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October 2004, some of us returned for Copiapoathon 2004 and again, daily
reports were sent to two email forums: cacti_etc and to cactus_study.
So why the
'Unfinished Business Tour'? I try to have my next trip to (any) cactus
country planned before the wheels of the plane taking me home touch down
on home soil. At the end of Copiapoathon 2003, we had plans to visit the
Big Bend area in Texas, USA, to see Ariocarpus fissuratus in
flower during October. Many of the 2003 Copiapoathoners are making
this trip as I prepare these reports and hopefully will file their
reports on their return. But two of us - Benjy Oliver and myself - found
the lure of Chile in Spring stronger than the USA in Autumn. And so I
proposed our trip, around places that I some how missed out on in the
past or had learned of since:
-
Copiapoa
tocopillana, south of Tocopilla
-
Copiapoa
atacamensis and Eulychinia morromorenoensis, from near
Antofagasta
-
Copiapoa
varispinata from the Izcugña Valley
-
The newly
described Copiapoa humilis ssp australis from Huasco
-
The notoriously
difficult to find Euphorbia copiapina
We succeeded
on a number of these, but failed on others, leaving us a good excuse for
a future Copiapoathon, (The Angie's Birthday Tour) pencilled in for
2007. At the same time we saw so much more that was not planned, that we
came home very satisfied with another great Chilean experience.
Anne Adams (Copiapoathon
2003) and Alain Buffel, from Oostende - Belgium were also keen to come
along this time. Due to a medical problem, Benjy called me at noon on
the day of departure to say that he would not be able to come along.
We've spoken since our return and, fortunately, he feels much better.
