Every once in a while, a hiking incident will pose a ‘new fear unlocked’ scenario – and that’s exactly the case with a recent situation out of Arizona.
According to a report from local news source FOX 10 Phoenix, a woman who was hiking in the Scottsdale area was taken to a trauma center after a cactus struck her in the head on Bell Pass Trail. The incident happened on the morning of October 17, with authorities yet to address what may have caused the cactus to fall.
While falling cacti aren’t really a concern in Colorado – the largest cactus species in Colorado is the Colorado tree cholla, which can grow up to eight feet tall… nothing compared to the saguaro cactus involved in the Scottsdale incident, with that species capable of reaching 50 feet in height and up to than 12,000 pounds in weight – falling tree limbs pose a similar concern. Colorado’s forests tend to be quite dense and can frequently get hit with strong winds and heavy snow. Couple those factors with the beetle kill that can result in tree weakness and falling branches can be a serious risk…