As I was crouching down to take the above photo of Cylindropuntia bigelovii (Teddy Bear Cholla make you holla!), I stepped on a cholla ball which embedded itself in the sole of my trainer. I gave my foot a fast flick to get the thing off, and it rolled up the side of my sneaker into my ankle. Enter one Wilhelm scream, stage left.
Dave tried mashing it between two rocks and pulling, but that only drove it further in. Mack (my hero) finally took off his undershirt and, wrapping it around his paw like an oven mitt, yanked the barbed ball clean off, impaling himself in the process. For some reason I thought it would be a good idea to immediately begin packing the wound with tiny leaves torn from a random nearby bush -- good thing poison ivy doesn't grow in the desert. Here is the video of the climax:
If the embedded video doesn't play for you, here is the link to the YouTube URL. Also, for Mack's pics & perspective on our day in the desert, see his blog entry here. More photos to come from our second day on Saguaro Lake...
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