Kofa Mountains and the Jumping Chollas by Patrick Marson Ong

Kofa Mountains and the Jumping Chollas by Patrick Marson Ong

My 17-day vacation comes to a close. it was a crazy 3000 mile road trip chasing sunrise and sunsets through mountains, lakes, canyons, bends, snow, sand dunes, and the crazy jumping cacti. Lucky to have done this with two of my best buds Raymond Santiago and Glen Pono, my sister and my better half. So inspired by Peter James Coskun’s magnificent showcase of this playground plus the outstanding images of MA d’ great, Ted Gore and Miles Morgan, I have been wanting to visit this place for a long time. Out of luck in search on how to get there, I turn to Peter for directions. Owe you big time man! Thanks so much for all the tips. You rock! Kofa Mountains is a hidden gem tucked miles away from civilization and home of the most feared and hated cacti in the southwestern desert, the jumping cholla (pronounced as choy-a). Had a first hand experience with it, more of that later. 😉 So we decided to drive there for sunset, mainly just to scout the place for the next day sunrise. Good thing that we upgraded to a Suburban. Half way the road gets worst, wrong move and you definitely get a flat tire. Raymond and I were already arguing either we need to park the car, walk from there or drive all the way at 5kph and hope for the best. After an hour and as we make our final turn, there it was, a mini SUV. We were like, WTH, AMAZING. Lol!
Parked the car, got our gear and as I walk over the small hill, there this guy waving in a blue jacket! What an amazing place to shake hands with Dustin Wong!!!! A hardcore professional photographer, it’s his 6th day camping by himself, extreme to the next level man! Hope to bump into him somewhere epic again. Went back the next day for sunrise, after getting this twilight shot, I was going kookoo all over finding the comp that would suit my taste for a sunburst shot. And with the sun already peeking on the spires, I know I have to settle for one. Pumped with adrenaline, I forgot about the jumping cholla and accidentally brushed up against one. !@#$!!!!!!!! No words to describe the pain!!! I froze and blanked out. After a few secs, said to myself, I need to get that shot. Continued to my composition, believe it or not, I managed to get one. Then there came Dustin, telling me “I got tweezers”. Hahaha! I was literally pulling needles out of my skin! Whew! My humble share of this majestic location, hope you enjoy it guys! Cheers and have a great week ahead! **View it on black**

Patrick Marson Ong: Photos