First Desert Tortoises of the Year!

Last Tuesday we played hookie for a couple of hours and walked in the desert. Everywhere it was green! The shrubs were leafing out and looking the best they had in five years. Blotched-sided Lizards were zipping across our path, stopping on occation to do little pushups. Teeny white flowers that are part of the forget-me-not family carpeted patches of the desert floor.

The sun was getting bright, and it was getting almost too warm. It was time to turn home.

Some scat and, not much further, some tracks caught our eye. Tortoise? We turned back and had not gone three paces. We had walked right past one! It was sunning itself and looking very content, its mouth messy green from munching on spring growth. What a rare sight! We walked home, grinning ear to ear.