Truly an amazing place to hike and ride. Our ride there was quite enjoyable and despite the narrow, winding road, we had no issues with vehicles giving us space, passing respectively and waiting on a few of the blind curves.

Great photos …

Fun to see that ride from another perspective having ridden it just two weeks ago.

You should definitely go. Is way easier to get to from Portland than Chiang Mai.

She might be referring to them.

I don't think there are any invasive Opuntia (prickly pear) species in the soutwest US, but they are badly invasive in southern Europe, Africa, Australia, where they do not naturally occur.

Yes, but I don’t think Kelly is referring to this species. The ones so prominent along Julian Wash are Santa Rita prickly pears.

Do you mean those beautiful purplish ones? No, they’re a native species in Arizona. It’s the Santa Rita prickly pear: http://southwestdesertflora.com/WebsiteFolders/All_Species/Cactaceae/Opuntia%20santa-rita,%20Santa%20Rita%20Pricklypear.html.

Another closeup.

https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=10212007469398174&set=a.10212006128364649

Native. These beavertail cacti have absolutely brilliant magenta flowers after some good rains in the summer.

Link to one of my fb photos of beavertail flowers:

https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=10218491118125340&set=a.10218444616762835

Wow, what a place and what great photos! I’d love to hike there some day.

This winter, they never left the Dayton area.

A woman on the club ride yesterday commented about all of the prickly pears near the arch on Julian Wash. She was concerned they are an invasive species that will kill out the other cacti. Have you heard that they are invasive?

They were here because of their role in the electricity grid. When the dam was completed the government contracted with them and Con Edison to distribute its power to southern Nevada and California.

Yes, it’s so exciting! The first Robin of spring! I was starting to be afraid we’d go through the whole year without them.

Actually though, it’s mostly because they’re not really desert dwellers. The ubiquitous American crow is another odd omission so far. They don’t make it quite to the Mexican border for some reason, but I suspect we’ll see one any day now.

I was thinking just this morning that we were overdue for one of these. I saw eight or ten of them on last week's ride.

Even knowing the relationship of Hoover Dam and Lake Mead to Los Angeles it's a bit jarring to see an LA civic building in the Nevada desert...