Cardinals in the Desert

A male cardinal survey the yard from a particular bush every morning we were in Tucson in June. He stayed around long enough to be photographed. The favored bush had seeds that the cardinal particularly enjoyed. One morning he was content to simply gorge.

The next morning he brought a female friend and proceeded to offer her part of the bounty.

The last morning he ate quickly then posed - back and then with upraised tail - before he flew off for the rest of his day in the desert.

Cactus in the Morning

As I was out and about my Maryland yard early this morning, I thought about the most pleasant time of day in Tucson back in June - the early morning. We got up for sunrise twice. The sunrise is spectacular but the morning light on the plants of the desert is even better. There is color and clarity that is dimmed in the blaring late of the more direct sunlight of other parts of the day.

Legumes are probably as prevalent as cactus in the Sonoran Desert. The seeds inside the pods in the above image are clearly bulging. The curling pods are a contrast to the pale green of the leaves - highlighted with red. Would they have been as noticeable at mid-day? Probably not.

There was a grouping of plants near the pool that drew my attention again and again; on the last day we found out that a gila monster den was just to the right of the yellow cactus in this image! I took pictures of the grouping from many different angles but my favorites are the close up shots of the two types of cactus in the morning light.

The colors seem to glow. I have tried to decide whether the yellow or red are my favorite…and I can’t. The yellow one seems so robust and perfect…it has the smaller cactus growing with it.

The red on looks tough and the spines have a delicate variation in their color along the spines.

Today - I am savoring the June time in Tucson - again.

Tucson Botanical Gardens

I am just now finding a day to post about my visit to the Tucson Botanical Gardens in June. In looking back through my photographs, I found it very difficult to select a small enough number for this post.

The Gardens are an oasis in a heavily populated part of Tucson. It is obvious that they have been getting better and better as the many years of their existence have gone by. One of my favorite features was a water fountain that had water coming out of a yucca pod shaped sculpture.

There was a dinosaur garden complete with dinosaur figures and types of plants that existed during that time period.

I’ve never seen so many art bird houses. I took many pictures of the creations. The one to the left is one of my favorites.

The Japanese rock garden looks right at home in Tucson. It works well in a desert and looks as soothing as it would in a totally different climate.

There were plenty of lizards - doing pushups and eying the people in their space too. This one looks quite haughty.  

Decorative tile is used on benches and for some signage. It too fits the desert - durable even in high heat. 

The best of the rest are in the slide show below. I realize now that these gardens will be on my list of ‘things to do’ every time I go back to Tucson.

Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum - June 2013

The Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum was already getting warm by the time we got there on a morning back in June. The barn owl (picture to left) held by a volunteer at the entrance was a popular for stop for everyone. Behind the volunteer was a display of plants - and lizards doing pushups.

There was a desert spoon (picture to right) in bloom as we made our way toward the animal exhibits. We got to the bear’s enclosure just as it was being released from its night quarters. It went to the waiting pile of food - gobbling the watermelon first and leaving the apple and peanuts for later snacking.

The saguaros were displaying their bright red fruit but several of the barrel type cacti were blooming. Butterflies were enjoying the bird-of-paradise flowers. The teddy bear cactus did not look at all cuddly. I only managed one good picture in the hummingbird house; they were moving too fast most of the time but the one with the iridescent purple throat stopped to pose.

This museum is an easy place to enjoy. There is always something that has changed since the last time - a new blossom, an animal or bird doing something different. Post from the same place back in March 2013: birds, plants, seahorses

Saguaro National Park - East

The eastern section of Saguaro National Park was not far from our rental house when we were in Tucson in June. We got up early and headed over before the day got too hot. There is a loop to drive around that climbs a little ways into the Rincon Mountains.

The nature trail and lookout from some rocks were along the drive but we stopped at most of the turnout points as well. The high point of the nature trail was finding the cicada that was singing in the tree beside the trail. The saguaros were past the peak flowering but that made it even better because we were able to see the fruits in various stages of ripeness. Looking down into the canyon from one of the higher turnout points showed the deep erosion from the water pouring down from the mountains although it was very dry when we were there since the monsoons had not started. The bright green of the lichen on some of the rocks was starting; most of the other desert plants are a duller shade.

