An Arizona Desert

We traveled south yesterday to visit old friends who are now living in the Arizona desert outside Wickenburg. They are remote enough that, for the first time in the trip, we didn’t have Internet access. The trip was routine until we got to the Prescott National Forest. Here we traveled a very windy road through the forested mountains and dropped four thousand feet. A lot of leaning back and forth, pulling over for high speed locals and holding our noses while inhaling and exhaling.

The final part of the decent was the best. As we broke out of the mountains, we got a breathtaking view of the desert basin below. I do not tire of this kind of view. You can see for miles; in this case about sixty miles to the other side of the basin. We didn’t know it at the time but our destination was in view but still far away. The mountains and elevation must act as a weather barrier because the forty-degree temperature in Prescott yielded to the high eighties when we reached the desert floor.

The final decent was spectacular. Not only the view of the basin, but also the terrain and the plants. The walls were so shear and high that the two lanes of the road were actually cut into the mountain in two separate locations. Most of the time, we couldn’t see the oncoming traffic and when we could, they were either high above or below us. Also, part way down cacti appeared. What a strange plant and it appears in quite a few varieties. The tall ones we used to seeing in the westerns look like alien solders standing on the mountains and in the flat fields.

I thought we might be lost at one point because we left the highway and started into the desert on an unpaved road with no houses in sight. We persevered and sure enough we finally arrived at their home. They had a neighbor on either side but none others. All three were completely fenced in. When I asked why, I was told that ranchers were allowed open range and that meant that cattle weren’t fenced in, they were fenced out. If you don’t want them in your yard, then put up a fence.

We had a good visit and enjoyed the tour of the plants and sat for a long time on the porch watching the birds and animals. After dark we went outside for some stargazing. It was so dark, we human chained to the driveway. I leaned back against the car and saw the sky as I’ve never seen it. The Milky Way cut a large, bright, unmistakable swath though the middle of the sky. Again, I have to say spectacular. I was able to see clusters. None of us could spot the familiar Big Dipper because it was buried in so many stars I haven’t seen before. This was a wonderful experience.

The next day we said our good byes and headed toward Phoenix and then north toward Flagstaff. The varieties of cacti entertained us as we drove. There would be a single cactus in one place and then a forest of them in others.

As we retraced the trail to Flagstaff and, finally, to Gallup, New Mexico we enjoyed again the variety of mountains, rocks and forests we saw previously. We’ll be spending the night in Gallup.