Oh, some more desert stuff

Considering I'm about 3 weeks behind in the story, it's surprising I still manage to leave something out. Note to self: check the picture folder before posting for pictures that might precede what I'm righting about.

Alongside the Desert Museum outside Tucson is one arm of the Saguaro National Park. (The other branch is on the east side of Tucson.) After visiting the Desert Museum, I spent the remainder of the afternoon amongst the desert giants, the Saguaro Cactus. There was also a petroglyph site with extensive rock art.

This, of course, occurred before the events described in the previous post...

Coming up Real Soon Now, Grand Canyon pictures, to be followed by pictures from Zion, Bryce, and wherever I happen to land next. :-)

A visit into the Sonoran Desert

After my fascinating visit to the Chiricahua National Monument, I passed through Tucson on my way toward Phoenix and points north. Outside Tucson is the Desert Museum. This is basically a combination arboretum and zoo, showcasing the flora and fauna of the Sonoran Desert, which is the principal desert area of Arizona. (Parts of Arizona are also in the Mojave Desert, but that'll be a different trip, I think.)

While there, I photographed a number of plants. (I didn't photo the lazy-looking cougar -- it just didn't seem right to do so.) Most of these pictures come either from the museum grounds, or from my travels immediately before and after visiting it.

These are the ocotillo.

These are prickly pear cactus in bloom.

There were a large number of yellow-flowered plants blooming in the Tucson and Phoenix areas . These were also widely in evidence down in the Grand Canyon.