Enjoy the slide show of the park below! 

Tucson Sunsets and Bats

The sunsets from our rental house in Tucson were pretty spectacular in June because the monsoon season was close enough for interesting cloud formation (but not rain). It was comfortable to sit outdoors watching the colors crescendo and then fade. It was not as hot as it is now in Tucson and there had not been rain yet so there were no mosquitos.

The other phenomenon at that time of day in Tucson in June is the emergence of bats from the overpasses at dusk. On one of the last days we were in Tucson we decided see them emerge at a place where there is a walkway under the overpass. We heard sounds as we walked underneath. Was that the bats moving? It turns out that it was but we didn’t see them. They were far up in the nooks and crannies of the overpass. We watched for a few minutes - waiting. And then the first bats took to the air. More and more emerged and flew off in both directions in clusters. They were off to enjoy ripe Saguaro fruits. It was all over in about 5 minutes. Walking back to the car, the pile of monsoon clouds was reflecting the last of the daylight.

Arizona State Museum

The Arizona State Museum is located on the campus of the University of Arizona in Tucson. I had quickly walked around the museum on a previous visit to Tucson but enjoyed the museum at a leisurely pace this time - particularly the exhibit about the various tribes of Arizona from before the Europeans came to today….listening to the languages, enjoying the art (old and new) on display, and hearing about what happened to each of the cultures. There were some positive events but the overwhelming theme was the struggle of the tribes to survive the barrage of horrible things that happened as the Europeans came west. Sitting in the pottery room was a way to recover from the tour of that part of the museum. I find the designs and curves of the pots to be relaxing; pots also appeal because they are functional art. It is easy to imagine the potters all through history while looking at the collection the museum has displayed. The collection of sandals was the last of my photographs at the museum. The sandals on display are all old - found by archeologists. I noted that a lot of people in Tucson wear modern flip flops that look very similar.

Ten Days of Little Celebrations - June 2013

Back in August 2012, I posted about finding something to celebrate each day. It’s an easy thing for me to do and the habit of writing it down reminds me to be grateful for these and a myriad of other things in my life. This month has been full of ‘little celebrations’ so I have one for each day up to today rather than the usual 10 for the month! 

