Organ Pipes in the Desert

Yesterday we took a drive down to the Organ Pipe Cactus National monument south of beautiful (?) downtown Why, AZ. The Organ Pipe Cactus is unique to Mexico and a small part of the Sonoran Desert in the lower AZ area. The Organ Pipe will grow a stalk until a frost hits it. Then another stalk begins at the base and grows until a frost hits it. When the frost occurs, the stalks quit growing. That's why the cactus looks like a set of pipe organ pipes. They also seem to prefer rocky terrain as they grow up the hillsides where even the Saguaros don't go. The 21 mile drive on the tour is another example of the rugged terrain shared by Mexico and the US. Rugged but beautiful.
We are still in the desert west of Casa Grande and will be here for a few more days. Our mail has caught up with us and we will go pick it up this evening or tomorrow (Thank You, Mike and Eva). Then, I can get one of the DTV converters for the coach TV and see what it does for us. We will then begin planning our next move, probably north of Phoenix but not too far north:) There are still lots of "scenic drives" in the books that we want to see before we head Westward.