Cholla, Jumping

During the winter months I can relax on my hikes.  Unlike the other seasons that require me to keep a constant vigil for rattlesnakes.  Although, the desert is always a harsh place.  Back in the mountainous BLM land, close to my home, there are large patches of jumping cholla cacti.  Appropriately named, because jumping is what they seem to do.  The oval shaped balls of  barbed hooked needles seem to jump out and latch on to any unfortunate piece of clothing or body part that gets too close.   The ground around them is often covered with the needled balls.  Besides water and my camera, pliers are a needed essential for these hikes.

My dog, although she is careful, is often distracted by a rabbit or ground squirrel.  If after several minutes I haven't spied her occasionally darting across the trail, I  usually find her with needles stuck in one of her paws. During her attempt to remove them, her tongue and lips become infested.

I named a colt after the cactus. Cholla immediately lived up to his name.  Before he was twenty-four hours old, he was running around his pen and jumping over small bushes  It seemed Cholla the colt loved to jump too!

I will never forget a hike with my daughter, when after hearing a cry of distress from her, I looked to see a barbed ball of needles stuck in her thigh. A lesson learned; do not hike in the desert wearing shorts. I used two rocks to remove it.  The pin size holes that are left behind do not convey the pain that continues after removal.  I am pretty sure the needles are coated in some pain causing substance.

My daughter does not share my love for the desert.  Upon recalling some unfortunate experiences during the short time she lived here, I can understand why.  Between attacking cactus and a very large tarantula who decided he liked to hang, literally, on the side of the house close to the front door, which my daughter reacted to in a manner that was close to hysteria.  My attempt to rationalize her out of her arachnophobia, not surprisingly, did not help.  Or the time her and I , and all the dogs stayed in the house because a very angry rattlesnake  was just outside my bedroom window and rattled for what seemed like hours after we vacated the area.  Not to mention the often over 120 degree summer time temperatures and monsoon season that bring dangerous lightening storms.

It seems most people either love or hate the desert.  Its not hard to understand why....