Common Names
Candlewood, Coachwhip, Jacob's staff, flamingsword. Personally, the only common name I have ever heard it called is the Ocotillo. An icon of the Sonoran desert. If the hike is in the Sonoran desert, it will have Ocotillos, even if we haven't associated them on the dynamic map.

Habitat:
Rocky slopes, mountainsides, desert areas, especially well-drained slopes.

Flowers:
Bright reddish-orange up to 1". In clusters up to 12" at the end of the canes. 5 petals fused at the base to form a tube. The bright crimson flowers appear especially after rainfall in spring, summer, and occasionally fall.

Description
Shrub (not a cactus). Up to 20' tall and a spread of 15'. Many unbranched, cane-like spiny, thorny stems that spread outward. Resembles an inverted cone. Stems are normally leafless. Bright green leaves appear on the stems after heavy rains. Leaves are up to 2" long and 1" wide. When arid conditions return, the leaves turn brown and drop off.
Comments:Native. Spectacular. An icon. Shares dominance with Saguaro and Palo Verde. Used for fencing and stems used to support thatched roofs. An important source of nectar for hummingbirds. Related to the boojum tree. "The common name is derived from the Aztec word for pine (ocotle) and the Spanish diminutive (-illo). Thus, "little pine"". Ronald J. Taylor. Desert Wildflowers of North America