The desert landscape from my daughter’s Marana home on the southwest outskirts of Tucson. — Photo by Pat Bean
“Just sometimes every damned thing goes right? – Yhprum’s Law
Yup! It’s Monsoon Season in the Sonoran Desert
The ocotillos are lush-leafed and the saguaros are pumped. That’s what happens when you get a week or so of heavy downpours.
An ocotillo in bloom at Catalina State Park north of Tucson. I took this photo while I was still traveling full-time in my RV, and before I ever dreamed I would end up living in Tucson. — Photo by Pat Bean
These two cacti abound in Tucson, whose human development, especially in the Catalina foothills where I live, is tucked between and above the washes and arroyos that have been allowed to remain undeveloped so as to carry the falling water away quickly. The fact that there’s a bit of wildness remaining in the city, some of which is just seconds away from my apartment complex, is one of the reasons I’ve come to love Tucson.
I also enjoy the mountain ranges that encircle the city: The Tucson Mountains to the west. the Rincon Mountains to the east, the Santa Rita Mountains to the south, and the Catalina Mountains that are my backyard to the northeast. The sides of these mountains are now tinged a verdant green because of all the rain. It’s a cool view, especially after the 115 plus temperatures that plagued Southeastern Arizona for weeks.
I’ll enjoy it while I can, as soon the ocotillos will lose their green leaves to conserve the little water they’ll get in the coming months. They will become simply brown, tall thorny stems sticking up from the ground. The saguaros, meanwhile, will grow skinnier again, using the rain water they inhaled to maintain themselves through the waterless desert months.
Watching the changes that take place in the landscape around me, from day-to-day and season to season, gives me great pleasure. It connects me to Mother Earth.
Bean Pat: So Much Yarn https://theeternaltraveller.wordpress.com/2017/07/19 Take an armchair tour of England’s Yorkshire Market.
Pat Bean is a Lonely Planet Community Pathfinder. Her book, Travels with Maggie, is soon to be released. You can contact her at patbean@msn.com
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Great post! Love the photos!
Thanks Kessler
You are welcome, Pat!
Beautiful! I was Tucson for the first time a few years ago and loved it. I definitely want to go back when I have more time to explore the desert!
I hope you do get back Diane. I moved here in 2013, and have come to love it.
we lived in Goodyear (outside of Phoenix) for a year. it’s amazing how beautiful a desert landscape can be.
I spent many years not knowing that. Thanks for commenting Rosepoint.
It’s certainly looking very green up here, too.