People in Anza-Borrego

Here are the last of the pictures from Anza-Borrego.  I wasn't there by myself as the other would imply.

The first is of our return to the car after hiking in the Palo Verde wash.  We were on the lookout for the trail that would take us to an abandoned mine and found it shortly after this picture was taken.  In case you are wondering, that is an ocotillo cactus by Meg.

Sure, the Stallard family likes to hike and explore when on vacation.  However, there is also a lot of down time reading and relaxing in the sun.  This relaxing doesn't take place only near the pool.  Here are Jenny, Tom, and Meg enjoying the shade while Dave, Tim, and Bob explored further up a slot canyon.
Ever want to know how big a Joshua Tree is?  Find Jenny (not too hard) and do your estimates.  When we were in Joshua Tree National Park, we were looking for the biggest Joshua tree that Dave had ever seen - he had shown us the picture earlier.  We thought that this might be it, but alas it was not.  Still, it's pretty big.
On our last day, we went on a hike to another slot canyon.  It got tight in a couple of places.    Here are some other shots and more explanations of how tight the canyons were.

So that's it for Anza-Borrego.  I will get some other shots up soon.  Spring is here - technically - and summer is coming soon.  I'll have more time and better weather to go out in the future.

Slot Canyons

Two months later...

The first three pictures are of a slot canyon along the Calcite Mine trail.  A little trail off to the side took us through this canyon.  The guidebook instructed us to stop when we came to a small wall, but a few adventurous souls decided to continue further while the others relaxed and enjoyed some cookies.

the one below is upstream from the small wall just before the canyon widened - and became less interesting.
While walking through the canyon, I was reminded of a trip to Wisconsin Dells many years ago when I was but a wee lad.  On a Duck Tour, my family and I got off to visit a canyon called "Fat Man's Misery" (or something like that.  Perhaps "Fat Man's Nightmare.")  I don't remember just how wide that was, but I don't think a large person would be very happy in some parts of these canyons.
the one below was explored on our last full day in Anza-Borrego.  I'm not sure the name of the trail - it's not important - but it was very popular with both hikers and off-roaders.  Before we entered the canyon, we encountered some mean looking VW Beetles ready for some serious rock climbing.  The people attending the vehicles were nice enough but a little perplexed as to why we would be hiking when we could be in an ORV.  I had a similar question for them and the beer.
I hope you enjoyed this journey down  - actually up - the slot canyons visited this year.  I have some more pictures that I will put up; those will show that I didn't go on this trip by myself.

Desert Waterfalls

At last some pictures from the trip to the desert!

The first day out, we went on a little hike to stretch the legs and start to enjoy our surroundings. About halfway up the canyon that we were hiking, a little stream showed up. Evidently a young lady in the group ahead of us was taken completely by surprise and was not use to fording very shallow streams - she ignored the stick, slipped on a rock, and fell on her backside. Her shocked shriek was barely audible over her companions' - and I'll admit, my own - laughter.

The hike was pretty easy and we were able to take our time and enjoy the views. It turned out that there were a lot of small waterfalls as we followed the stream.

As we neared the palm oasis (our destination), the stream widened and the vegetation was more spread out. Meg and Tom put up with my photo side trips and Jenny had some people to talk to while she waited.

We turned around at the palm oasis which - as you have probably guessed - was an oasis with a bunch of palm trees. It was a good spot for a break and many people were eating lunch and taking a break. Most were on the large boulders that were there, but others were hidden behind rocks, bushes, and I saw one young lady in a bush.

There were many opportunities for photos and many interesting - yes, interesting - sights. Unfortunately, I was not quick enough to get a shot of a roadrunner and the only coyotes that came near showed up at about 4 o'clock one morning and started howling. I have some more pictures to share but I thought I would post what you expect to see in the desert.