[Labyrinthos]

I have mostly remained city-bound since moving here almost eight years ago. Even here, there was a javalina in the lot of a Motel 6 on Ray Road, and we would have had roof rats in north central Phoenix had it not been for our kitties. In my workplace in Scottsdale, I had seen both a road runner AND a coyote, but not at the same time.

We are almost neighbors. My wife and I moved from New York to the Carefree/Cave Creek area in the foothills north of Phoenix about two years ago. Although we are only 35 miles from PHX Sky Harbor Airport, the distance might as well be 350 miles. This is real cowboy country, where people ride their horses and tractors to the local saloons, Wednesday and Friday nights feature bull riding, boot spurs are a common sight, and open carry is not a big deal.

In our yard and the nearby wash, we regularly see coyotes, bobcats, barred owls, road runners (beep beep), and javelinas, and from time-to-time rattlesnakes, scorpions, and tarantellas. A few months back, a neighbor picked up a mountain lion on their ring camera. Yesterday, when I opened the garage door, a gila monster wandered in.

[TigersEye]

I was thinking more of the two-legged varmints in AZ and NM rather than the four-legged, eight-legged or winged critters. lol

I’ve spent a good deal of time in isolated area in both states and things can get hairy out there. And the critters are something to keep an eye out for too!

One thing I never encountered in the deserts of AZ is a Gila Monster and that is a huge disappointment to me. I’ve wanted to see one of those in the wild since I was a young kid.