Rocks, my namesake and my inspiration, are a part of who I am. Nothing quite epitomizes stability and strength like a rock. Forming over millions to billions of years, change in the geological realm occurs at a tremendously slow rate relative to the human experience of life. As a consequence, from our perspective, rocks can seem like generally unchanging entities. This phenomenon provides the basis for my love of rocks - they are constant fixtures in our transient world, permanence amidst impermanence. I have always wanted to be like a rock, both for others and for myself. I want to embody the strength and balance of that which is steady.
In the summer of 2015, my mother and I embarked on a ten-day road trip through Southern Arizona. Headed for the clouds, we were thrilled to explore this desert-rich ecoregion.
The inspiration for this trip really came from my mom and I seeing a photo of Chiricahua National Monument. We were completely awe-stricken just from the photograph, and we knew that we had to go east and see it for ourselves.
We set out for Southeastern Arizona at the end of June.
Our first stop on the way to Chiricahua was Colossal Cave Mountain Park, located just to the east of Tucson.
This cave maintains an average of 70 degrees Fahrenheit year-round. People can tour the cave to escape the blazing heat of the Southern Arizona summer. This door represents the division between the cave and the outside, a difference of 35 degrees.
Because the cave no longer has a water source, the formations have ceased to grow. Consequently, human visitation does little to no harm to this inactive cave, and tours of the cave are given many times a day, every day.
The view from outside Colossal Cave.
We excitedly became acquainted with the Saguaro cactus, a good friend of ours by the end of our desert trip. After we explored the mountain park a bit, we continued on our way.
We saw some boulders at a rest stop in Dragoon, AZ that we could not pass up. This day marked my mom's 5 year cancer-free anniversary. A fighter and a survivor, she is even stronger than she looks in this photo. Even with the weight of the world on her shoulders, she stands tall.
Although this was prime monsoon season, temperatures soared into the triple digits nearly every day of our trip.
The moisture in the air made for incredible skies, filled with the dramatic oppositional pairing of storm clouds and sunshine.
The next day, we followed our map, the clouds, and our hearts to Chiricahua National Monument.
This spectacular hoodoo field, nestled on the border of Southeastern Arizona and New Mexico, packs an entire "Wonderland of Rocks" into an 18.73 square mile unit of national park.
The formations in Chiricahua are primarily composed of hoodoo pinnacles and balanced rocks.
This behemoth boulder is in fact named, "The Balanced Rock" formation.
The rock formations in Chiricahua National Monument were created by a volcanic eruption approximately 27 million years ago.
The establishment of Chiricahua as a national monument was the result of an effort to protect the characteristic balanced rock and hoodoo formations that fill the incredible park.
The views simply go for miles.
Adventurers oh so pleased that we reached our destination.
The photography opportunities in Chiricahua did not disappoint. This picture has been the background on my computer for over a year.
The opportunity to interact with the landscapes that we had gushed at in photos was a true gift. Almost entirely alone in the park, we cherished the time we had to bond with this magical place.
Inspired by the balance and stability of the rhyolitic rock spires.
Organ Pipe Formation on the road out of Chiricahua.
Some of these columns look almost as if they could fall over any minute.
Absolutely full of awe.
That night, my mother channeled her inner moon goddess.
The following day, we headed for New Mexico to visit the Chiricahua Desert Museum, located on the eastern edge of Chiricahua National Monument.
The Desert Museum had a wide variety of snakes, reptiles, scorpions, and other desert inhabitants. This gorgeous spade-headed snake captured my attention.
Coming in for a kiss.
These prickly pear cacti outside the desert museum looked so aesthetic and green in the sunshine.
Having now hit the eastern bound of our adventure, we turned around and headed back toward Southeastern Arizona.
Our next stop was the copper-mining town of Bisbee, AZ. We were greeted by humid, 90 degree air filled with large drops of rain.
