Friday, February 19, 2021

Beautiful Freak Of Nature

I’m talking about this saguaro, not my husband. 

Ed wanted to go to the Grand Canyon for his birthday earlier this month. I nixed the idea because a) he sprung it on me the day before when I asked, “So, what do you want to do for your birthday this year?” and b) it’s winter in Northern  Arizona. I’m not driving 5 hours to look at a snowy hole. 

So we went to Sabino Canyon instead and took a tram ride 3.7 miles up into the canyon to look at rocks and cactus. Not quite the grandeur of the other canyon, but something to do. 


And there, on one of the trails, is where we found the crested saguaro. They are a 
rare mutation. And although not common, one Arizona man has documented over 2,200 of them as of 2019.  They even formed a society to tackle the task. Here’s a photo of Ed, in all of his glorious 46 years, standing in front of the crested saguaros we saw in Sabino Canyon.

This one is different than some I’ve seen in other photos because this one has arms that continue to grow above the crest. Others just have the big crest at the top. 
I’ve been in Tucson for 40 years and this is the first time I’ve ever seen a crested saguaro. That should give you a good idea about how often I get outside. 

The Grand Canyon is still on the list. I think we’ll wait until Spring for that. It’ll still be cool up there, and there might be a bit of snow in The Canyon itself - which I'd like to see - but we’ll have a little more time to plan and can do a weekend in the area instead of a rushed day trip.

Happy Trails!

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
2020: Sorry, no post on this day.
2019: Ring The Bell For Tips
2018: Snacks & Bar
2017: So This Happened Today
2016: Agrarian
2015: Tied Off
2014: Seek And Ye Shall Find
2013: Frantically Trying To Get Back To Indonesia
2012: I’d Like Some Snow For Dessert
2011: Getting A Little Carried Away
2010: On A Need To Know Basis
2009: Something Has Gone Terribly Wrong
2008: Flying Into The Sun
2007: Riding The Rails
2006: Keeping Me Quiet With A Chocolate Snap
2005: Sorry, no post on this day. The blog didn’t start until May 2005!