Howdy, partner

On a recent trip to Tucson, Ariz., I took a little walk on the Sabino Canyon Trail, which peeks into the foothills of the Santa Catalina Mountains. Thirsty for adventure and armed with my trusty Nikon digital camera, I set out with my family. We agreed on a 2-mile stroll.

Just before the midpoint of our walk, I saw this massive saguaro very close to the road, peering from high above the trail. So I stuck my camera at its trunk and pointed skyward. Here's what I got.




Just beyond the 1-mile marker on the path, I saw the destruction that the area's monsoons can bring. In the summer, a gushing mass washed out a wide path of the road, which had since been rebuilt. But still below in the wash was the debris of heavy boulders and once-strong trees, pushed aside as though they were feathers. The tree skeletons looked like the mangled vine of a bunch of grapes after they've been eaten. And from afar, the mudslide marks on the mountain face look like scratches made on a painting before it is dry.

P.S. Wildlife surprise No. 1: At sunset, a doe and her two little ones scampered away from the trail into the thick brush peppered with different types of cacti. The moment was merely seconds, and efforts to capture it on my camera were in haste.

P.P.S. Wildlife surprise No. 2: On the way to the airport, my cousin M. was maneuvering our way up the driveway and we spotted a bobcat with eyes trained on something across our path. The small, quick animal saw us, then made after his target -- a black house cat that was lumbering low to the ground, bounding for any sign of safety. Our guess is we startled the bobcat so much, we might have saved the other kitty's life.