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Friday, May 29, 2015

Rain in the Desert

At the end of Tuesday's post, I mentioned that we moved to a remote campsite with a big slope of slickrock near it. Storms were on the way but Shyla and I got in a little bit of exploring before they hit.

We rode up a lonely canyon with red rock walls towering over us. Shyla loves running in this canyon. The ground is nice soft sand or dirt most of the way.
The canyon walls seemed artistically shaped, with peeks of the cloudy blue sky over us.
Shyla bowed down in thanks for the beauty.
We made it back to the Labmobile in time for a couple of big thunderstorms. We all relaxed inside while the storms pelted the world with hail and rain.

When we stepped out of the Labmobile after the storms, the world looked very different. The slickrock slope above our campsite had rivers of water flowing down it.
After we climbed a bit, we could see that the normally dry "wash" (like a dry sandy river bottom) was filled with water. I was a little worried at first because we'd have to cross that small river to depart the next day. But, the Runner was right - it was almost dry by then.
Flowers drank up the water where it had pooled on the slickrock.
And other flowers drank up water that flowed down cracks in the slickrock.
As the sun set, it gave the whole world a honey colored glow.
We had a break in the storms for dinner, and then the lightning show began.
At twilight, the sky is normally a bright blue but the clouds and lightning made it look almost purple.

It was definitely not a typical desert day but it was truly amazing to see the landscape transformed by intense rain. I bet that lots of plants are blooming now due to that rain!

Happy Friday!

16 comments:

  1. the rain flowing down the rocks is pretty neat!

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  2. Enjoy your weekend and we hooe the fun with sun comes back!

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  3. How we wish some of our rain would dry up that quickly:) But at the same time we love seeing those desert flowers - so pretty. Thanks for sharing the beauty you found on your trip.

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  4. Big storms and wide open spaces - awesome. I love that purple sky!
    We finally got some rain yesterday, and it was a massive and torrential storm. I was driving home from an appointment and the visibility was suddenly so bad, I had to creep off the highway and wait out the worst of it. The "up" side of that was I parked near a store and used the time to buy seeds. So I guess in a way, my storm will also result in new plant life - fingers crossed! :)

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  5. Wow - what a gorgeous place. I hope you are all having a great time...quite different from the snow just a few weeks ago huh?

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  6. Is that your little home on wheels way down below?? What glorious sky photos, and flowers that drink storm water and flourish, a wonderful world, and Shyla glows as she enjoys it all so very much.

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  7. wow what a wonderful view! I would bow down too that we have such wonderful places on our planet :o)
    easy rider

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  8. Hari OM
    Astounding... having experienced the rare occasion of being at Uluru ("Ayers Rock") when it rained, and seeing water 'slicking' down, I can imagine something of the feeling you would have had... there is something joyously elemental added to life with such as this! YAM xx

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  9. I love watching the little waterfalls off the canyon walls.

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  10. Wow, beautiful photos! Yes, it is fun to see the rain on the redrock. Things change very quickly at both ends of it!

    Your Pals,

    Murphy & Stanley

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  11. Wow - what a beautiful spot to camp!

    Love ya lots♥
    Mitch and Molly

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  12. Oooooooo, SO PURTY!!!! I loves seein' you playin' in the desert! can I stow away next time??? ☺
    Kisses,
    Ruby ♥

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  13. Stunningly beautiful photos. Your talent is shiny. :D

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  14. Yes KB,,, the plants are so thnakful for all the rain! Those were amazing photos of the rain pouring over the rocks..
    So much beauty,,,, and so beautiful the evening sky!
    love
    tweedles

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  15. This all just looks heavenly to me. Having grown up in the Four Corners area, I find myself missing the desert more and more lately.

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