Desert Oasis is…
Any desert oasis is a place of refuge in the middle of an inhospitable land. It can be something as simple as a small pond filled with water after a rain, to a cavern into which water constantly flows such as is found at Montezuma’s Well in Arizona. Over the years they have been used by travelers to refresh themselves, as well as by story tellers to provide comic relief or a sinister turn in a tale when a hallucination leads to ruin.
Speaking of Montezuma’s Well, this desert oasis was first brought into the public attention in 1878 in a Handbook to Arizona written by Richard J Hinton. But it may have been discussed in print long before that. In 1583 a Spaniard named Antonio de Espejo wrote of ditch running from a pond to an abandoned pueblo. Many believe this was a description of Montezuma’s Well and the nearby Montezuma’s castle. The well is a sinkhole into a cavern where over a million gallons of water flows each day. At present, nobody has been able to trace the source of the water that flows into this desert oasis.
Many other restful types of places have taken on the name oasis. The Desert Oasis RV Park and Sand Dune Resort is one of these. It opens for five months a year beginning in May. It has 72 campsites and miles and miles of sand dunes where people dune ride, snowmobile in the winter and explore the many caves found near the property.
Some caves have their own interesting story. They are tubes formed from cooling lava. These caves extend for miles and miles underground. A little known fact is that lava is a great insulator. Thus it’s cool inside the caves even on the hottest days. Take a sweater if you visit.
Oasis is also a popular name for hotels. One such is the Sheraton Desert Oasis in Scottsdale Arizona. That’s in the Sonoran desert. It’s hardly bereft of life. People can visit nearby art galleries, museums, or even take in a rodeo. Don’t forget to drink when you visit the desert.
The modern world has certainly changed the definition of oasis.
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