Ridgeline Pioneers: The One about the Gila Monsters

At the trailhead. The finger is between the two small
notches, barely visible.

Finger Rock trail is my favorite hike in the Catalinas. It's a little late in the spring for Snooze to hike. The rattle snakes are out. So I was excited when she agreed to go. We started out about 7:15 am to avoid the heat, went about halfway up the length of the trail and were wearily heading down, about 20 minutes from the car when I froze, seeing the bright orange markings in the middle of the trail about five feet ahead. Then, knowing her fear of snakes, I said, brightly, "No worries, it's only a lizard, just kinda big." She quickly replied, "No, it isn't! It's a Gila Monster--get back!!" Wow....that'll make you forget tired legs. We back-tracked and waited until it slunk into the brush, hoping that the approaching hikers ahead wouldn't scare it into our direction. Skittishly, we hurried along, with Snooze sounding the alarm again about the tremendously large, strong jaws and painful venom it possesses. Ugh! We were anxious to get back, thinking we'd pressed our luck when just a couple of minutes later, there was a sound in the brush, just a few steps behind me and in front of her. "Ahhhh, another one!!" I freaked and ran ahead. She ran behind--we were separated. We were on a ridge full of brush and couldn't easily identify whether it had moved on or not. After a few tense moments, she rushed ahead through the trail to where I was standing and we pushed on. I must have spotted three or four "rattlesnake" desert roots before we reached the car, but we made it safely with Snooze reminding me two more times that if the Gila Monster had latched onto my leg we'd have to get back to the car and drive to the hospital with it still attached to my leg. I repeat--Ugh!!

View of Tucson from our highest perch

As usual, after we returned to Casita Snooze I grabbed my iPad for some research on Gila Monsters. Native to the Sonoran desert, the Gila Monster is the largest and the only venomous lizard in the US, spending 98% of it's time in a burrow. When it does emerge, it can devour up to 50% of it's body weight in the form of birds, snakes and other animals by chomping and chewing to release the venom. The bite is extremely painful but for humans never fatal. The Gila is an endangered species; Arizona law prohibits trapping, killing and selling them (which is exactly why I did not touch the ones I saw today).