Wednesday Walk Cairin Edition

I don't believe that @tattoodjay is a member here on Whaleshares. But that doesn't mean that his Wednesday Walk isn't just a great project here, too. I'll jack him up a little and see if he doesn't want to come here and hang with all the cool kids.

About once a week Sam and I go for a drive and walk. He’s really good in the car, loves to go, and loves to find new places to mark and smell. This is a spot that's relatively near, but Sam loves to get in and out of the car so it's 'special'

This is in response to a Challenge by @tattoodjay to take photographs of things on a walk. Things you don’t normally see. I really like the challenge and the challenger so here I am again.

Believe it or not this is the end of one of the busiest streets in the Foothills area where I live. Sam and I went looking for some fresh dirt to smell and found it fairly close to home. This is less than 2 miles from where we normally walk, but feels far more remote. Way less traffic of vehicles and humans. If you look really carefully you can see Sam just right of center in this photo.

We were just blundering around the area sort of aimlessly when we came on this. At first I thought it was just another trash dump spot (which really irritates me) but I couldn't have been more wrong.

It's a memorial site. The pile of stones is known as a Cairin. They have meaning to whoever started it, and it's considered good form to add a stone to a Cairin when you pass by. I have a Carin that I tend in SE Utah, and every stone I have placed has a name.

It is obviously an active 'memory site' for somebody. This partial bottle of wine's label and price code are still fresh. In this part of the world that stuff fades out really fast. In spite of the photos we normally have sun that would cook that in a hurry.

There is an automotive grade compass attached to the cross that is the center of this Cairin. I don't know the significance but it felt like a kindred spirit to me.

Then there is this. A bench (or love seat) where somebody obviously sat in some contemplation (I'd guess the bottle of wine was involved) near a small fire. This was recent, but not in the last week. I sat on the bench (but not on the pad) to be sure it was strong enough. It was.

This place moved me. I can't exactly explain the feelings I had (or have) but I treated the site like what it obviously is. A memorial.

We didn't just stop here. For one thing we were better than a mile from the car, and it takes something seriously major to stop us on our appointed walk. Not to far from the Cairin we found this. That is the remains of a Saguro Cactus. They are protected by law and whoever dumped this here would go to jail if known. This one has obviously been here for several years. This is NOT naturally occuring, the nearest Saguaro is at least 10 miles away.

As we were on our way back to the car Sam found an old friend to 'drop in' on. He probably digs for 8 or 10 squirrels per week, and so far he has caught precisely one. He had no clue what to do with it, he ended up getting bit on the cheek and ear and the squirrel escaped to another hole.

But this is really about our walk, the #wednesdaywalk. I really do enjoy this challenge and am grateful to @tattoodjay for sponsoring it.

All words and photos in this post are mine. For better or worse.

You want some really cool stuff? Check these authors, they will not disappoint.

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@soyrosa Great Photographs and Insights for us All

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