Again I had failed to carry anything out of the field except for a basket full of garbage that other thoughtless people had left in our pristine woods. Still, I was glad for the chance to walk in the glorious cathedral of the conifer forest for another day. There would be no porcini feast tonight, but the season was off to a good start, and things will surely be different in two or three weeks.
The following day would bring new adventures on the Mogollon Rim, with good success in finding choice edible species, but for this day I was happy merely to contemplate the words of John Muir
According to the ranger at the Forest Service lookout tower at Baker Butte, they have received only 4 inches of rain since the monsoons started, and have noticed almost no nearby. The station by Knoll Lake, by contrast, has been blessed with over 12 inches, even though it is less than 20 miles away. This is the nature of the Arizona monsoon.
