Desert Destination: Zion National Park in the Rain

Every Monday we visit a desert destination.

Zion National Park is one of my favorite places, with its soaring sandstone walls, secret creeks, challenging canyons, and variety of vegetation. My brother Ed came out for a visit, and we took time to discover some of the beauties.

The view from Angel's Landing is spectacular, with the Virgin River far below, curving around the rock outcrop. The hike up to Angel's Landing is also spectacular, as you cling to chains drilled into the rock so that you don't plunge 1,500 feet to your death. I didn't manage to get photos of that clinging part--I was too busy making sure I wasn't plunging! 

Here's Ed, all relaxed. Notice the clouds building in the background. We had originally planned to go canyoneering that day, but the weather forecast was for certain rain, so we decided to stay out of slot canyons and avoid flash floods. The morning was beautiful, though, and we made the most of it by hiking.

Here I am. In the background you can see a couple different layers of rock, red and white, and the far-reaching canyon that extends as far as the eye can see. Because those canyons are so long, it can be sunny where you are and raining upstream. That rain can cause a flash flood into your sun-drenched spot without much warning.

This is the West Rim trail, a scenic area without the crowds on Angel's Landing. The sky looked quite blue behind Ed. But before we got down to the trailhead, the skies let loose, and we were drenched. Then the fun began.

We watched water cascading over sandstone in places we never thought saw water. The water twisted and turned, forming rivulets and then roaring streams of dirty water.

The number of waterfalls was amazing. Some poured nearly one hundred feet off the rocks above.

We were supposed to come out of one of these canyons, so we were really glad that we had played it safe. Besides, the views of all these waterfalls made for a one-of-a-kind experience.

We were even able to get nearly underneath a couple waterfalls.

This is a waterfall at the Emerald Pools.

Don't expect this sight if you go visit Zion. Nevertheless, there is always water around, it's just usually at the bottom of the cliffs, rather than pouring over it!

Photo Caption Contest-We Have a Winner

This is how Henry drinks. I wonder if it will work for me.

Our winner is Germaine S! Congrats! I will get you the packet of beautiful wildflower seeds this week.

It was a hoot reading the entries, thanks to everyone who entered. Below are a couple more pictures of Desert Boy slurping from puddles. I think he really was trying to be like Henry. Or maybe he's just a little strange. Just a little.

I don't think he could have gotten closer if he wanted to. I'm just glad it was a semi-warm day and he could dry out quickly.

One of Desert Boy's chores (yep, have to start them early!) is to feed Henry. Often he doesn't quite get the dog food to Henry's bowl. This isn't much of a surprise, because Desert Boy has a hidden agenda for enjoying his chore.

He 'helps' Henry by picking up the dog food to try to get it back into the container. And it just so happens that he slips a piece of dog food into his mouth in between photos.

"Ooh, did anyone catch me?"

Surprise Snowstorm

We woke up this morning to discover snow outside! The weather forecasters had warned us that we might have rainin the morning turning into afternoon snow, but right from the beginning we had two inches of snow. I got all excited, I always do when we have new snow, even if it isn't yet the middle of October.

Before we could go out, though, we had to get properly outfitted. We didn't have our snow clothes ready, but I was able to find a snow suit that sort of fit Desert Boy, along with some boots that made it difficult for him to walk, and hat and mittens. He loves to be outside no matter the weather.

We went down to the lower yard, where the normally drab stack of tires looked a little more artistic with a layer of snow covering it.

Fortunately there isn't so much snow that the giant loader has to be called into action. The snow is putting a damper on chopping corn and baling hay this morning.

The cows still are eating away, and getting fed a little extra today since they're burning off extra calories to stay warm.

This calf is just adorable, with her dirty nose, big eyes, and slightly damp hair. 

We'll be back out to play in the snow soon, after Desert Boy wakes up from a nap. All the excitement wore him out. And after I make a big pot of stew for lunch--we need that on a day like today! The forecasters warned that we might have power outages due to tree limbs breaking and falling on the power lines, so if I'm not back bright and early tomorrow morning, be assured that I'll be up just as soon as possible. Have a good weekend! 

Photo Caption Contest

It's time for another photo caption contest! What caption can you come up with to describe what Desert Boy is doing in this  photo? I feel so fortunate to have a son who provides plenty of opportunities for y'all to be creative. 

The rules are simple: one entry per person, leave your name or initials, and contest ends at 6 p.m. Saturday Pacific time. 

