About Desert Echos

It's strange how deserts turn us into believers. I believe in walking in a landscape of mirages, because you learn humility. I believe in living in a land of little water because life is drawn together. And I believe in the gathering of bones as a testament to spirits that have moved on. If the desert is holy, it is because it is a forgotten place that allows us to remember the sacred. Perhaps that is why every pilgrimage to the desert is a pilgrimage to the self. —Terry Tempest Williams (2015)

Beauty and Magic

When I was younger, deserts taught me magic and how to see beauty everywhere. I would wander for days across the tinted sands of red-rock country; sit and wonder in the silence that blankets the West’s gray deserts; make-up the stories left by the ancestral peoples, authored on weathered notebooks.

As I grew, I found like souls, and some not so much. But rarely did even the beauty-challenged disrespect the gifts of the desert, and many gained some vision, brought on around campfires, coffee and, community. If you sign-up, you’ll be in good company, people who love the desert.

And Danger

But now, in my more pensive years, it seems that the deserts are under attack. Vandalism is at an all-time high, and reaching into places off the well-beaten track. Obelisks spring up overnight, and bring crowds to hidden places; and birth copycats who need their 15 minutes. Deserts, and the treasures they contain, are enduring. But roads, rally’s and ignorance are dangerous foes.

Join a community that cares as much as you do.

Who should be here

You should be here if you can see the beauty the desert provides. You should be here if you feel the magic, and see the wind. You should be here if the art you create reflects the beauty and magic of the desert. And you should certainly be here if this is a community that resonates with you. Bring your friends, too.

"The desert wears... a veil of mystery. Motionless and silent it evokes in us an elusive hint of something unknown, unknowable, about to be revealed. Since the desert does not act it seems to be waiting -- but waiting for what?" — Edward Abbey, 1968

About Brian

My awareness about the desert’s need for protection was born when I was about 10 years old, sitting in the Arches National Monument amphitheater at a fireside. Most of the talk is lost in my memory, but the one thing that really stuck out, and stuck with me, was the discussion on cryptobiotic soils.

I’ve been behind the scenes, active in several organizations focused on desert conservation for a few years. Join me and see what we can accomplish together.