2018 11 21 - 11 28 Tucson Arizona, RV Park, Saguaro National Park, Biosphere 2

    Rincon Country West RV Resort, Tucson, Arizona - 21 November 2018

I think this is the largest park we have stayed in and it took awhile for us to get to the Pickleball Court. But we had it all to ourselves. We should really do this more often. 

Palm tree lined roads throughout the park. Most of the residents live in park homes and are more permanent. Our weather has been very nice with sunny, blue skies and mid 60s and 70s. The biggest drawback is the gravel covered dog parks. Our pups still don't like it. 

Saguaro National Park, west of Tucson, Arizona - 23 November 2018

Instead of participating in Black Friday madness, we took a drive out to Suguaro National Park in the Sonoran Desert. And we weren't alone. 

We began our walk at the Signal Hill picnic area. A very short walk to see dozens of drawings etched into the rocks. These date from the Hohokam period, 450-1450 CE. A Native American culture centered in present day Arizona. They are considered the builders of the original canal system around the Phoenix metropolitan area. In North America, the Hohokam are the only culture to rely on irrigation canals to water their crops since as early as 800, and these canals supported the largest population in the Southwest by the 1300.

Bob points towards one of the largest petroglyphs. While there is no explanation for the meanings behind these rock arts, they possibly are religious or cultural representations. 

The so-called "Monarchs of the Cactus World" can live up to 200 years and only start to produce their "arms" at around 100 years. 

Bob had a cactus very similar to this one for over 50 years that he had grown from a seed. It would flower just like this one. We donated it to our local Cactus Society in Ohio before moving. 

It is a difficult life for all forms of life in the desert. This stunted tree has a majority of its limbs are desiccated but right in the center are several newer limbs of green. A renewal of life is this harsh environment.  

From the Signal Hill path we connected to the Cactus Wren Trail to get deeper into the desert. As you can see from this picture, there are times when sufficient water flows through this desert to create a wash which is used during the dry times as a trail. 

The weather has been fairly wet this year according to the local reports. In fact, even at this late time of year, they are still saying the rain totals are 1.25 inches over normal. Several different plants are still blooming.  

Pretty little low growing flowers along the Cactus Wren Trail wash. 

Bob named this one sister and her four brothers. 

It took the entire time of our hike (over 2.5 hours) before we could get a good photo of wildlife. Of course, most animals would be resting during the heat of the day but we are retired so early mornings are not typically on our schedule. This is a Gila Woodpecker which makes nest holes in saguaro trunks and large limbs. Others animals in this desert are owls, Gila monsters, tarantulas, Desert Tortoise, black bears and Javelina.

Insects, birds and bats assist in pollination of desert plants. 

Today, the Tohono O'odham (Desert People) continue to harvest ripe saguaro fruit using a pole fashioned from long, woody saguaro ribs, which support their multi-ton bulk. They use the the bright red pulp to make syrup, jelly and ceremonial wine. The stands of saguaro are called cactus forests. 

Biosphere 2, Oracle, Arizona - 28 November 2018 

The world-renowned Biosphere 2 was created to better understand how natural environments generate conditions appropriate for life. Water, air, soil, sun and life all interact to transfer energy and continually exchange nutrients and other materials. This is also the living quarters for the sealed human missions of the early 1990s when two teams entered and were sealed in the self-sustaining facility. 

The pyramid stands 91 feet tall and houses the rainforest containing over 90 different plant species, some more than 60 feet tall. Today, research into effects of increases in carbon dioxide on the plants are conducted to determine how we should respond to global warming. In the foreground is one of several installations of art around the campus. 

Surrounded by mountains and near Mt. Lemmon, there are 40 acres including 300,000 square feet of administrative offices, classrooms, laboratories, conference facilities, and residential & student housing. The wealthy Countess of Suffolk built her Casa Del Oro estate on a nearby hilltop in the 1950s. 

Space Biospheres Ventures bought the property in 1984 and began construction of the current facility in 1986 to research and develop self-sustaining space-colonization technology (possibly to the moon or Mars). These facilities are on the hillside above the Biosphere 2.  

