Hiking

When my brother came to visit on President's Day weekend with his two friends, he insisted for me to take the day off work to spend the time with him. I obliged and we had a very fun time spending the day hiking in the desert.

The weather was perfect: overcast, and a little chilly. Not only is that refreshig weather to hike in, but considering the nature of the desert, it took the threat of rattlesnakes away. We started out the hike looking wistfully at a marked trail head, but that is all of the credit we gave the wooden weather-beaten sign marked 'Moonlight Trail'. Without much talk about it, we all turned from the sign and blazed our own trail. Our goal was soon a small hill in front of us.
Without much ado we soon were atop the hill and ate a small snack of granola bars. Going back down was a bit tricky, as the many rocks had little to hold them stable. My dad and I chose a wash to descend, which seemed quicker to us at first. It might have been the faster route except the the reliabilitly of the rocks we did have to choose from were very few. We both ended up silding most of the way down, and me taking about half the hill down with me. My shoes were just about worn to flimsy pieces of rubber by the time I got down...

During the hike I enjoyed looking at the landscape. Cactuses are an amazing thing. They have a defense system to protect them during the long years it takes for them to grow. Every bit of moisture in the air is precious to them. They bloom beautiful flowers in the spring; the bright colors vastly contrasting the dull gray and tan desert. Barrel cactuses are filled with drinkable water inside. The desert may be desolate, bare, and empty compared to ubundant forestes with underbrush, trees, ivy, moss - any type of greenery- covering every square inch, but the gems of the desert musn't be belittled. The life is rare, the moisture dear, and the toil hard. I have a lot of respect for desert vegetation, though forests are beautiful as well.