1. Enjoying a book by a new author. I read a lot of books; the thrilled of finding an author that is new - or new to me - never seems to wane. It’s a lot like finding an unexpected treasure…and gets even better if the author has written other similar books.
2. Reading in a comfy chair by a window as it rains. The combination of natural light, the sound of rain, a good book, and a comfortable chair - it’s the convergence of things that make the moment special.
3. A calm day before the flurry of travel. Before the packing day…celebrating the calm before the bustle begins. It’s a little too soon to be worried about anything. The day can be savored as the contrast of what is to come.
4. Brookside Gardens. It is a place to celebrate at least monthly. Like all gardens, it changes with every visit. My post from that visit is here.
5. Ready to travel. Through all the trepidation of packing - wondering if everything would fit in the allotted luggage, making sure each back would meet the needs of the travel stages - and then it is done. It all fits. The boarding pass is printed. There is a small list to remember to pack right before heading to the airport. Everything is organized.
6. Arrival - forgetting only one (non-critical) item. Everything went exactly according to plan and the only item I forgot was a snack for the plane. It was left carefully packaged in the refrigerator. I noticed it almost immediately when I got to the gate and was able to purchase some almonds before boarding the plane so was not starving when I got off….and everything else was perfect. Arriving at a destination is always worth a celebration!
7. Sisters dinner. There are four of us - together for over 50 years and still enjoying each other. Our perspectives of growing up in the same household and divergences as adults are sources for almost endless conversation - and it is almost always over food. We ignored calorie counting for the evening.
8. Frontier Texas! in Abilene TX. This museum was a pleasant surprise. I’ll be posting about it eventually. It is new enough to present different perspectives of time period rather than just the traditional ‘Cowboy and Indian’ (masculine) stories.
9. White Sands National Monument. I have a post about this in the next few days. We didn’t rent saucers to slide down the dunes (I’ll wait for a time when I travel with a child for that) but did walk out on the sand barefoot. The whiteness of the sand reflects the heat enough that it is not hot like the tan colored sands.
10. Tucson Sunset. Experiencing the sunset on the first day in a new location is a celebration of a beginning - at the end of the first day with the brilliant colors of day fading to the blues and purples of evening. I’ll do a post about the Tucson sunset next week.
11. Madera Canyon. I posted about Madera Canyon already (here). The trek set the tone for the rest of time in Tucson: do as much as possible in the morning when it is coolest, enjoy the birds, take the easier hikes so everyone in the group can easily keep up, take plenty of pictures.
12. Sunrise and the Saguaro National Park (east). I’ve already posted about the sunrise here - and since we were already up - we took in the National Park as well. I’ll be posted about it in the next few weeks. It is going to take quite a while to work through the blog worthy items from June 2013.
13. The Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum. There is a post coming up for the June visit. I’ve posted about the March 2013 visit (Plants and Birds and Seahorses) previously.
14. Tucson Botanical Garden. A garden in the city that includes large seedless grapefruit trees! There were also artichokes in bloom when we were there. There  is a blog post in development about it.
15. A daughter. What a joy it is to have a daughter than has grown into herself so gracefully! I always think that the current year is the very best of our shared lives….it’s been that way for more than 20 years!
16. Storm in the Davis Mountains. I was not celebrating while we were driving through it - curvy road, towering black thunderheads, pounding rain of very large drops or slushy hail. But we drove on - unscathed - and, in retrospect, the interplay of weather and terrain was quite awesome. Some of the clouds are shown in the Road Trip post from yesterday.
17. Clark Gardens Botanical Park. After a convoluted drive on country roads to find it - we quickly decided it was a place to enjoy and plan a return visit in another season. There will be an upcoming post on our June visit.
18. Back to the Dallas area. It was good to get off the road. We all celebrated not having to go anywhere at all for a day.
19. Home Again. The plane flight was as expected and I savored the quiet of home…for an evening.
20. Day at home. All through the day I celebrated that I had at least 24 hours before guests would arrive. It didn’t matter that I needed to do cleaning or make sure the sheets in the guess bedroom were fresh. It was very good to be home again.
21. Catching up. All the email and news feeds and laundry and mail….the little things that stack up when one is away from home and/or too busy. I celebrated that I got everything caught up except the news feeds before guests arrived.
22. Butterflies. The butterfly display is in full swing at Brookside Gardens conservatory. Even single butterflies are often worth celebrating; this display is almost overwhelming in that regard! I experimented with some video. One turned out particularly well and I may include it in my upcoming post.
23. Mount Vernon. In recent years, I’ve only gone when guests have requested…and enjoy it every time. There have been a lot of changes. The most recent is the addition of a theater with special effects (vibrating seats and snow falling) to dramatize events of the Revolutionary War. The place is definitely worth celebrating. I’ll eventually take a look at the pictures from the day a post about the visit.
24. Time to take naps. I don’t normally nap but June finally wore me out. Fortunately - it happened on a day I could take a nap in the morning….and another in the afternoon!
25. Anticipating getting back to normal. I am finally looking at some weeks without travel or external plans. The mundane activities of grocery shopping and mopping the kitchen floor are quite appealing.
26. Catching up - again. I am working off the items in inboxes and news feeds…even finishing up some Coursera work. It is thrilling to mark off items and realize that I can probably stay caught up….until the next time I have a series of days like ‘June 2013.’

June 2013 Road Trip

My road trip a few weeks ago took me from Dallas TX to Tucson AZ. The route went through Dallas - Fort Worth - Weatherford - Abilene - Midland - Pecos - El Paso - Las Cruces - Tucson…and back. On the way out we made a side trips into Abilene for the Frontier Texas exhibit and from Las Cruces to White Sands National Monument. On the way back we stopped at Clark Gardens near Weatherford. I have some future posts about those places. This post is about the scenes from the road.

