Today, we are the letter “D” with Dawn over at The Momma Knows.
For my “D” post, I want to post some pictures related to the area that we live in… the desert. This area is so much different from where I have lived most of my life. It is almost like living in a different country. From the dictionary: a region so arid because of little rainfall that it supports only sparse and widely spaced vegetation or no vegetation at all.
Most of these pictures were taken while on a hiking trip with a group. DS8 and I went at a slower pace and were able to see so many different things than the large, loud group.
While the desert may seem bland and lacking of life, there are some varieties of interesting plants like this Prickly Pear cactus.
The blooms of the Prickly Pear can be so beautiful! Just watch out for the “prickly” part…
Before we went on this hike, I asked the group leader what kind of creatures (namely snakes) we might come in contact with. He said that in his hundreds of hiking miles he had only seen 3 snakes. He said that we would probably not see any snakes that day. Well, for the record, DS8 and I saw 2 snakes on that hike. The snake in the picture above decided that DS8 and I had a lovely resting spot. He was heading right for us. We got up very slowly, and the snake went a different direction. As we started to descend, the snake coiled and rattled. Yep, he was a very loud rattlesnake.
When we saw this beautifully colored lizard, I knew I wanted a picture of it, but I had no clue what kind of lizard it was. As I found out later, this is an Eastern Collared Lizard. I’m wondering why he is an “Eastern” Collared Lizard when we are so far West.
This is a Saguaro cactus. Do you see the round hole above the branches? That is where a bird has made a nest in the cactus.
This concludes our quick tour around the desert. Next week… “E”
I love the photos. The prickly pear is beautiful. I am glad the snake went in the other direction.
Thank you for stopping by! Yes, we were glad that the snake went the other direction, too. It was one of those “too close for comfort” moments…
Yikes about the snake! That is a really awesome post.
Thank you!
Wow, some great photos of the desert. I recall seeing those Prickly Pears when we lived in west Texas. A friend used to make Prickly Pear cactus jelly, but when I found out how precise you had to be in picking the fruit, measuring your ingredients and timing the cooking and so forth I decided that I didn’t want to learn to make it that badly after all.
I didn’t realize Dawn was doing this meme again. I participated some last year when she did it. I may need to participate again. 🙂
I’ve seen Prickly Pear cactus jelly, but I must admit that I have never tried it.
Come join up with the meme! It’d be great to have you on board again!
Michelle, I would love it if you’d join us again! 🙂
What a colorful lizard! The snake would have been a bit unnerving to see…to say the least.
DS8 was a little unnerved, but God was definitely watching out for us. The snake disappeared from view, and when we started moving down, we almost stepped on it.
Pretty! Yes, very different than other areas but not without its beauty. I, too, like the picture of prickly pear blooms. The snake would have totally freaked my kids out. We have snakes here in central Texas but we never see them. And since they freak out about pretty much everything, I’m pretty sure they’d have freaked about that. =p
Yes, it is just a different kind of beauty! DS8 was a little freaked, but he did a lot better than I thought he would.
Oh that looks like it would be a really interesting hike! We’ve done some hiking but here in the Northwest we do it in the mountains and forests, for the most part. Lots of snakes here too though, even rattlers. Great pictures you took!
Dawn, we moved here from the Mid-West, so most of our past hiking was in the mountains of the Ozarks. Hiking here has been so much different because of the low humidity and heat, and we have to pack more water here than we did where we were at before. Also, the terrain is just so much different than what we have been used to.
Nice snake! We’ve seen a couple rattlesnakes in the past year, and I had seen none up until then! Thankfully we’re still avoiding the scorpions. 😉
I must admit that I can handle snakes, but I am deathly afraid of scorpions! I stepped on one when I was a kid, and I prefer to just not see any. Unfortunately, that isn’t always possible in the desert, is it? I’m glad you have been avoiding them, too!