Juniper in red sandstone at Paria Canyon, Utah

Jim Conrad's
Spring Comes to the
DESERT SOUTHWEST

January 1 to April 12, 1988

INDEX
(Book can be downloaded in various formats here.)

  1. The Escape -- On the day after Christmas I leave Kentucky for the Desert Southwest
  2. AMISTAD RESERVOIR NEAR DEL RIO, TEXAS
    : Shaded-relief map of region
  3. Dog-Bill's Walk -- Dog-Bill introduces me to the local flora
  4. A Gully-Mud Skull -- How identifying a skull found in the desert becomes a meditation
  5. Four Deserts from A Wet Tent -- An overview of   North America's four deserts
  6. Gnawings, Nibblings & Scats -- Interpreting the leavings of jackrabbits, deer and others
  7. Bird List #1: The Desert's Edge -- Birds seen one morning along Amistad Reservoir
  8. BIG BEND NATIONAL PARK, TEXAS:
    Shaded-relief map of region
  9. Echinocereus triglochidiatus var octacanthusBig Bend's First Lessons -- I am chastened during my first moments at Big Bend
  10. Seven Peccaries -- A close call with some peccaries
  11. Big Bend Backpacking Trip #1 -- Six days in the desert, and spring's first signs
  12. Bird List #2: Big Bend as Spring Begins -- Birds seen during three hours of the above hike
  13. Big Bend Backpacking Trip #2 -- Five and a half days in the Chisos foothills
  14. Cactus Orientation -- Looking at the basics of cactus identification
  15. Slumgullion #1 -- Miscellaneous short notes from Big Bend
  16. CORONADO NATIONAL FOREST, NEW MEXICO:
    Shaded-relief map of region
  17. Across the Continental Divide -- From Big Bend to New Mexico's Peloncillo Mtns.
  18. Denizens of a Strange-Feeling Forest -- Trees, wildflowers and cacti around my camp
  19. Six Mexican Jays -- A story of six jays with strong personalities
  20. Hiking to Skeleton Canyon -- Meeting some interesting birds, ferns and more
  21. At the University of Arizona -- A Sunday morning on the UA campus
  22. FIVE MILES SW OF SELLS, ARIZONA
    : Shaded-relief map of region
  23. Saguaro Country -- Entering the Sonoran Desert with its Saguaro cacti
  24. Random Sonoran Observations at Dawn -- Just that
  25. Saguaro by Starlight -- Sleeping next to a Saguaro
  26. TEN MILES SE OF AJO, ARIZONA
    : Shaded-relief map of region
  27. Bird List #3: A Sonoran list -- Special notes on a Gambel's Quail and a Raven
  28. Six Spring Wildflowers -- Profiles of six Sonoran wildflowers
  29. Looking for Lizards & Mammals -- A trip finding some lizards and squirrels
  30. A Mouse's Tale -- I build a non-violent mousetrap
  31. Slumgullion #2 -- Miscellaneous short notes from the Sonoran
  32. IMPERIAL SAND DUNES WEST OF YUMA, CALIFORNIA:
    Shaded-relief map of region
  33. Sand Dunes -- First impressions are a bit numbing
  34. The Sand at Dawn -- Discoveries among the dunes
  35. Two Roundtail Ground Squirrels -- Mysterious behavior of two small ground squirrels
  36. BESIDE THE SALTON SEA, RIVERSIDE COUNTY, CALIFORNIA
  37. 232 Feet Below Sea Level -- First birds and plants seen at Salton Sea
  38. Tilapia Island -- A big wind heaps up dead fish along shore
  39. NORTH OF YUCCA VALLEY, SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY, CALIFORNIA
  40. Juan Calderregel -- While repairing Henry I meet a Mexican
  41. Wildflowers of the High Mojave -- More spring wildflowers blossoming than seen so far
  42. The Big Joke -- Philosophy inspired by desert and bombs
  43. THROUGH DEATH VALLEY:
    Shaded relief map of region
  44. Death Valley -- Awed by the Valley but unable to find a place to stop

  45. MINING AREA NEAR BEATTY, NEVADA:
    Shaded relief map of region
  46. Rocks & Minerals -- Interpreting the geology of an unvegetated valley
  47. Slumgullion #3 -- Miscellaneous short notes from near Beatty
  48. PEACE CAMP NEAR MERCURY, NEVADA:
    Shaded relief map of region
  49. Peace Camp -- I fall in with some protesters
  50. We are All Crystals -- Philosophy among the protesters at the entrance gate
  51. EAST SLOPE OF CHARLESTON PEAK, NEVADA:
    Shaded relief map of region
  52. Sky Island -- Climbing to the snow line on Charleston Peak
  53. A Two-treed Forest -- Woody plants at 8000 feet elevation
  54. BESIDE LAKE MEAD EAST OF LAS VEGAS, NEVADA
    : Shaded relief map of region
  55. Bird Lists #4, #5 & #6 -- Three short lists from places with few birds
  56. ZION NATIONAL PARK, UTAH
    : Shaded relief map of region
  57. Into the Great Basin Desert -- A mind-boggling drive to Zion
  58. Backpacking Zion National Park -- Three days of hiking
  59. DESERT 20 MILES EAST OF KANAB, UTAH:
    Shaded relief map of region
  60. Walking through Sagebrush -- Lay of the land here and how it feels
  61. Confessions from beside a Sagebrush Fire -- Why I'm not going to Grand Canyon
  62. Mule Deer -- A mystical experience with a beautiful creature
  63. PARIA CANYON UTAH, 30 MILES NW OF PAGE, ARIZONA:
    Shaded relief map of region
  64. Backpacking Paria -- Wandering a very rugged, daunting landscape
  65. LAKE POWELL ON THE UTAH/ARIZONA BORDER
  66. Slumgullion #4 -- Miscellaneous notes from along Lake Powell
  67. WITH THE HARRISES IN MONUMENT VALLEY, UTAH:
    Shaded relief map of region
  68. The Harrises' Front Yard -- Diane Harris introduces me to the plants around her house
  69. Skin Walker -- Diane tells me her Skin Walker story
  70. View from The Mesa -- Last views and thoughts