From Deming to Las Cruces on Interstate 10. Hang a right and go south to El Paso. Cruise through El Paso right after rush hour, no problem. East through Sierra Blanca and into the eastern time zone. Van Horn. Interstate 10 and 20 split. Continue on 10 past Balmorhea. Less trucks now. Fort Stockton, Fort Lancaster, Ozona, and stop in the evening light at Sonora. Tonight’s low, 26. Another hotel.
400 miles to go.
Said goodbye to all the family here, including our fabulous hosts with the casita, Lindsay’s parents, Steve and Lori.
A leisurely leaving. On the road before noon. Deming, New Mexico tonight. 300 miles accomplished, 850 miles to go.
Expected overnight low, 31. We’re in a hotel.
A celebration at Matt’s house
With Judy’s birthday buddy Ayla.
Ayla was born on Judy’s 70th birthday so it was a joint celebration.
Ayla just turned six.
This is the usual large distinctive cactus we see here, the saguaro.
This cactus is different.
This looks like an organ pipe cactus. It’s similar to a saguaro in that it sucks up water during wet seasons and expands to save it inside for the dry season. It closes the pores on its surface during the day to eliminate transpiration during the heat and conserve water. It blooms only at night.
I’m a little skeptical about what this cactus is for sure, because in the U.S., organ pipes only grow naturally inside the Organ Pipe National Monument right on the southern border of Arizona. It also grows in Mexico. This one is growing in a yard where we are in the Phoenix area. We’re a little far north, out of the cactus’s natural range. They can’t tolerate a freeze. Maybe this is a landscaping version of an organ pipe cactus that can tolerate slightly colder winter weather, I don’t know.