A small town full of artists and free-thinkers, Bisbee is an eclectic historical site located in the southeastern corner of Arizona.
The architecture in Bisbee reflects some of the original structures from when the mining town was founded in the late 1800s.
Bisbee became a community of artists when the mine closed in the 1970s. Upon the exodus of the mining employees and their families, many creative spirits, inspired by the historical architecture and low-cost small town vibe, came pouring in.
The rusty red hills of Bisbee reveal the mineral-rich nature of the soil, primarily in the elements of iron and copper.
Enjoying the streets of Bisbee in the morning, coffee in hand.
This mural was my favorite in the town.
At peace among the "Om" symbols.
The sun illuminated this similar design on another wall off of a side street in Bisbee.
The inspiration and artistic energy in this place burst from everywhere you look.
My mom with a beautiful, morose mural painted on a metal fence.
From Bisbee, we moved north to the historic old west boomtown of Tombstone, AZ.
Founded in 1879, this town was once the largest productive silver district in the state.
The main source of income for Tombstone today is tourism.
We thoroughly enjoyed our authentic, horse-drawn tour.
Our guide and his fantastic braid.
Vehicles representative of many time periods.
Hot, but happy to be in the shade.
This ice cream was an entirely necessary measure on this sweltering day.
That afternoon, we geared up for a tour of Kartchner Caverns in Kartchner Caverns State Park.
This living limestone cave system was an incredible display of currently growing cave formations, like stalactites, stalagmites, collaroids ("cave popcorn"), and layered flowstone ("cave bacon"). Photos inside the cave are not permitted, and human visits are highly regulated to minimize disturbance of the cave's natural growth and development.
The following day, my mom and I finally fulfilled our desire to go caving independently, to be able to explore and discover a cave at our own pace. We excitedly embarked on our quest in Coronado National Forest.
The trail to the cave.
Coronado Cave is one of the few undeveloped and open caves in the region that is available for exploring without a permit. Pictured: the cave's entrance.
The view as you climb inside. I am very afraid of heights, so I was completely on board with my mom going in first down this 40-foot slick boulder descent.
The entrance to the cave, from inside. This is from close to the bottom of the four-story tall slope.
The end of the sun's light. From this point on, we were in complete darkness except for the light of our own flashlights.
Rock formations inside the cave.
Although tight spaces could be found and investigated at will, most of Coronado Cave is about 70 feet wide and tall enough to stand comfortably.
A narrow pathway that became too claustrophobia-inducing to continue to squeeze through.
The calm and collected look on my face does not reflect what I should have been feeling at this moment, as the cave ceiling had just punctured a hole in the metal water bottle in my backpack that lay directly above my spine. I am incredibly grateful for that water bottle being the casualty of this experience rather than my spinal cord.
Dust flew everywhere as we walked through the otherwise undisturbed cave. No other cavers were present the entire time we were inside the cave.
The jagged cave walls created angles from above, below, and all around.
Fascinating formations that have stopped growing in the absence of a water source. This impressive stalagmite looks to be around 8 or 9 feet tall compared to my mom's 5'10" frame.
Calcite deposits from mineral-rich water that appear to be dripping, though they have long ceased to.
This little guy was not so fortunate when we found him, crushed on the cave floor. We both checked our shoe-prints to ensure that we were not the culprits of the murder.
Scorpions have the exciting feature of ultraviolet fluorescence, or glowing under a UV-light. The phenomenon is the result of a substance in the hyaline layer within the cuticle of their exoskeleton.
Thrilled to make it back to the cave entrance. That day, we became true cave explorers!
Strong and covered in discreet, light-colored dirt.
Backpacks and gear on our persons, we were ready to carry on from Coronado Cave to our next destinations.
Stay tuned for the next installment of our Southeastern Arizonian adventure.
Unbelievably awesome. Wonderful pictures,vistas, and perspectives with very informative descriptions. LOVE THIS!! MORE MORE!!
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