It turns out that the pictures from Tucson back were the better ones - so the slide show below starts in Tucson and includes the scenes from the road in the three states. All three states have increased decoration of bridge abutments and overpasses along their interstates in recent years. They emphasize architecture, natural features and colors of the area. I captured some of the more unusual ones. El Paso seemed to have the most extensive and the most elaborate - in muted colors that seemed to fit the environment of El Paso.

The clouds were also noticeable. Their thickness built up in the afternoon of our first day of driving from Tucson. We had quite a rainstorm about an hour past El Paso. At first we thought we might be able to drive from underneath the big cloud…but it was as speedy as we were. The speed limit in that stretch is 80 mph but we slowed down in the deluge.

All three states have rest stops…many of them quite scenic. And they had picnic tables with shade - and situated to catch the breeze; we enjoyed picnic lunches even in the June heat. The welcome centers are even more elaborate. I took a picture of the sign and the doors of the one in New Mexico. The Texas rest stops included mosaics on the walls….and photogenic insects because they are so ‘open.’ As we got closer to Dallas we managed to take the route through Weatherford rather than return to the highway after our stop at Clark Gardens - so I got a picture of the center of town while we were stopped at a light. From there it was Fort Worth and Dallas traffic…not photogenic. We were all glad to get out of the car and stretch!

Madera Canyon

Madera Canyon is about 30 miles south of Tucson and 30 miles north of Nogales in the Santa Rita Mountains. It is in the Coronado National Forest - a pleasant addition of trees to the cactus and scrub of the Sonoran Desert. We took an easy hike and ate a picnic - with almost no one else around - when we visited Tucson a few weeks ago. There was no water in Madera Creek; nonetheless, the birds were plentiful as we had anticipated. They were so quick that we didn’t get many pictures until we stopped at a gift shop and found benches overlooking bird feeders. It was a great finale to the outing. 

Doves of Tucson

This time of year the doves (clade Columbidae) are enjoying the ripening fruit of the Saguaro cactus. Their muted colors contrast with the cactus - providing a desert color scheme with the white of the blooms, the red of the fruits and the dull green of the accordion folds of the trunk. When they are not perched on a Saguaro, they are on a roof ridgeline or getting a drink at some water source (the rocks at the edge of the swimming pool that the quail enjoyed were also favorites with the doves). The birds are so numerous that they are probably the most easily photographed of all the birds in the area.

Enjoy the slide show featuring the doves of Tucson below.

Gila Monster

The big excitement on our last afternoon in Tucson, Arizona was the first monsoon rain of the season and the large gila monster that emerged from the rocks beside the pool of our rental house. It was relatively still at first, looking like a strangely patterned stuffed toy. Then it moved. It leaned over to get a drink from the pool while the camera was retrieved. It posed for a picture and then sauntered off to its den.

We had been in the house for a week and enjoying the area around the pool without noticing the hole just under one of the poolside rocks. I’m glad we finally saw the gila monster and relieved that it did not come out unexpectedly while someone was standing right beside its burrow! I supposed it was good that the pool was nearby since the Wikipedia entry says that sometimes the only way to get them to release was they bite it to submerge them in water. 

Arizona Sunrise - June 2013

Getting up for an Arizona sunrise in June is for early risers. We did it twice the week we were in Tucson. The first morning was the best because there were a few clouds to provide the canvas for the colors of the sunrise. The saguaro cactus that looks that a Gumby with a wild headdress and round nose provides a sync point for the sequence of photographs below. There is a cactus wren - in silhouette - on top of the tallest branch in the last picture.

I’ll post some morning light photos in a few days. The first hour after sunrise is the best for outdoor photography. 

Seahorses

There is a small aquarium room as the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum in Tucson. It was not open when we first entered the museum; it was on out ‘must see’ list since it had been added to the museum since out last visit. The seahorse tank drew my attention. There were two different kinds and they clung to the water grasses with their tail or gracefully drifted to a neighboring plant. They seemed alert but never hurried or nervous.

When I got home, there was a picture on The Scientist website showing how the seahorse’s bony plates are configured to make it hard yet flexible. That serendipity prolonged my ‘Zen of the seahorse’ thoughts!

