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Showing posts from April, 2022

Las Vegas trip: cactus sightings

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My recent trip to Las Vegas  with my friend Justin was a 3-day string of highlights. Being surrounded by monumental scenery was one:  Red Rock Canyon , Gold Butte , and Valley of Fire were even more spectacular than I'd hoped, but we found beautiful desert landscapes off the beaten path as well. It often pays to take that side road just to see what's there. I'm a big believer in wonderful things happening if you open yourself up to chance discoveries.  On that note, I wonder how many Las Vegas visitors ever leave Sin City and venture out into the desert? Most of them probably have no idea what's out there—and zero interest in finding out. Gold Butte National Monument Valley of Fire State Park Yours truly walking through a slot canyon in Valley of Fire State Park Red Rock Canyon Red Rock Canyon The goal of our trip was to see Mojave Desert plants in habitat, above all cacti and the elusive  Agave utahensis  var.  nevadensis  and  eborispina . We struck gold with the hel