5/23/2017
Topic:
Sleeping with Snakes?
cercidium
|
have you considered a cot? i've been using the same cot since 2003 and wouldn't trade it for anything. the only drawback—if i struggled to find one—is you're a little cooler in winter when cold air surrounds you. summer, on the other hand, keeps you a bit cooler for the same reason. comfort-wise they're somewhere between a hammock and a bed. backpacking with a cot? forget about it! |
6/13/2017
Topic:
Rumorosa Baja
cercidium
|
i spent last weekend down there, camped south of el topo. it's a magical place virtually untouched, aside from cow dung everywhere. i loved seeing the profusion of baja fairy dusters (in bloom!) and made a nice loop out of it, returning home via the 3 and ojos negros. of course we made the obligatory stop at marcellos to feast on cheese and an amazing lunch! i highly recommend it! |
10/11/2017
Topic:
Thorny desert weed
cercidium
|
nothing quite like an acacia to slow you down. i've got a beautiful one on my hillside overlooking chollas creek... if anybody ever entered our fence it'd be the first friend to greet them! |
10/13/2017
Topic:
Thorny desert weed
cercidium
|
dsefcik wrote:
cercidium wrote:
You need to plant some more down in the canyon...the new home of the homeless....I just cleared out more crap from them this morning.
i've been working with sdpd and canyonlands to clear that out—54th and uni is complete, the creekbed is next. that little canyon is best kept with natives... of course my hillside is fair game for all manner of sonoran desert friends! |
10/31/2017
Topic:
Goat Canyon Trestle
cercidium
|
great find! i particularly like the painters interpretation of the gorge. |
12/6/2017
Topic:
Rockhouse / Buck Ridge
cercidium
|
great report and photos! i need to return and grab my first 35mm camera one of these days... accidentally abandoned atop a rock at the far end of the valley (following the schad hiking loop). your photos bring back tons of memories! |
12/20/2017
Topic:
Best route for hike from Laguna to desert floor?
cercidium
|
have you looked at jerry schad's book? there's a great description that takes you from mt. laguna to agua caliente—involves some stretches of bushwhacking but nothing short of rewarding. share some pics if you end up making the journey! |
2/6/2018
Topic:
Salton Sea Naval Base
cercidium
|
you might try some intrepid exploring to get to the base, as there's a way around the sand dune that's difficult to miss. alternately you can air your tires to 15psi and drive right over the dune with no concern of getting stuck. enjoy the journey! |
4/12/2019
Topic:
the mother of all ajo lillies
cercidium
|
with all of the amazing flower pictures circulating i thought it'd be good to share some enormous ajo lillies we found in the gran desierto (in mexico, not anza-borrego) earlier this month. we visited the dune area for a few wet and cold days, but it was the ajo lillies that were unlike anything i'd ever seen or imagined. it's worth pointing out i'm 5'11". enjoy! (*not sure why the vertical pictures are sideways—happy to edit if there's a workaround)
" ", " ", " ", " "
edited by cercidium on 4/12/2019
edited by cercidium on 4/12/2019 |
9/6/2020
Topic:
Valley of the Moon to East Davies Valley
cercidium
|
thanks for posting these updates, especially the recent satellite view from tommy. was that from a service you subscribe to?
i was curious to see the area up close and decided to drive in to this location on thursday last week via smuggler roads from the mexican side. they've cleared a lot of earth but the fence is still about a mile away as seen in the satellite view seen. the construction crew was pretty freaked out when i walked into what they perceived as their site, telling me i needed to leave the area. i politely informed them, from about 6 feet away and in two distinct countries, that i was in mexico and the rules set forth by the u.s. gov't did not apply to the earth i was standing on. they were perplexed by this, and said they were going to detain me (and on it went). needless to say, the border patrol arrived and there were no arrests that day.
i'm happy to share photos but it appears they need to be uploaded from a url. if there are alternate ways to do this please let me know. |
9/6/2020
Topic:
Valley of the Moon to East Davies Valley
cercidium
|
i forgot to add a link that shows the extend of new border fencing, which you can zoom in on for reasonably detailed information. this map suggests the fence will not be constructed through valley of the moon. it was also clear from mx hwy 2 that the fence is not going to connect the area east of davies valley with the desert floor south of the 98 and ocotillo. they appear to be avoiding the most mountainous stretches of desert.
https://www.cbp.gov/border-security/along-us-borders/border-wall-system |