Why should you enter? You mean besides showing the world how witty and wonderful you are? You want more incentive then that? Okay, I do have a prize. The winner gets a packet of wildflower seeds that will help beautify your home. It's a Northern Nevada seed mixture, but I have a feeling that some of the flowers will grow where ever you live. Besides, wouldn't you like to have a little of the sights and smells of the wonderful high desert right at your house (assuming you don't already live in the high desert!).

Good luck, and I look forward to reading your entries!

Gates in the Desert

Some ranchers are really creative when it comes to gates. Here is the entryway to one nearby rancher's house. I like the patriotism and symmetry.

This is a gate into a corral. It's called the "visitor gate," I guess because it impresses the visitors. It sure impressed me! 

Here's another fun gate, painted blue.

Behind the gate is an old hay derrick, which in olden times before loaders, backhoes, and forklifts was used to stack hay. 

This gate was made by a master metal craftsman in our little town. Desert Boy had a lot of fun checking it out.

He took the gate as a challenge--can I get through?

He had some problems with his head. 

Then he figured that out and perhaps got into some bigger trouble!

Eating Unfried Green Tomatoes

Desert Boy loves to play in the garden. I always yell at him to get out, but he ignores me and heads straight towards the tomato plants. They have a profusion of green tomatoes.

Desert Boy can't quite help but pick a green tomato or two. Usually he carries them around in his grubby little hand and then drops them when he tries to climb the gate.

Today, though, he decided to eat the green tomato. Notice how he looks straight at me, his eyes telling me, "Ha, ha, Mom. I'm eating your green tomato." 

The only problem is that he doesn't really like it. I knew this, he's tried a few green tomatoes over the last couple of weeks. Apparently Desert Boy has trouble remembering, though.

He takes the tomato out of his mouth and flicks it to the ground. Good-bye tomato. Tomorrow he'll be back to pick another.

The Feedlot

It's fall, which means it's time to move the cows off the summer range. Some go to winter range, while others are brought into the feedlots. In addition to feeding our own cows, we also feed cows for other people.

As you might imagine, one of the main activities in a feedlot is feeding. The feed wagon usually distributes feed to the cows anywhere from two to five times a day. Can you imagine having food delivered to you that many times a day and never having to prepare it? On the surface, it sounds really good! Of course, when you realize how repetitive the feed is (a mixture of hay, barley, corn), it might not sound quite as tempting.

Usually you see the cows bent over the feed, eagerly chewing it up so that it can go into their first stomachs and then be regurtitated later so they can chew the cud and send it back down through their digestive system. This photo shows what the cows look like from behind, just in case you were wondering.

These calves, a black angus and a red angus, take a break from eating to glare at me. Don't they look mean? Usually cows have such sweet dispositions, but I don't think these two like having their brunch interrupted.

This particular calf escaped from the pen. Instead of being happy about it and eating somewhere along the trough, she just stares at me. Maybe she likes having her picture taken.

Desert Destination: Wildlife in the Fields

Mule deer in alfalfa field

Sometimes I travel long distances to go look for wildlife, but today I didn't have to go far. Wildlife love coming to the ranch. They have lots of food, good cover, and of course, good company. So to celebrate some of our animal neighbors, here's a series of photos of these creatures saying hi. (Or saying get the heck out of here and let me get back to my business, but if they're saying that I'm just pretending not to understand.)

Canada geese flying overhead

Canada geese taking off from field

Ravens on fence next to corn field

Mule deer near pivot

Mule deer eating alfalfa

Group of pronghorn antelope in recently cut hay field--

sorry these are little specks, but the shadow of the airplane is cool, isn't it?

Mule Deer Buck

I had some fun testing out my new camera on this cooperative mule deer buck. Mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) are found throughout western North America and are larger than their eastern cousins, white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virgianus). Mule deer have large mule-like ears and a black-tipped tail. 

They also have antlers that fork as they grow. The antlers begin growing in the spring each year and are shed after mating, from mid-January to mid-April. Many people scour the hillsides to pick up these shed antlers to make art out of them, particularly antler chandeliers, lamps, and fireplace tools. In locations where chronic wasting disease has broken out, like Colorado, many artisans choose to make their creations out of fake antlers.

This buck appeared to be enjoying some of the fall colors. He was not far from the road, despite it being hunting season. And he didn't even get up when we walked by. Question: Why would this apparently healthy deer be so tame?

Answer: We were in a national park, so this smart buck knew that he wouldn't be shot. If you're a hunter and reading this, don't despair, many nice bucks leave the national park and are shot outside of it. And the ones that don't leave produce offspring that go out and find new territory.

This buck probably weighs between 200-300 pounds. Females are smaller, and both eat a variety of vegetation. If a mule deer can escape predation by mountain lions or hunters, disease, and hunger from drought years, it is likely to live up to 10 years.