In southwestern U.S. there is a region that receives less than 13 inches of rainfall annually with arid mountains and parched soils. It is the 25,000-square mile Mojave Desert. This desert has extremes in temperatures ranging from over 100 degrees in the summer to sub-freezing temperatures in the winter. The soils are arid with poor nutrients and little water.

This provides challenges to plants and animals that live there. Yet over 2,000 species of plants grow in this desert and many animals survive here including big-horn sheep, kit foxes and cottontail rabbits.

As Anne and I explored the desert within Red Rock Canyon we found hand prints imprinted in a canyon wall. These pictographs were proof that native Americans once lived here. At a nearby hotel that we stayed in present day humans live in the harsh environment with the help of modern conveniences.