The current administration in Washington, D.C. is taking a close look at some of the more recently created Monuments. I certainly hope they don't "review" the SDNM out of existence.
Sunday, April 1, 2018
Sonoran Desert National Monument
On the way back to California we passed through the Sonoran Desert National Monument in central Arizona, created by the executive order of President Bill Clinton in 2001. There is no visitor center nor even any established trails. Just a chunk of protected land where huge Saguaro cacti (Carnegiea gigantea) hold sway.
The current administration in Washington, D.C. is taking a close look at some of the more recently created Monuments. I certainly hope they don't "review" the SDNM out of existence.
The current administration in Washington, D.C. is taking a close look at some of the more recently created Monuments. I certainly hope they don't "review" the SDNM out of existence.
Old Friends
We had the opportunity to meet our friends Mike and Chelsea Scopellite for dinner in Tucson, Arizona. It was really great to see them and catch up. It had been four years since our last visit.
Come see us in California sometime, y'all!
Come see us in California sometime, y'all!
Borderlands
For much of this trip we've stayed pretty close to the U.S.-Mexico border. Our stop in Columbus, New Mexico was no exception.
This is the small town that the Mexican revolutionary Francisco "Pancho" Villa attacked in a cross border raid in 1916. This led to a retaliatory "Punitive Expedition" by the U.S. Army that pursued Villa's forces deep into the Mexican state of Chihuahua, although they failed to capture Villa himself. This expedition, led by General John J. "Black Jack" Pershing, turned out to be a dress rehearsal for the United States' entry into World War I the next year. We learned all about this at a fabulous museum in Pancho Villa State Park in Columbus.
If you look carefully in the background of the photo, you can see the present day border fence at Puerto Palomas, about three miles to the south. Dad said he could see it clearly through binoculars.
This is the small town that the Mexican revolutionary Francisco "Pancho" Villa attacked in a cross border raid in 1916. This led to a retaliatory "Punitive Expedition" by the U.S. Army that pursued Villa's forces deep into the Mexican state of Chihuahua, although they failed to capture Villa himself. This expedition, led by General John J. "Black Jack" Pershing, turned out to be a dress rehearsal for the United States' entry into World War I the next year. We learned all about this at a fabulous museum in Pancho Villa State Park in Columbus.
If you look carefully in the background of the photo, you can see the present day border fence at Puerto Palomas, about three miles to the south. Dad said he could see it clearly through binoculars.
Don't Fence Me In
I think I must have been a cowboy on the open range in a previous lifetime. I simply love the wide open spaces of the American west.
Starry, Starry Night
Unfortunately, we hit West Texas' two nocturnal attractions during the daytime. Bad timing!
The first would have been the famous Marfa lights near the town of the same name. Are they just atmospheric reflections of car headlights, or are they UFOs? Nobody knows for sure...
Secondly, we were unable to catch the "star party" at the McDonald Observatory near Fort Davis. It would have been more scientifically based.
In any case, all those celestial phenomena would have been competing with a brilliant full moon.
The first would have been the famous Marfa lights near the town of the same name. Are they just atmospheric reflections of car headlights, or are they UFOs? Nobody knows for sure...
Secondly, we were unable to catch the "star party" at the McDonald Observatory near Fort Davis. It would have been more scientifically based.
In any case, all those celestial phenomena would have been competing with a brilliant full moon.
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