Yucca Portables

23/09/2023

Have you ever watched the movie, "Alien" and wondered how did those filmmakers come up with the horrifying idea of creature who lays their egg in a living host? Well, my friends, welcome to the startling world of the parasitic wasp, which includes our desert Tarantula Hawk!

With bright orange wings and a blue-black iridescent body, this wasp is an eye-catching beauty with a powerful sting. The female Tarantula Hawk can paralyze a wandering tarantula in minutes, dragging it away to lay a single egg on the spider. As the larva grows, it will begin to eat the tarantula, avoiding vital organs so the spider can provide a living meal until the wasp pupates!

Although a little terrifying (okay, a lot terrifying), Tarantula Hawks play a vital part in our desert ecosystem and are an important pollinator. So, take a second to admire these fearsome beauties!

Image: A tarantula hawk drags a large tarantula across the sidewalk.

23/09/2023

“But I would walk 500 miles and I would walk 500 more . . .”

Between late summer and fall, male tarantulas can be found wondering the roads and trails in and around Zion National Park looking for love! This is a difficult and dangerous journey, avoiding cars, feet, and predators, as they follow their sense of smell to find the female tarantulas hiding in their burrows.

If he makes it, the danger is far from over though. In order to mate, the male tarantula must literally hook the larger female by her fangs and then quickly run away to avoid becoming her next meal.

So if you see these wandering Casanovas, make sure to give them some space and let them pass as they make this dangerous annual journey!

12/06/2023

True that... lol

17/05/2023

This is a pretty good RV Black Tank video.
"water is your friend"

👇 *Click _“SHOW MORE”_* below to open the full video description! 👇Products featured in this video:✅​ Flow Meter https://amzn.to/3znoxVD✅​ Thetford Aqua Ke...

22/01/2023

In the main canyon at Zion NP, and in the town of Springdale, we see "A LOT" of deer. Have yet to see anything like this... Lol

08/12/2022

Did any of you get a chance to see Mars before be went behind the Moon last night?

16/09/2022

We often see the California Condors when in certain parts of the Park. Don't think we've actually seen any Turkey Vultures, which is ironic being the Condors are the ones supposed to be endangered.
But we very often see regular Turkeys. A little before dusk they are often crossing the road in the main canyon, looking for a place to roost for the night.

01/09/2022

We may not use Fryer Oil or Chicken wings, but we do depend on Diesel, Tires for our trucks, cost of replacement toilets & shipping has doubled, TP & other industry specific consumables, Insurance, wages, etc., and all of them have gone up noticeably.

01/07/2022

Traveled this tunnel 3 times a week for a few years, now just once a week. It never gets old or boring. We marvel at it every-single-time we travel thru it.
PS: It's 1.1 miles long.

Does this place look a little familiar? This is the east exit of the Zion Mt. Carmel Tunnel as it was being constructed in the late 1920s. Today we'll take a brief look back into how this feat of engineering was constructed.

Publicity about Bryce Canyon, the Grand Canyon, and the newly designated Zion National Park spurred an interest in building a “grand circle” to connect all three parks. In 1923, the Bureau of Public Roads and State Road Commission were tasked with finding a route through Zion National Park. In 1926, the project to construct a tunnel was approved; Thousands of workers were needed over the course of the project. To house all these people, a “man-camp” was created by the Union Pacific railroad using railroad boxcars as housing along the switchbacks for the workers.

It was in September 1927 that work began on the project, which was divided into four different sections: Section one consisted of building the road from the canyon floor to the cliff; Section two was the construction of the tunnel itself; Section three was the road from the tunnel to the east entrance, and section four was the road from the east entrance to Highway 89. For 2 years and 10 months, construction continued with numerous obstacles.

The project was completed in June of 1930. This was the most expensive piece of roadway built at the time costing $1.9 million, or $33.1 million today. Since its completion the tunnel has essentially remained unchanged, apart from one small collapse in 1958 when one of the gallery windows collapsed during a rainstorm. The roadway was added to the national historic register in 1987 and continues to provide easy access to the east from Zion for millions of people each year.

04/05/2022