Deserted

Last month the parentals came to town and among a hectic itinerary of tour guide adventures was a trip to Death Valley. NPR and other news sources had been going on and on about how ‘awesome / wonderful / spectacular / unmissable’ the flowers were thanks to the ‘unprecedented / historic / unbelievable / awesome / wonderful’ rainfall this year. After all this praise it was not entirely surprising that the Law of Expectation came into its own and DV was a bit of a disappointment. I was expecting a carpet of flowers so dense and colourful that the human eye would not be able to resolve all the colours. I expected varieties of flowers never seen since dinosaurs roamed the Earth and scenes more fabulous than Huntington Garden’s Desert exhibit.

This last weekend we went camping in Joshua Tree National Park and this time the expectation levels were low. All we needed was a couple of Joshuas, a few rocks and Job - Done. Again the LoE worked a charm and JTNP was fab. Cacti that were supposed to be flowering at DV were actually out, and it seemed like there was more to see. We had the added bonus of Backcountry Camping almost, but not quite, in the middle of nowhere which added to the flavour - and stench. All in all I think I am deserted out and the next camping trip should be foresty / coasty / beachy / damp.

Various pictures can be found in the Parentals and Joshua Tree albums - yes - more bleedin’ flowers…