Desert Delight

I sometimes wonder why people who haven't visited the Southwest think it is a vast wasteland, full of nothing but sand and cactus.  Obviously, they haven't been out here in the springtime, when we are witnesses to some beautiful, amazing sunsets and desert wildflowers.

From afar, the Buckhorn Cactus doesn't look like much, but a closeup of the flowers at springtime reveal hues of purple, pink, green and white, reminding me of a fireworks bursting into color.

Desert grasses and small yellow wildflowers surround the red Pestemon plant by the Usery Nature Center.

Look closely and you can see why the plant below is called the Chain Fruit Cholla.  Yellow Brittlebush plants hug the bases of the cacti. This is one cactus you definitely want to keep your distance from.  Needles from these can easily penetrate flip flops.

Desert Marigolds show off their bright yellow faces,

while the Blue Lupine struts it's own colorful bouquet.

Yellow Brittlebush is the most prevalent flowering plant in most desert areas.  The bushes pop up alongside the roads, even if the winter rains are sparse.  The blue-gray leaves make a nice background for the brilliant yellow flowers with golden centers.

And who can not marvel at the delicate blossoms of the Desert Bluebell flowers?  These were all taken at Usery, but traveling to other places in Arizona you'll enjoy the orange blossoms of the Globe Mallow and stretches of California Poppies, depending on the timing and duration of our winter rains.  Much to see, and so much to enjoy!

Usery Revisted

Once again, we are camping at Usery Regional Park during Spring break.  This year, Sandy and Jerry brought along Ainslee, Micah and Wyatt.  We had Kyla with us, and Doris had her granddaughter, Delaney.  Even with the age differences, they all got along well.  

Doris and her trailer on the left, S & J in the middle and our rig on the right.

Doris and I both were surprised when they sprung a surprise 70th birthday party for us.  Okay, so Doris isn't quite 70 yet, but it was a good excuse for a celebration that included chocolate cake.  Doris got to wear a bow tie that lit up and I had a beautiful necklace with a huge 70 on it!  

Don was also surprised when he got a special gift from Doris, Sandy and Jerry.  When he opened it up, it was a set of training wheels for his bike!  Not to rub it in, but he did have a nasty spill on his bike last month and we can now refer to him as "Crash Boy"!

 Jerry, Doris and Kyla are laughing with Don as he inspects his new wheels!

Like last year, we did a morning hike on the nature trail before it got too hot.   Doris read about all the plants along the way, but I have no idea of how much was retained in their brains.  After all, it wasn't a game on their Ipad or Nook, or one of the other electronic devices they all seem to enjoy these days.

Lots of card games were played, and it looks like Delaney has an Uno headache.Or maybe she is reading the card magically through her forehead!

There were some "firsts" this year.  Ainslie finally was able to ride without her training wheels, Micah learned how to tie his shoes and Kyla serenaded us with her flute.  It may seem harsh for her to force her to bring along her instrument and practice every day while we were camping, but she was chosen for state band and needed to have her music down pat.

Wednesday was our bike and hike morning.  The older kids, Doris, Don and I biked over to the playground next to the hill across from the Merkle trail.  Don and Doris can be seen checking their phones because we missed the street and had to turn around.  Kyla, Delaney and Wyatt waited patiently while they figured it out (after all, what else could they do?).

Almost to the playground.......with a view of the Superstition Mountains in the background.

Doris stopped to take a picture of the views from the trail while Kyla passed on by her.

View to the east showing the Superstitions.

And here is the view out to the west, with the word "Phoenix" written on the mountainside with an arrow. In the 1950's, a group of Boy Scouts moved rocks and whitewashed them to form a navigational sign for pilots.  It took them 5 1/2 years to complete it and the sign is as long as the Empire State Building! They carried dynamite, lime and cement up on the mountain and moved millions of rocks during that time.

Closer view of the Phoenix sign looking from the entrance to Usery.

The grandchildren, waiting for Doris and I to catch up!  We told them we were behind because we were taking pictures......and they believed us!

The playground here has nice climbing rocks and a cement Saguaro cactus that is perfect for the smaller kids.  Kyla took the opportunity to rest and call her Dad.

Ainslie, Delaney, Wyatt and Micah on the cement Saguaro.  No needles on this one, thank goodness!

I know all the kids enjoyed the time with us.  Even on the way back home, Micah asked Grandpa Jerry when they were going camping again!