Check out Part I of this post if you missed it...After lunch, we headed into Deep Canyon for an hour hike. The sky was blue. Clouds filtered over in the late afternoon. Deep Canyon looked like what much of the desert might look like if left in its pristine state. Around us, the canyon rose a few thousand feet. Creosote with their long, spindly branches dotted with red blossoms outlined the rocky slopes.
Barrel cactus covered the hillside, more barrels than I'd seen in one place, some capped with a single yellow flower. Fuzzy teddy bear cholla that escaped the frost shined like gold in the sun. The prickly pears cactus were also blooming with hot pink blossoms.
Layers of sand washed down the canyon after the recent rains were pressed so flat they looked as if they'd been cut. A stream poured over rocks down the canyon's V. On a crag, a palm oasis sprouted from the rocks. So many wonders! The group of us criss-crossed over the stream as we made our way up canyon. I hoped to see a bighorn sheep, an endangered species that lives there. The sheep come down to water, Cassandra said. But not that afternoon.
The hike stretched to more than two hours, all of us caught up in exploring the landscape.The day was so beautiful, it was hard to turn around and hike out. We did though, and, inspired, wrote more poems. Finally, at 4:30, we packed up and drove out. I looked back longingly at Deep Canyon: my idea of a perfect day.
(Photos 2008, Deep Canyon, Palm Desert; Cassandra pointing out a flower)
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