Yesterday, I rode to scooter to town to pick up a few things in anticipation of a rainy Saturday. On the way back, I pulled over to the shoulder of the road and shot a few photos to illustrate how the road dips into arroyos in places. I wrote about that yesterday, but you know what they say – a picture is worth a thousand words.

In the first picture, I’m facing north on McDowell Mountain Road. The road dips ahead and there’s a warning sign – Do Not Cross When Flooded.

Warning sign

The number of people that ignore these signs and end up stalled in deep water never ceases to amaze me.

In the next picture, I rode the scooter to the bottom of the dip. Looking west, across the road, you can see the arroyo. This is not a dirt road, it’s erosion from rain water draining into the arroyo. The gate was put there to keep people from driving up the arroyo.

Arroyo on the north side

I turned around and shot a picture of the east side of the road. You can see how the flood water crosses the road and continues to flow east to the Verde River.

Arroyo continues on the south side

Hopefully these pictures will make yesterday’s post regarding flash floods and sandy places in the road clear.

I tried a different allergy medication yesterday. So far, it hasn’t been very effective. Some allergy meds take a few days before they really begin working. We’ll leave this area in a couple of days and hopefully my symptoms won’t be so bad in Mesa. We’re currently parked next to a huge, flowering brittlebush plant.

In the afternoon, Donna and I rode around the park and explored a bit. We stopped at the nature center. Behind the center they’re building a pond. It looks to be nearly complete. There’s also an enclosure with desert tortoises.

The desert tortoise is an herbivore classified as a reptile. Desert tortoises are native to the Mojave and Sonoran Deserts. Their population has been declining over the last 50 years. Estimates in the 1950s showed an average of 200 adult desert tortoises per square mile. Recent estimates show 5 to 60 desert tortoises per square mile.

Desert tortoise snoozing behind a bush

Desert tortoises create burrows underground to escape the heat. Other desert animals often move into these subterranean chambers.

This guy moved in for a closer look at us

In the afternoon, I prepared for rain. I put things away in the trailer and covered the scooter. When it became apparent that the rain wouldn’t arrive before nightfall, I got the grill back out and cooked hamburgers for dinner.

The rain came after midnight and continues to fall sporadically this morning. We have a break now, but it’s supposed to rain again this afternoon. Donna is going to a Cabi clothing party with her friend, Julia, this afternoon. If the rain comes, I’ll probably stay inside and watch TV.