Our second day in the monument.
Weather- warm morning and hot afternoon. We all got a bit darker today.
State- Arizona
Highway- ajo mountain drive
Animals- glia woodpecker, roadrunner, cactus wrens, rabbit
Trails- Victoria mine 4 miles
Cool facts- this area was once an active volcanic area. The Ajo mountains are made up of volcanic ash giving them a dusty red color today but you can find lava rocks around too. The Sonoran desert actually has 5 season! There is an active boarder patrol presence in the area trying to control both drugs and illegal immigrants from coming into the USA.
Highlights:
Arlene- a beautiful sunrise, being surrounded by beautiful scenery that I have never seen before, the hot sun, taking a warm shower and a good dinner of mashed potatoes and meatloaf! Oh, and finding out that they have a "not so junior ranger" program they I can participate in! Oh, and not running into any illegal immigrants or drug traffickers while hiking.
Jason- the hike!
Ella- waking up and cuddling with mom and dad after a long night of sleep, exploring, taking two naps on dads back while he hiked
Gordo- my family returning from the hike and sitting in the sun
Lowlights
Arlene- finding a flat tire on our stroller, we must of ran over a cactus!
Jason- missing the generator hours again!
Ella-tooth pain
Gordo- being left behind in the morning while they hiked without me
Ella is now rolling over well. Going from back to front and vice versa. She is fully up on her hands and knees and rocks back and forth but now she is able to lift one hand or the other and reach out without falling. She is also pushing back and going into a seated position. She still scoots backwards and lean and falls forward. She is still trying to stand by herself but she is still trying to figure out the feet and leg position for that move. She is also starting to put her feet on the ground with her butt in the air. I think she may start moving around like that soon too! She has a big body to move around! We are very close to needing a new car seat for our 7 month old! Evenings are becoming her grumpy time again. I think it's her teeth bothering her again. She is back to wanting to fall asleep early, around 7ish. We try to wake her up for at least an hour and then she goes back to bed with us and wakes us up as the sun rises. Once we get up we put her on the potty to begin the day.
I can see Mexico! Hiking towards the Mexican Boarder. They picked up 20 illegal immigrants yesterday!
He started the hike off with his down jacket on and it lasted about a mile.
Ella enjoying the view from da da's back
Look how much taller these cacti are than Jason! They have to be close to 200 years old or more.
The monument's name sake, Organ pipe cactus
Look at that Saguaro Cactus! It's at least twice the age of the smaller ones around it.
Hiking in a forest of cactus. This is a Green Desert and a part of the Sonoran Desert.
The abondened mine. It ran for 100 years but they only extracted $120,000 worth of gold and silver.
The mine is now home to bats. It's 800 feet deep!
On the return hike. Everyone is wearing less clothing
Candle wood with one little "candle"
Candle wood beginning to wake ups
Can you find Ella and Jason? These are the Sonyota Mountains
Gila woodpeckers make holes in the cacti which then become homes for other birds and rodents
These photos are from the Ajo Mountains' drive.
Can you find the bird? It's a fast runner
