Of all the deserts in North America, the Sonoran Desert is the largest, covering an area of 120,000 square miles of strange and remarkable beauty. Part of the desert stretches over south -west Arizona, part over south-east California and the rest over north-west Mexico. Somewhat surprisingly, 80% of Arizona’s population live in the desert area, in towns such as Tucson and Phoenix, although this unique area only accounts for 20% of Arizona’s total territory. Temperatures in summer rarely fall below 1000 Fahrenheit, while the winters are never really cold. The desert area has a very low annual rainfall in comparison to other parts of Arizona, where there might be three or four times as much rain in a year. Water, therefore, has to be taken from the ground or from several rivers that cross the desert. The region was inhabited by Native American groups for hundreds of
years before the Spaniards came in the 15th century and colonized a large part of the desert area. Now you can see the remains of one early Native American civilization, the Hohokam tribe, who created permanent villages and a fairly advanced system of canals to carry water for their crops.
The desert area is remarkable for its cacti, the main form of vegetation that can exist in such inhospitable conditions. There is also an amazing variety of wildflowers which seem to come up overnight after the winter rains, only to disappear in the first heat of spring. Animals that live in the desert include lizards, the desert tortoise, rattlesnakes and small mammals such as mice, squirrels, rabbits, coyotes and mountain lions.
So come and join us for a true wilderness experience in the Sonoran desert – an unforgettable adventure! There is nothing quite like the desert sky full of stars to remind you of that whole universe out there.
Bình luận ()