Our fourth crested saguaro! This one is located off the Pemberton Trail in McDowell Mountain Regional Park.

Our original plan was to go to Moab then Hurricane after Cortez and be home on May 3rd. All the hardware in Amelia’s foot from her last surgery in October ’22 has been causing pain and discomfort for a long time. She finally decided enough is enough and has opted to have it removed. The surgeon had an opening on May 1st because of a cancellation, so she took it. Once we knew that, we took the shorter route home, with a stop at our old favorite, McDowell Mountain Regional Park.

Our route took us on the US 491 through the Navajo Nation. Every time we drive through Rez Land we are left with a lot of different emotions. It feels like a completely different country. I don’t know how the Native Americans feel about their land and living there, but the evident level of poverty makes us sad. The injustice of it all is heartbreaking.

If you’ve been following us this trip, this will come as no surprise, it was windy at McDowell. The wildflowers had began to fade, but the cacti bloom was going off! When we were riding the trails it was apparent that a fire had gone through the area. It started on June 27, 2023 and the park was closed for over a week. It was caused by a construction crew cutting rebar at a new building. Over 2,500 acres burned. The trails that burned had a different feel. The saguaros and cholla were charred. Tall grasses were growing. There were also many new expensive Scottsdale homes encroaching upon the trails. Once upon a time you could only view a home in the distance, now some of the trails run along backyard fences. It was much nicer before the fire and new houses.

Here’s what appears to be newer buildings in the Navajo Nation. The older structures have tires on the roofs to keep them from blowing off.

Site 71. It was the least crowded we’ve seen the campground. This particular loop closes on May 1st.

Sunrise, the famous Four Peaks is on the right.

Moonset to the right of the saguaro.

Cacti blooms galore

This was our first time seeing saguaro blooms in the wild. It was so cool!

On an early morning stroll through the campground I ran into a guy who is with the Golden Gate Basset Hound Rescue. How can you not smile when seeing a basset hound? They are such loves.

Amelia riding through a patch of Brittle Bush.

The Palo Verde was also going off.

Like a tree that falls in the mountains, this saguaro was cut up into logs after blocking the trail. The first pic shows the circular ribs in the center.

On our last night this dramatic sunset was the precursor to a violent lightning and thunderstorm that literally shook the Airstream. At first all the lightning was occurring to the north of us. A few hours later while we were in bed it was directly above us. Heavy rain pelted Opal and there was no time between the flashes and cracks of thunder. It seemed like an appropriate ending to the trip.