I walk slowly, easily distracted, inspecting little things along the way and thus this was a short long walk to the black mountain within sight of my Ogilby camp.
On the drive between Anza-Borrego and Quartzsite I stayed a few days on open and mostly empty desert managed by BLM just west of Yuma, Arizona. One morning—OK it was 11:30 because I’m a slow morning person—I took a walk to the little ridge that looked like black rock.
The semi-sandy soil is littered with small rock and I am easily sidetracked looking closely at the many colors. Lots of quartz, granite and many unidentifiable being disguised under layers of dark manganese varnish. Some rocks glitter and shine. One piece, a dark shiny charcoal color that is heavy could be hematite. When rockhounding I look for the unusual, a color, shape or texture that stands out from the crowd. I am rewarded with blue kyanite with its flat shiny planes. I was absorbed with the rocks until distracted by the long whistle of a train in the distance that somehow seemed to belong to the desert.
The vegetation is sparse and spread far apart, each trying to survive and absorb what little water comes to this arid land. The Palo Verde are often found along a dry wash that will occasionally run with water.
I moved on towards the black mountain but soon my eye was attracted to another unusual color and shape. Could it be? OMG, two pottery sherds lying side by side. I stoop to touch them and visions of people of the past living in this harsh desert environment come to me. I can’t help myself, I pick them up and they fit together like pieces in a puzzle. I can see where fingers have smoothed the clay. Then I put them back. A special gift, I only take photos and memories with me.
Other evidence of people from a not so distant past are also found in the desert. Rock stacked fire rings tell where more recent campers have passed the time. Wonder when those will be considered “artifacts” and if future generations will ponder why people came to this quiet land.
After 30 minutes of lollygagging maybe 1/4 mile I reached the base of the black mountain. Here the rocks look pitted, worn and basaltic. Life struggles to survive amongst this boulder pile.
I found a semi-comfortable rock to sit on and just enjoy the peace and quiet. A rabbit hoped under a tree. A lizard scurried under a rock. One bee and two flies were attracted to my skin and camera.
An hour later, with stomach grumbling, I begin a circuitous route back to camp. I saw a bowl in a wash and thought to pick it up as litter but then noticed water collected in the bottom so left it for the animals and birds that I’m sure have found it. And with eyes still on the rocks I found a quartz crystal.
Ok, I’ll admit it, I sometimes gather rocks off public lands. I’m a rockhound and like to decorate my Yarnell yard with rocks from my travels. I don’t haul big rocks and I don’t take artifacts. Shhh, don’t tell anybody, OK?
Your secret is safe from me.
I remember seeing pot shards in the deserts and mountains of Utah when I was a kid and the rocks used to grind corn. Amazing that they were still there after all those years.
Occasionally a grinding rock is still found and I’ve seen sherds around old Native dwellings but these seemed out of place. Amazing how long these things survive.
Love the ocotillo silhouette above the rocks. It is a good life we live that we can enjoy the beauty of a place that has been so hostile to others who came before. Slowing down is required to see the many colors of the desert, and your little collection is a beautiful reminder of that 🙂
Thanks Jodee. I never walk fast anywhere in nature because there is just so much to discover.
In my native land of Florida, when one has taken a fast nature walk, it is said that one has taken a green blur walk. It is understood that this is not the ideal way to appreciate nature, nonetheless fitness walkers persist in this pursuit. Dessert dwellers substitute dominant color of your choosing.
I like that. No worry for me to take a “browns blur” walk as I never go that fast.
Nice haul.
Thanks.
Oh, those pottery shards!! Such beauty and treasure in our most desolate places.
It was hard to leave them behind Lynda.
You added a welcome dimension to my morning Tks
Berta
You’re welcome.
Collecting rocks? That seems so innocent:) Pretty rocks make pretty jewelry:)
I always enjoy your travels. Like the mention of the bowl and why you left it…good thought for all of us when out hiking.
Thank you Carol. My first instinct was to take the bowl away as litter. Only because water is so precious in the desert did I leave it behind.
I too am a very slow hiker averaging 1 mph so I can appreciate how easy it is to be distracted by every amazing thing everywhere in nature. I wish I knew more about rocks. We always are amazed by them but it seems such a difficult task to identify them. I love the group you have. I used to bring them home too but decided they should stay in their places of origin. Besides, Winnona could be way over weight if I brought them all aboard. Sounds like a lovely morning……ahhhh afternoon. LOL. Good thing for you it’s winter there.
If it’s not rocks it would be plants, trees, birds…. Thank goodness I have a place to leave all the rocks or I’d never get down the road.
Some people would walk there and not see a thing. Its wonderful to experience it through your eyes. I would probably also collect a couple of rocks and it would be hard not to take those shards…..
I always want to see the big and the small so walking slowly is the best way. Glad you enjoy going along. Wasn’t easy to leave the pottery sherds behind.
Some great finds Gaelyn, especially the pottery. When finding something like that, I always have to wonder about the people who made and left it there.
To live in such a harsh environment, as we talked about early. I think a very special find.
I won’t say a word. That green rock, on the right side, in the last photo is so cool, I’d be tempted to pick up that one myself.
And I don’t know what that green rock is other than pretty. Don’t be pocketing rocks on your walk as you won’t want the extra weight. 😉
Your secret is safe with me (and your many other readers)! A perfect meditative desert walk; thanks for sharing your pictures and thoughts.