Plants at the Desert Museum

There were only a few things blooming at the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum when we went a few weeks ago. The dried out blossoms of century plants and dormant ocotillos were everywhere.

The bright yellow of the Arizona poppies stood out among the more subtle colors of cactus spines and edges of agave leaves. Soon there will be many flowers in the desert but for now enjoy the slide show of the situation in March!

Tohono Chul Gardens

The gardens at Tohono Chul in Tucson are one of my favorite places. I notice something different every time I go. This time was in the early spring. The desert poppies that I posted about a few days ago were one of the few flowers already blooming. The cactus spines added some color.

But the odd saguaros were what caught my attention. My mind jumps to name them: the one on the left is ‘crying Pinocchio’ and the one on the right is ‘Gumby (with lots of extra arms).’ What do they look like to you?

Last but not least - the sculpture of the horned toad caught my attention. It is many times larger than the actual animal but quite realistic looking. I remember seeing them frequently when I was a child in Texas.

Desert Poppies

The desert poppies were blooming in Tucson when we were there. They are quick to respond to the early warm days of spring. The bright color of the flowers marks the springtime against the dull greens of other desert vegetation or the browns of the sand and pebbles on the ground.

There was a class of art students sketching them. It was breezy so keeping papers and materials in place was a little challenging…but all seemed to be enjoying their attempt to capture the essence of poppies in bloom. I snapped a few photographs of the poppies to commemorate the day.

Arizona Living

Living in Tucson is somewhat different than living in Maryland. As a visitor - these are the ones I noticed. 

• The houses and apartments tend to be stucco with flat or tile roofs. Many houses have courtyards or walled gardens. There are small, carefully tended areas of greenery clustered close to housing: oleanders, palms, eucalyptus, cactus, and orange trees. A fountain with round river stones in its base graces an apartment complex courtyard. In a dry place, water noise is the sound of luxury…maybe decadence as well. The most practical yards are sand and pebbles. The surface is sometimes raked to arrange the pebbles uniformly - or create a pattern; there is nothing to mow. The temperature changes between day and night mean that windows are opened or closed at various times almost every day; opened in the early morning to let the cool are into the house before the day warms or in the warm afternoon to let warm air in if the nights have been cold. There is not as much temperature variation during a single day in Maryland.

• The Tucson water has a lot more minerals than the water in Maryland. Most people filter their drinking water in some way and take steps to keep their kitchenware (and anything exposed to water) from developing deposits. The water pipes must be encrusted on the inside too.
• Tucson is a city but the traffic is very light compared to the Washington DC and Baltimore traffic. What a luxury!
• In Tucson, the lighting around houses and along residential streets seems more localized. The sky is darker at night. Even in the city, stars can be seen. Being able to see the stars on clear nights should be a long term goal even for major metropolitan areas.
• Last but not least - the traffic lights have different timing for left turns. In Tucson it is after the straight ahead traffic and in Maryland it is before. 

Baltimore and Tucson Airport Art

On a recent trip between Baltimore and Tucson I captured some airport art.

In the Southwest Airlines terminal at Baltimore - there are dabs of paint on the windows. They add color on gray days and filter the sunlight on days when the sun is shining - very much like stained glass.

The baggage carousel in Tucson had an image of a pot etched into metal with an arc of color to one side. It was a good welcome to the city.

And then there were the Arizona scenes made with ceramics at the entrances to the restrooms - cholla and barrel cactus...with birds.

Previous posts about airport art: Dallas, other Tucson art.

Arizona Senna and Solanum

My daughter sent me senna and solanum pictures. I am appreciating that technology makes it so easy to increase the vicarious experience. I’ve been hearing about these plants since last summer when my son-in-law obtained them for his study of native pollinators and the pictures have taken the experience to a new level!

They have been moving the plants into their apartment during the frosty nights in Tucson this winter. This is quite an undertaking since there are over 20 pots of senna (yellow) and solanum (purple); the pots must fill in almost all the available floor space in their living room. Fortunately it has only been a few nights. And the plants have survived and thrived - blooming continuously.

Enjoy the senna and solanum flowers in the slide show below….little bits of weedy color when seen along the roadsides….cheery in macro photographs.

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