Left to right: the Rainforest and behind that is the Ocean building with a coral reef, a mangrove wetland and the fog Desert building. The front portion is the Lower Habitat which contained the housing for the original Biospherians, medical facility, kitchen, entertainment area and the Library Tower. The humps (3) behind the Lower Habitat is the Landscape Evolution Observatory (LEO) where research focused on the birth of soil and the interactions among water, rock, energy and life are using cutting-edge scientific technologies to study water as a transformative feature of Earth's nature biosphere.  

On the right is the West Lung, one of two air-volume control. During the day, the heat from the sun warms the air inside to expand and during the night it cools and contracts. Large diaphragms in each lung help to regulate a constant volume within the biosphere.

What were they thinking? 

Called the Sweet Room, the connecting space between the Habitat and the other biome areas (Rainforest, Desert, Ocean) plantings of bananas, coffee, papaya, lemons, grapefruit and oranges.

Rain Forest, now used to experiment with varying levels of humidity, carbon dioxide and oxygen. The only original "animals" live here - greenhouse ants, bacteria and cockroaches - still reside inside the dome. 

Ocean once had a live coral reef which died due to an increase in the ammonia levels of the water. There are plans to re-establish the reef using an experimental hybrid of natural reefs that have survived bleaching and damage in its natural environment.  

The Ocean has a wave machine to simulate natural current activity. 

Mangrove areas includes all three types; red, black and white which provides filtering of runoff water, nursery areas for fish and alligators and water breaks during hurricanes.  

Aquaponics, one of our favorite places, shows self-enclosed systems for producing food. 

High School Experiment using different soils from volcanic rocks to compost. Watering is handled by closed terra cotta bottles which leach out the water as needed. 

Desert, Coastal Fog area. Each area has several large openings that are used for increased ventilation. 

Boojum Plant. Its leaves pull moisture from air. Endemic to Baja California and related to the cactus. This is a good view of the internal structure of steel tubing, high performance glass and steel frames. The window seals and structures had to be almost airtight. They achieved a less than 10% rate of leakage per year. That is better than the International Space Station. 

Machinery Room, like a giant hot and cool air exchanger to regulate the interior atmosphere.

Tunnel from the Machinery room to the East Lung. Watch your step and your head. Well, not me. 

Tunnel to lung conducts air pressure during daily changes. 

Lung room is just a large circular space built to house the flexible membrane. The large steel plate rises and falls as the pressure changes. 

West Lung 2 not used now since the environment is controlled with modern equipment due to the lack of self-containment.  

Energy Buildings built after the second team left to Biosphere in 1993 and before all the buildings were hooked up to the local grid.   

LEO (Landscape Evolution Observatory) with Lung 2 in background. Reflected sunset in glass. This building is now used to do research on erosion. 

Original kitchen for Biospherians. Each member cooked for the entire crew for one day every eight days. 

Inside of LEO, base is Arizona volcanic rock.

Evening at Biosphere 2

Sun Setting.

Entrance sign lit by truck headlights.  Its dark out there at 6pm.  

2018 11 13 - 11 19 Guadalupe Mountains National Park,Prehistoric Trackways National Monument and Dripping Springs Natural Area

Highway 10, from Big Bend to Van Horn, Texas - 13 November 2018

Art in Texas comes in a lot of forms. Little along the way to hold your attention unless you are seriously into desert soil and plants. There are very few cattle herds and practically no towns. When suddenly up pops this storefront for Prada of Paris. There is ongoing debate in Texas to decide if this should really be considered art. Well, why not. I've seen a lot of more questionable "art". 

Guadalupe Mountains National Park, north of Van Horn Texas - November 2018 

From our basecamp in Van Horn, it's a good hour drive to the Visitor's Center in the Guadalupe Mountains National Park. There are over ten trails, from easy wheel-chair accessible to strenuous, 6-8 hour hikes. We hiked the Frijoles Ranch Trail loop to the Smith Spring and the Manzanita Spring. Located just behind the ranch houses is a museum highlighting the human history of the area. The museum was closed as it was off season.

A female Western Bluebird sat very nicely for her portrait. 

Male Western Bluebirds were so plentiful it was easy to get good pictures. 

A rather short ornamental grass glimmers in afternoon sun. It looked almost like frost or snow in the 60+ degrees and sunshine. Magical.  

