The Desert Rains

CRACK!  A bolt of lightning streaked through the sky splitting a desert mesquite in half. It falls into a major road nearly hitting a car. My cat looks toward the sound.  And I begin to hear the winds and torrential monsoon rains crash down upon us. 

Two hours pass and nearly three inches of rain trap homeowners. And while they are trapped, they discover the unwanted leaks in their roofs. I can't keep the rain out of our house because it's not raining down.....it's raining sideways!  Another tree is blown over and comes racing down a wash(now raging river) and takes out a truck.  Emergency vehicles are everywhere.  Streets, I mean rivers, form and block people from leaving their homes. The world comes to a standstill. 

Coachline "Lake" is back.

Meanwhile, Mother Nature reclaims her desert from human kind.  Dams and supports that were placed along areas to feed the ag fields, are destroyed.  The water returns to nature and feeds the land once again.  This birder rejoices.  A lake has been reborn!

Tiger Whiptail

Cacti flower.  And lizards take advantage of the puddles of water.  There they sip from the tiny pools and replenish their reserves. 

A rare Snow Goose gains strength and flies.  Perhaps someday it will return to the North where it will breed.  But not today. Apparently it prefers the desert over tundra:)

Snow Goose

During the month of August, strange birds pass through our state.  Some are expected while others are very rare.  But chasing them in the heat isn't always fun.

 However, if they're easier to find, it makes the trek worth it.  Monsoon will begin to wind down now.  And that's okay with me:)  It means the high temps will also disappear:)

Tricolored Heron

Until next time.....

Dead Heat

The heat.  The hot, muggy, wet monsoonal heat. It's part of the contract we mentally signed when we agreed to live in the desert.  Anyone who says it's a dry heat, needs to visit Tucson in July through September. In fact, if you say "dry heat" to an Arizonan, they'll probably smack you:) No matter what.  It's hot here. 

The anvil builds and it's a sign that there will be a storm!

What an amazing show from Mother Nature though!  I won't lie.  During this time of year, I lock myself inside the house and watch it all from my windows.  You'd be surprised how much activity is going on out there!  But when temps are 105 degrees at 80 percent humidity, one tends to shut the curtains and imagine the possibilities of tomorrow. 

Not unlike the cold snowy winters of the north or eastern states of the US, our time of misery is now. I sit at my desk and research, crunch data, money, and plan.  Sometimes I wait for a big break in the weather to go outdoors.  And eventually, I get one!

Greater Yellowlegs

I get in my car and drive!  Migration is upon us and that means there are a lot of cool birds coming through the state.  The rain cooled air feels so good.  A cold breeze touches my skin and I discover that my goose pimples are still present.  I just stand outside, free from my chains, and breathe.  I'm birding again!  There's nothing worse than being a caged bird inside your own home!

Baird's Sandpiper

The birds seem to be happy as well.  They sit up and pose for the camera.  No sun.  No heat.  Just a wonderful moment.  That is until a Peregrine Falcon flies over and reminds everyone that they still can be eaten. 

Scaled Quail

I knew it wouldn't last forever and so I just tried to absorb the moment.  And sure enough, the next day, temperatures were on the rise as was the humidity!  The cloud cover was all but gone. 

But after the storm left, we noticed many Wilson's Warblers in our area!  During migration, storms are known for helping birds move from one area to the next!

Wilson's Warbler

While the temps are high, the birds still amaze!  Best time out here is early morning and yeah....early morning:)

Hummingbirds, peeps, warblers and so many other birds are beginning their journeys back home. May they endure the heat and long trek.  Until next time.....

The Neutral Zone

By accident, I found a place where man and beast alike roam in the city of Tucson.  It was shocking.  Behind a lake, I found an area between Columbus Park and Sweetwater Wetlands that was teaming with wildlife.  I went to find buntings and more buntings(reported by a birder), but I found much more than that......

