A Monarch Butterfly

We have been in a region which is used for those with wings, both birds and at least the Monarch Butterfly. I found one yesterday on the road at the end of my 30 miles in a little town of Calipatria.  He is not well.  I did not notice if he may have fallen from an Ecalyptus tree, as often these creatures will rest in said tree as they fly south to north.  He may have been taken by the cold.  Dick Powell, David's brother, just sent us some photographs taken in Switzerland by a lake which depicts the wind blown ice on the coast.  No it is not that cold here but yesterday  I road in rain, not heavy rain, but wet rain and mist and some wind.  The Monarch is still alive this morning in the Argosy with us.

It would appear that I do not yet have the endurance to ride, stretch, eat, sleep and blog in the same day. For the past three days (Saturday, Sunday and Monday, February 7, 8, and 9) I clocked 76 miles for those three days and am taking today for another recovery day.  With luck I will then be able to ride Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday into Phoenix. We are picking up our eldest granddaughter Amanda at the Phoenix airport on Monday, February 16th.  We will also connect up with some MacDonald relatives, Max and Erlene.  I made contact with two United Methodist churches in Phoenix before I left home but was not successful in scheduling a speaking engagement. 

Riding on a shoulder of less width than four feet is a challenge.  RVs are the least generous while passing and souped up passenger trucks come in second.  Truckers have been generous. One more time I am surprised at the energy needed keeping the bike on track.  Pedaling is only one small part of the endeavor.  We decided to create a different route to take advantage of the Salton Sea.  David very much wished to experience it.  If we had had only the truck we would have been able to go to Red Hill but with the recent rains the mud did not make favorable conditions.  Flocks of Egrets were spied but there is much swampland between the road and the water so that our view of birds was greatly diminished.  Sonny Bono worked to protect this wildlife refuge.

As I biked along the agriculture lands I did hear several times the red winged black bird and perhaps a meadow lark.  We also came across acres and acres of feed lots for cattle.  The cattle are so close together that they would not be able to turn around.  It can not be sanitary.  Ode to

industrial agriculture.