Learning from the mountains

 A cholla garden!  I've never seen this spot before or even knew it existed!

 Looking down Deep Canyon toward Palm Desert and the Living Desert Reserve.  The Bighorn Institute is also located at the bottom of Deep Canyon, but it isn't open to the public and there are NO roads beyond it.

Looking down into Deep Canyon...

Every time I drive up Highway 74, I learn something from the mountains above Deep Canyon.  Sometimes I learn about the bighorn sheep that live there.  Other times, I learn about the crows and vultures that grab the thermals and circle lazily in the sky.  Sometimes I learn about the rattlesnakes that cross the road, either successfully, or not.  I learn about the clouds and the fog.  I've learned about snow.  I've learned that when it is snowing, it is silent.  I've felt the cold winds swoop through the mountains.  I've learned many things.

Today I learned of a special spot along Deep Canyon.  I've parked there before and noticed a hand-made rock trail.  I've followed it once, and today I followed it from a different starting point.  SOMEDAY I'l going to follow it and get better photos of Deep Canyon, which is aptly named.  It IS an extremely deep canyon.  There are NO roads down through it.  Hikes do venture down into it, and so do bighorn sheep, but otherwise, it is untraveled.

During the monsoon seasons of 1976 and, again in 1979, water roared down Deep Canyon into Palm Desert and flooded the Living Desert Reserve and many, many homes.  Our home was flooded in 1979, but not from Deep Canyon.  Rather, ours was from Carrizzo Canyon, which splits off from DC.  I was alone with a 1 year old and pregnant at the time.  Hubby was working in Orange County and, at that time, he had to reach our house by either driving through Palm Springs, or by going down to Indio and then back to Palm Desert.  I gather up our daughter, our German Shepherd, the bills (???), and headed out in our 1977 VW van.  I was picked up on a bridge by some firemen, about 1:00 a.m. and spent the night at the house of one of them!  (I believe they felt sorry for me...after all, I was 5 months pregnant!)  We got a SBA loan and replaced everything.

Yes, Deep Canyon has many secrets.  I'm just beginning to understand and appreciate them.

Photos of Deep Canyon during the storm a couple of weeks ago.