Lost Dutchman State Park

We are presently staying at Lost Dutchman State Park in Apache Junction Arizona. The park is right at the western base of the Superstition Mountains. There is a great deal written about them and the seemingly mythical Lost Dutchman Gold Mine that lies unfounded in these mountains. It is a hauntingly beautiful place. The above image was taken from the front steps of the trailer.

Life is hard in this desert environment. Not sure if this Cactus Wren has grown tired of standing on the cactus thorns or was just caught doing the two step. Fun picture nonetheless.

As I mentioned just above, life can be very difficult in this desert and to survive you must go to extremes. I called this plant the Water Seeker. The plant is, I believe, a Jojoba and it is unclear whether it sent this root down through the soil seeking moisture and the soil then got eroded away after the root system had been established or if it sent it along the ground or minimally subsurface to gt to water. Fascinating show of determination nonetheless.

Early this morning there were 5 Harris Hawks flying around the campground. In some earlier travels in South Texas we had seen them hunting together where one of the Hawks would go into a tree and flush a bird and the others would wait outside and grab the bird as it unsuspectingly flew out. They seem to travel and hunt quite a bit in groups.

This butterfly is an American Snout. It seems aptly named if you look at it's nose that can be seen in this picture. We saw about 8 of them flitting around on one bush as we hiked along one of the trails earlier this morning.

Lost Dutchman State Park has a rather decent trail system. The trails are well maintained and the dogs are allowed to hike along with us. we just take lots of water and treats along for them.

Having a great time, wish you were here.