Some of the places visited have provided wonderful hiking opportunities but not always unique or different views.
Because we have avoided early morning cold weather recently, often the light has not been ideal for photography.
We decided to visit Los Cruces in New Mexico on our way to Tucson from Texas. We admit our ignorance in
not knowing much about the city. It turns out that it's the second largest in the state by size of population.
New Mexico does not have many residents, perhaps a lot have returned to Old Mexico. This city has less than
a hundred thousand people. Albuquerque, the largest city in the state, is the only one with residents in excess
of that latter number.
I was delighted to come across this sign at the beginning of the hike. I often have to warn the editor about fooling around with rattlesnakes. But does she listen? Of course not. Hopefully, the warning will help in the future. I was getting very weary of watching her pat, pet and tickle the rattlers on the trails. Why she has a fascination for these critters is beyond me. I hope she applies the approach suggested to encounters with grizzlies, too. However, who can tell what goes on in her mind.
Into the bush they rode...wrong poem. Looking towards our peak after forty minutes.
On the outskirts of Los Cruces, we admire the small mountains that we can view unhindered from
their bases to peaks.
Nice views as we acquire height.
The formations were quite different.
A serene scene viewed from our saddle.
Madera Monument
A fairly tough trail of 9 miles and on narrow edges at times.
A view from the ridge in Madera National Monument, south of Tucson.
Agua Caliente Peak Trail
We climbed 2,800 feet over 9 miles on an almost deserted trail one early Sunday morning. Of the few people we
came across, two were hunters returning from a fruitless hunt. We chatted a while and were relieved to see
that they were unsuccessful on the day—a deer or two live for another day.
While standing on the peak of Agua Caliente hike, we viewed the Santa Rita range. The photo
above is part of that range on which we hiked two days later.
A view into the valley from below the peak.
Tucson, the city of cacti
Cheers,
Jenni and Jeffrey
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