There are many colorful rock formations spread across Arizona, and some of the more spectacular are located in Canyon deChelly on the Navajo Reservation at Chinle. The most prominent is Spider Rock, a towering sandstone obelisk that rises almost 900 feet above the floor of the canyon. Others aren’t quite as spectacular, but they’re nearly as large and they look like gigantic slates, kids mittens and huge lumps of red clay that were just dumped there by some giant sculptor.

Q: What exactly causes that fresh/earthy scent when it rains in the Valley? It’s a real distinct scent, not flowery or sweet, but more like a fresh, clean smell.

A: Your question worked its way to the top of the pile at just the right time — Tuesday, when we had that delightful morning rain. As soon as the skies cleared we leapt into the Valley 101 mobile research lab, and set out to find the source of the scent.

You are right. There was a truly remarkable aroma in the air, which we soon traced to a half-eaten Big Mac under the floor mats in the backseat of the Valley 101 mobile research lab. While we would not describe this as “fresh/earthy” it was definitely distinctive.

After a stop at the car wash, we sought advice from the estimable Carolyn O’Malley, executive director of the Desert Botanical Gardens and an honorary member of the Valley 101 faculty.

Santa Cruz County is for the birds. That’s not a criticism. It’s a compliment.

Literally and figuratively, birds are a major component of the Santa Cruz Tourism Council’s effort to draw visitors to the state’s smallest county. The area is well known as a birders’ hot spot, and that’s probably why birds of another feather have landed in 1o different locales. They are all sculptures, spread across the county at resorts, offices and parks as beacons that direct visitors to places of interest.

Here at the Valley 101 Research Center and Windshield Squeegeeing Service, we have amassed a collection of three questions about saguaros, those noble cactuses that symbolize Arizona just as surely as do recall elections.

And we now endeavor to answer these queries with, as always, the help of Patrick Quirk of the Desert Botanical Gardens, who has forgotten more about saguaros then you’ll ever know.