit! Jack
ReplyDeleteenjoy your weekend adventure! i like the murals you showed here. :)
ReplyDeleteLove the murals along the wash area. Water certain brings more life. Good luck on finishing your challenge and that health goal!
ReplyDeleteYour walk was interesting)
ReplyDeleteBeautiful tile walls
xoxo, Juliana
[pjhappies.blogspot.com]
These are beautiful! Enjoy your trek!
ReplyDeleteSometimes I too challenge myself by taking along only a short lens, It's good practice but can be extremely frustrating. I look forward to seeing what you find on this weekend's hike.
ReplyDeleteYeah, too much sitting... It's all too easy now that we can explore the world from our computers! Beautiful photo of the yellow flower and the black insect with the lacy wings :) Happy walking!
ReplyDeleteYour photos are amazing...thanks for sharing them. We are getting squally rain/wind feeder bands now in south Florida due to tropical storm, Issac. I have a feeling we may be offline a day or two! Oh well...
ReplyDeleteTake care and enjoy your days (as I know you do)!!!
Later...Julie
Diet and exercise habit makes a big difference in our later life as well as keep us in fit. I usually walk a lot, but not now when even a short walk to the nearby market makes me feel quite spent. I’m an owl but I sometimes walk early in the morning or in the evening after rain shower. Only rain can soften the heat at this time of year, so I understand your monsoon effect. Whenever I go on a walk, I find something new in the constant changing nature as you did in your walk. Take care and have fun of the wet season.
ReplyDeleteYoko
Well...it is good that you are following doctors orders! Those guys don't mess around. And I will say it...it's a waterbed! :-)
ReplyDeleteI love the Portal area! We had such a wonderful time there one October. Our family took a southern Arizona vacation during Nicole's school break. We had missed most of the bird action, but the place was so quiet and beautiful.
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