After a mile and a quarter winding through a yucca-tree and cactus-covered hillside, the trail enters a lush riparian zone where Smith Spring, appears to be percolating from below layers of limestone. Tumbling down a mossy embankment the cool spring waters pool. The water is so clear the bottom is easily visible.   

Bob wisely decided not to risk sipping the untested and unfiltered water. The local inhabitants, birds, deer and elk, utilize these waters so contamination is possible. 

Looking over the north side of this loop path which follows along the stream's rocky course through the shady oasis of ponderosa pine and maple trees. The stream drops about 400 feet in its search for lower levels. After walking the hillside on the north side, we came to a rugged set of steps rising out of the wash into a small grove of stunted gray oaks. 

As we continued towards the Manzanita Spring near the ranch, I could hear rustling behind a large scrub bush. 

As we stood still, patiently waiting, I could see movement of what at first appeared to be naked branches. I finally realized it was, in fact, antlers. Finally, this majestic buck emerged, trotted across the grasses and shorter shrubs before turning to investigate the clicking noise made by Bob's camera shutter.

We returned to the ranch to find this pair of Acorn Woodpeckers preparing for winter by "burying" acorns in holes drilled into tree trunks and limbs. 

Las Cruces, New Mexico - 17 November 2018

Without any way to interpret this sign we began what we thought was a hike towards the fossil dinosaur footprints discovered in this area. This was the wrong trail to take. We should have known by the bullet holes in he sign, or maybe the dozen or so trucks with flat bed trailers, some boondocking (camping without water, electric or sewer). After walking for at least a half hour, we decided there was nothing in this area and returned to our parked truck. 

In small lettering under the Ridgeline Trailhead announcement is the Prehistoric Trackways National Monument. We have found that Visitor's Centers are very helpful in keeping folks on proper paths and avoiding wasting time on trails (apparently) designed for off road vehicles. 

Is this the trackway on the left? No? Bob better watch where he's walking(Cactus under foot). That could be said for both of us as this was very rocky, sometimes steep and footing was treacherous with rocks rolling underfoot.  

The view of Las Cruces is great as the sun sets behind the ridge of the mountains. Beyond the sparse homes about to go into shadow is a large pecan farm. Pecans are the number one commercial food crop in New Mexico and is second in national production with 67 million pounds sent to market. The dry climate helps the trees avoid fungus and disease which can plague more humid areas of production. This allows local growers to avoid using fungicides and insecticides used elsewhere. 

Working on a new look, Beard Trim - 18 November 2018

Bob was starting to look a little too out of control, so I trimmed that scraggly beard seen above. 

Dripping Springs Natural Area, Las Cruces, New Mexico - 18 November 2018 

Trail to Dripping Springs Natural Area, Bureau of Land Management. Out west there is a hidden history of Eastern folk "pioneering" the middle of our country, especially after the Civil War. A resort was developed north of Las Cruces by the Dripping Springs when a native New Yorker, Colonel Eugene Van Patten who came at the invitation of his uncle, John Butterfield, who ran the Butterfield Stage Line. At the end of a mile or so trail is the ruins of a "Mountain Camp" of 16 rooms, dining room and concert hall. Water was hand carried from the spring to the rooms by local Piro Indians. The camp was later converted into a sanatorium for those who had contracted tuberculosis.

Dripping Springs is in the background. The dark spot is where the water hits the flat rock below the "dripping" spring. Behind the bushes a catch basin was built to store the water with a spigot for filling containers. A path to the right ends at the hillside buildings used as the sanatorium. To the left is the original Resort buildings. 

The sanatorium side of the springs, built after 1917, consisted of several cottages spread out on the hillside behind and to the left of this larger structure which housed the kitchen and dining room. There was also a generator for electricity and a water pump to fill the water tank above the cottages. Gravity supplied the cottages with water from this tank.   

The original camp buildings fell into ruin and were cannibalized for use in building the new buildings for the sanatorium on the other side of the springs.

The extending ends of joists remain in the inside wall shows this building was actually two stories. 

A great place to take a break after climbing up to see the ruins. 

After a second consecutive day of walking uphill and down on large, loose gravel and deep, loose pea gravel my knees, ankles and arches were screaming for some rest. Tomorrow we have errands to run in preparation of our drive to Tucson, Arizona.