December 24, 2020 Tucson, Arizona

 Only 57 today and cloudy. Very windy at the bus, but not so much elsewhere.

We hiked in Sabino Canyon. Sabino Creek originates near Mt Lemmon in the Santa Catalina Mountains and winds it way through miles of canyons before reaching the desert east of Tucson. You cannot drive you car up here. You either pay $12 each for a narrated one hour tour on an electric crawler bus or walk up. We walked. It was lovely. Lots of saguaros. The trail runs beside the road for awhile.

We took a side trip on the Esperero  trail up above the road. This is looking down into the Sabino Canyon. The creek gives life to the riparian area and desert flora within the canyon. It has water most of the year so it is very lush. Orange sycamore leaves, hazardous bridge for bikes and the canyon is a corridor in the Coronado Wilderness. 

The way back down was through a very thick saguaro forest.  Desert flora may include mesquite, palo verde, brittlebursh, saguaro and other cactuses. 

Down in Sabino Canyon with fall colors. Riparian areas support  cottonwood, willow, sycamore and ash trees. 

The trail ends and you walk on the road. The bridges were built by the WPA on 1936. It was similar to the CCC, but worked in more urban areas. The stone work was very good. John photographing some fall color over the WPA stonework.

John stopped and stood under the sign that says no stopping, no standing. He is such a rebel. Fall color and saguaros on the canyon walls. 

More fall colors. The sun was trying to came out. Silhouetted saguaro cactus on the skyline. 

Desert flora and fall colors.

The sun did come out briefly, the colors were lovely.

Saguaro and the Santa Catalina mountains.  Crooked branches, a WPA plaque on one of the bridges, a saguaro skeleton, a tiny bird that held still long enough for me to get a photo and a mountain lion warning. There are also quail, collared lizards, gopher snakes, bobcats, coyotes, cactus wrens, roadrunners and rattlesnakes. 

Cool clouds near sunset. 

December 20-21, 2020 McNeal, Arizona

 In the very high 60's and sunny.

We went back to the cranes one last time, we are moving tomorrow. There were 10-20,000 less birds than we had seen there before. We noticed them feeding in near by fields. Then at sunset 5,000 plus cranes lifted off fields and returned to the lake in mass. It was pretty cool. The flock of birds was way way wider than in the photos, this was all I could get in one frame. 

Cranes settling in. Sunset on the lake. 

Not as many as we had seen other times, but still pretty cool.  Bisbee, AZ as we drove by. 

We drove through another border patrol check station and just asked us if we were US citizens, We said yes they waved us through.  We must look innocent. 80 degrees today in Tucson in the Costco Parking lot where we went to resupply. There were also palm trees growing. We might have arrived somewhere warm! 80 degrees today in Tucson in the Costco Parking lot where we went to resupply. There were also palm trees growing. We might have arrived somewhere warm!

 I finished this basket it is 6 1/2 x 2 1/2 inches. The center is a piece of iridized Kokomo glass. It is made from pine needles, polyester thread and glass beads. Back of the basket.

Basket with the light coming through the center. We are now parked at the county fair grounds in Tucson. 

View of sunset from camp. 74 and sunny today, We went hiking in Saguaro National Park. 

John on the trail with a red cholla. We hike a couple miles in lovely weather and scenery. Beautiful desert flora.

Saguaro cactus. More beautiful desert flora.

John on the trail. Skyline.

Barrel cactus, closeup of a saguaro, red cholla fruit. Christmas cactus, wild saguaro, and a rose at the fair grounds. Red prickly pear and red cholla, cactus wren's nest in a cholla. and gila monster that crossed the road in front of us. 

The Cantina at the fairgrounds. It is an event center. The central park at the fair grounds.

Pima hall  and a windmill at the fairgrounds where we are camped. 

December 18-19, 2020 McNeal, Arizona

 High 60's and sunny. 

We visited Douglas, AZ. Beautiful historic downtown Douglas. Lots of adobe and bricks. Down the road is the border crossing. Douglas The premier southwestern border community. 

We found this monolith in the desert. The plaque on it said Mormon LDS Church Battalion San Bernardino rest camp. Dec 5, 1846. We went to San Bernardino National wildlife refuge. It was a 15 mile drive on a remote dirt road along the border to the refuge. Springs in the headwaters o the south-flowing Rio Yaqui provide habitat for  threatened native fishes and frogs. Birding is excellent in this 2, 300 acre refuge. The gates were closed, only foot traffic allowed in.  Pretty area, many of the mesquite trees still had their green leaves. 

We hiked to the overlook of the wet riparian area. John on the trail (road). The yellow cottonwoods are on the Rio Yaqui riparian area. . At the overlook there was a sign showing mountains in Mexico. You can see the border fence behind the cottonwoods. The refuge is right on the boarder. It was late in the day so we did not hike down there. Maybe another trip.

Cool looking mountains in the distance. Another view of the riparian area. 

Construction site for the border wall. The border wall, that is an outhouse in front of it and what looks like street lights along it. 

The border wall. Cool looking desert peak.

Another cool desert peak.  It was in the low 70's and sunny. We went back to the wildlife refuge to hike in the riparian area. Slaughter Ranch is a museum of an old time ranch out here. It is part of the refuge, but it is closed now. 

John on the trail (road) in the wildlife refuge. One of the ponds. The refuge was made to make some protected habitat for some endangered fish. They used to live all along southern Arizona but they lost their water and habitat to housing and farming. The water is pumped in from artisan wells. 

Another pond at the refuge. On the bottom of this John is talking to a roadrunner that was begging for food (red Arrow). He is leaning on the vehicle barrier fence that was here before. Across the road is the new wall with flood gates here for the refuge. The top of the photo John is standing right at the flood gates (red arrow again)

This border patrol guy whizzed up while we were there. He is to stay there and guard the flood gates because they are not done with them and they are not locked.  He was very polite to us. Answered some questions. Cools shadows on the heavy equipment. 

Volcanic soil rocks here, a bi-color prickly pear cactus, the begging road runner and a heart shaped prickly pear pad with red thorns glowing in the sun. The wildlife refuge sign. The spring fed Rio Yaqui runs through the riparian corridor. It is dry this time of year in the drought, but we went in for lunch. It was lovely with the autumn leaves. 

Looking down the dry river bead. We stopped at the old cemetery from when the land was a ranch.

A cross in the cemetery. Me riding a pony in the middle of nowhere in the desert. 

Also a bull ride, but the bull is missing. We dropped some change in the can for a replacement bull.  Sunset in the campground tonight. We are in the middle.