A Walk in the Desert

Last weekend my husband wanted to go wandering around the desert looking for mines. There are certainly lots of old mines around, and I can just imagine those prospectors in the early days on their mules searching up and down every canyon trying to find the right piece of rock that would make them rich. Some got rich, but most only got rich for a couple days and then they were back to searching for more mineral-laden rock. 

I wasn't too interested in the mines, but because my husband had been so nice accompanying me to the cave and watching Desert Boy the previous weekend, I agreed to go. I had my camera and wandered around the desert looking for interesting things. As you can see in the photo above, wandering is fairly easy, with large gaps between the shadscale and four-winged saltbush. Once in awhile I would find a flower or some scat.

This little hole caught my eye, with the rim of little gravel around it. I think it's an ant hole, but as I didn't see any ants it's possible that some other insect made it.

I saw exactly two cacti in my hour of wandering. Here's one, with particularly long spines.

Desert Boy and Henry also enjoyed wandering around and seeing what they could find. It was rough terrain for Desert Boy to navigate, but I figure his balance should be improving a lot. 

The Hawaiian outfit doesn't quite go with the desert landscape, but obviously he doesn't care. The cloud cover made for cool temperatures and a perfect day to enjoy the subtle beauties of the desert.

Did my husband find a gold mine? I've been sworn to secrecy!