More Big Empty

Desert Finds

Now that it is winter in the desert, it is finally time to be outdoors and explore. The snakes are in hibernation, and the air is cool. Only bad thing is that the days are short and there seems to be more wind during the winter and spring months.

In our wanderings recently, we've found some strange things in the middle of nowhere. First, you see the flag on the top of a hill. You can see the flag from a road nearby, but there is not a building within 10 miles of this hill and I cannot figure out what it is doing there. Second, is a nice little man. He was truly in the middle of nowhere. Not even a paved road within 20 miles, and we had hiked about a mile from a fairly tough 4x4 road to get there (the woman had to get out and push once when we were on the road). You may not be able to tell in the attached picture, but there was a dried up snake skin wrapped around his neck. That was a little gross.

Things seem to be well preserved out in the desert. You'll often see old cars, appliances, mattresses and tires -- stuff that people can't just give to the trash guy. So they dump it out in the desert. Although I generally prefer my spaces empty, with as little sign of humanity as possible, it is nice to have the occasional surprise such as the flag and man.