Gunslingers, mayhem, rigged court trials, and gun battles between mine owners and claim jumpers established Pioche, Nevada as one of the wildest mining camps in the West. Located 400 miles from the nearest law enforcement, Pioche residents determined right from wrong – or rather the powerful over the weak – by the rule of the…
A rebirth happens in the American deserts in the Spring, as tiny green leaves sprout from lifeless twigs, and cautious annuals awaken and poke their heads above their winter beds. New buds swell on perennials, straining at their bonds, waiting to erupt from their dark slumber. When the time is right, after Mother Nature has…
One of the most overlooked and ignored items you will find in an RV is a fire extinguisher. Most of us will never need one in a lifetime of RVing, but if a hot pan in your galley suddenly flared up out of control would you know where your fire extinguisher was? In the panic…
Mountain lion attacks on people have increased dramatically since 1986, with most of these attacks occurring in California, Colorado, and Canada. So if wherever you are doesn’t start with a “C” you can breathe easier. Mountain lions, also known as cougars, catamounts, and panthers, have in recent years changed their habits due to reduced hunting…
You’re hiking a woodland trail on a warm sunny day, the forest alive with the twitterings of songbirds, sunlight dappling the forest floor, when suddenly you come upon a bear. What should you do? A) Throw rocks and sticks at it to scare it away, B) Turn around and run, C) Faint from fright. Answer:…
Women’s rights and racism are hot tops of discussion and controversy today. But women’s rights (along with the abolitionist movement) were controversial and emotional subjects in the Victorian nineteenth century as well and sparked lively discussions at Nook Farm, an exclusive enclave in Hartford, Connecticut, where some of America’s foremost liberal thinkers gathered to confront these…
Every year we read about disastrous wildfires sweeping across vast swaths of our national forests, and even into heavily populated suburban and urban areas. You may not be able to prevent all these conflagrations, but you can help prevent some such disasters by properly managing your campfire. Building a safe and efficient campfire requires both art and skill, often…
The era of the Arizona pueblo builders was a great time to be a kid. Unlike today’s kids that spend their free time in front of a TV or playing video games while their parents scold them for making too much noise, slamming the screen door, and running in the house, life was different for…
Cacti, as you may know, are not placed in the deserts just to amaze us with their showy and colorful flowers in the Spring and Summer. In the ecosystem where cacti live, they perform a much more valuable role. From the extremes of its showy, flowering phase to its wintery dull appearance, slow-growing cacti provide…
The largest of the cacti family, the giant multi-armed saguaros and organ pipes look more like green telephone poles than a growing plant. Acknowledged as the de facto symbol of the Sonoran Desert, the saguaro, instead of proudly displaying its creamy white flowers for us to ooh! And aah! over, it decides to bloom only…
For you snowbirds that fortunately haven’t left the desert yet to head north, this is the best time of the year to see cacti in bloom. Stick around a little longer to enjoy the amazing world of cacti in this three-part article on the cacti of the Southwestern deserts. I can’t count how many times…
BoondockBob's blog 