Male Lesser Goldfinch in the shadows of this mighty Mesquite tree

I walked alone again on this cloudy afternoon during our monsoon storms.  It was cool and quiet.  The bugs were out in full force.  Even if a homeless person wanted to live in this area, they couldn't or if they did, they'd face being eaten alive.

It was oddly exciting for me.  And I began to connect the dots. A river ran through this forested area of Mesquite, Arizona Cottenwood, and other dense shrubs.  It was like a secret forest left untouched.  If humans decided to build here, they'd face the threat of losing their home in this wash or worse....their lives. Because of floods, etc., this area is a no man's land that cannot be touched by people at all. So the wash had evidence that people were present, but it was clear that it was a safehaven for wildlife like coyotes and mountain lions to hide.

Mexican Amberwing Dragonfly

I walked among the ruins overrun by mequite trees growing from the tops of concrete waste.  For a year now, I have tried to understand how Mountain Lions were entering the Sweetwater wetlands without being noticed.  That is until I went from the other side of the wash and discovered this lost haven.  There were things that lived here that I had never seen before in the city.  I mean....strange new butterflies, birds and animals.  You'll see them all.  It was a real treat.  Again, I heard the Lazuli Buntings in the dense forest and surrounding grasslands but because the bugs were so intense, I stayed out of the area.  Plus there were other desert things lurking in the dark.  So I played it safe.

Now there were all kinds of critters.  I didn't realize how many of you loved lizards until several weeks ago so I'll take more pictures of them for you all.   Right now butterflies and lizards OWN the desert:)  They are everywhere.

Zebra tailed lizard

So I forgot about the muggy weather and had a blast taking pictures and capturing everything on camera.  Over the next several days you'll see some extremely exciting desert wildlife come alive:)

Goldfinch

But like all good things, my walk had to come to an end and I had to return home, but I didn't want to....this summer heat carries a price.  I respect the desert and listen to my body.  Heat exhaustion is common here in the desert and can come on suddenly without warning.  So I look forward to the winter weather more than ever!  I'm craving long day hikes again.  More tomorrow....

Like a hot brownie outside......

Moist, hot, steamy........seriously???  Seriously.  Monsoon is taking her sweet time leaving Tucson.  It would be something if it just rained....but it doesn't.  The air just sits on you and the mosquitos suck your blood. The new official end to monsoon is coming to a close and this week there is rain in the forecast along with 100 degree temps.  Isn't fall around the corner?  My garden is out of control weedy and needing an extreme haircut, but with the bugs out there the way they are, it's not going to happen:(

Dog owners and poo.  Why must people who own dogs be so disrespectful to other homeowners and not clean up their mess? A young neighbor just adopted a cute puppy but have decided to not clean up after their dog.....basically there are mines all over my garden areas.  Step one.  Cayenne pepper.  Step two.  Call the HOA board.  Step 3.  Call Pima County Health if the issue does not resolve. And of course, the neighbor has been contacted and advised but he still continues allowing the dog to use the bathroom.....ugh! Rude. 

Anyhow, sorry about the negative feel to this post, but I represent Tucson today and how we are ready for our hellish heat to be gone.  Knowing that it's just around the corner only makes it worse.....like a cloudy cold winter day, our hot humid moist sunny skies will come to an end and we are eager for it to be gone.  The Greek Festival begins this week to welcome Fall and with it, her cooler temps.  Gardeners all around will rejoice for lower temps:) Keep your fingers crossed:)

Tucson during Monsoon

I am not worthy of these photos. Tonight I am waiting for a huge storm to come so that I can see if the window will leak after we just sealed it up.  So passing the time, I went to our local TV website to see where the storms are and on http://www.kvoa.com/ under the weather link,  I discovered their gallery of great Tucson pics that capture why people live in Arizona.  Enjoy!! Again I did not take these pics, but this is a taste of what you'll see here if you keep your eyes open during monsoon:)  The photographers are credited on the gallery listings of KVOA. Here's a snapshot from local people beyond my own work.