Prickly Pear Season

I missed picking mesquite pods this year, again. We did decide to pick a couple of bags of prickly pears though. It is always a short (we are surrounded by prickly pear) and fun outing. Most people make syrup or jam out of them and then add them to tea or lemonade, pour over pancakes... I have done this in the past, but really don't need to have the sugar part of the syrup. I like the fruits just how they are!

This year we decided to just juice them using our juicer.

Always pick them with tongs (even if my teenager doesn't!) and paper bags work better than plastic. Wash them, again use tongs. Then we sliced them in half and sent them through the juicer, no peeling or anything.

After juicing I heated the juice up to a boil and then poured it into ice cube trays. We froze the juice and now use the ice cubes in tea or lemonade. I can also add them to hot cereals, marinades, dressings etc.


If you don't have a juicer, you can wash and then place them in a pot with water. Boil until mushy and run through cheesecloth. The juice isn't as strong, but is still wonderful!

Saguaro Colors

Saguaro National Monument

Spring Prickly Pear - Summer Green

Wind in my face - Burgeoning driver

This is a favorite location for us. It is an eight mile loop, traffic is 15 mph....lots of riders, walkers and hikers. Craig and Sam cycle it often, we do some of the smaller hikes with the kids and I have gone out to walk it.

Saguaro is gorgeous in March and April, being covered in cactus blossoms, brittle bush flowers and spring greenery. The spring colors are peach, yellow and purple. The temperature is perfect at that time of year too. Summer offers another view of Saguaro, the monsoons bring water and so there are lush green cactus, green grasses and brush. Vines are lush and crawl down the arroyos, the ocotillo are so covered in leaves they hide their thorns. All the vegetation is topped with seed pods and red juicy prickly pear fruit. The summer heat is a bit too much, but early morning rides and hikes provide a nice start to the day.


Part of Saguaro's charm for the kids is the chance to ride outside the car seat. Going 15 mph around the loop allows us to let Elias sit in a lap or look out the window at all the animals crossing the road or the cyclists zooming past. Elias even gets to try steering once in a while!

Morning Discovery

We woke up early this morning and rather than hang around the house, head to the farmer's market or do chores we took off and went to Saguaro National Monument. We loaded up the car and grabbed easy breakfast snacks. It was before 7 am when we drove into Saguaro.

There are several favorite spots in Saguaro and today we decided to take the kids to Freeman Loop (a short 1 mile trail down into a wash where an old homestead used to be). The kids took off down the trail, Eva as anxious to be down and hike as the rest of us. Elias was hoping to see lots of lizards; Eva wanting to touch every plant, cactus and rock on the trail.

It rained last night, making this morning humid and buggy. The trail crosses a hill and gradually goes down into a wash. We saw numerous types of butterflies, lots of lizards, a king snake and spiders. The birds were singing and the flies were buzzing. Elias blew kisses at all his cactus friends and chased after lizards. Eva would walk a bit and then sit down to grab handfuls of rocks. Some of the barrel cactus were blooming and we looked at the fish hook shape of the needles. Elias skiped along talking about the desert and naming the plants. Eva walked about half the loop and then wanted to be carried. There is a plugged well down near the ravine and we stopped for a drink and some observation time, then it was up the hill to the car. Overall, it was a nice peaceful walk.