Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument – Arizona
Driving through Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument at dusk, the landscape does not feel empty, it feels inhabited.
As the sun lowers behind the Ojo Mountains, long shadows stretch across the sand. The silhouette of organ pipe and saguaro cacti rise with arms lifted toward a sky painted in amber color. This is the Sonoran Desert, one of the most biologically diverse deserts in the world. It supports a varsity of plant and animal life. The monument is named for the organ pipe cactus, a tall, multi-stemmed cactus that grows naturally in a very few places in the United States.
Established in 1937 by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, the monument protects the rare ecosystem as well as a cultural crossroads. For centuries, The Tohono O’odham people have lived in and moved through this region, following seasonal rhythms. The land also holds traces of Spanish explorers, ranchers, and miners.
The drive along the Ajo Mountain Loop at dusk reveals the subtle movement of the desert. The air cools and the towering cacti stand like witnesses to the changing landscape. Organ Pipe is a monument to the land and culture of this region.
Read More From Nancy
John Muir National Historic Site – California
John Muir’s home in California offers a intimate window into the life of one of America’s most influential conservationists. Located northeast of San Francisco, the site is preserved today as John Muir National Historic Site. Muir lived here from 1889 until his death in 1914. While many picture him wandering through Yosemite or Alaska’s glaciers, this […]
Belmont-Paul Women’s Equality Monument – Washington DC
In 2018, I visited the Belmont-Paul Women’s Equality National Monument in Washington D.C., one of the newer additions to the National Park System at the time. In my pursuit to visit as many National Park historic sites as possible, I often made a point of seeing them soon after they were designated. When Belmont-Paul came […]
Saugus Iron Works National Historic Site – Massachusetts
Long before Massachusetts became synonymous with textile mills, industry was already taking root along the Saugus River. In 1646, a group of English investors organized as the Company of Undertakers of the Iron Works in New England established what would become the first successful integrated ironworks in colonial North America. Their goal was to reduce the […]
