The Cactus Trip Diaries

Just 12 km from the hotel, heading north on Mex 120, we reached our favourite Strombo disciformis stop. Cliff had parked on an earlier pull over and so we slotted in too, always nice to see a ‘different’ location, even if it’s only some 200 m away: S3150a and S3150b. Again the density of Strombocactus here was fantastic and lots more pictures were taken, including of a bright coloured snake, still asleep, that relied on its camouflage until everyone had taken its picture and we prodded it with a stick. It’s waved its little rattle as it slid into the bushes, but I could hear no noise – too young to have fully developed a rattle? or me too deaf to hear it?

S3151 was again a stop from March, but again the scenery was so different with lush vegetation and the occotillos in full leaf, but yellowing.

Next it was a long drive along Mex 120 through the Sierra Gordano, high through the clouds, with fog and drizzle to keep us in the car.

By 4 p.m. we were again at the Stop for Turbinicarpus lophophoroides (this time S3152) near Rio Verde where this time the plants were very turgid and mostly growing above ground, some with the remains of recent flowering, looking quite different from previous occasions.

We completed the day with one of the best meals to be had in Mexico, rib-eye steak and a remarkably nice Mexican Cabernet Sauvignon. Yum yum.

Sunday we should see E. platyacanthus ‘My Old Friend’ again, and ‘Michelinman’!