May 4 - 7

We are in the Santa Fe, Taos, Bloomfield area where there are many ruins of the pueblo indian/ancient native peoples who left this area about 700 years ago to the mystery of archeologists. The masonry work of these ruins is and kivas (religious circles) is a thing of beauty. The Aztec Ruins are misnamed only because the early settlers did not know the of the pueblo people who inhabited this area.

This is the first reconstructed Kiva we have seen and being inside is truly a special experience. 

The town of Bloomfield is a center for natural gas and oil companies which made it seem like a town of pick up trucks, all of which had flags flying high. We finally talked to local who explained that when on the back narrow dirt roads they needed that flag to warn an oncoming truck. Our informant was a mature gentleman who noted that the young whipper-snappers always seemed to be in a hurry no matter what the road condition. 

Yellow rocks, hawks, bluebirds, bluegreen sage,  juniper, and pinion pine make a beautiful scene at our camp.

We are so far  north in New Mexico we can see into Colorado.

I thought I was acclimated to the altitude, but……

Most State Parks are located around a dam and water. Always a nice treat for Daisy.

Another  amazing western geological formation!

We are going up over a pass to get into Taos.

As we descend into Taos.

The bridge over the Rio Grande just as entering Taos.

We are camped at the Taos RV park with electricity and it is time to get rid of the desert dust.

We visit a class mate of Jamies from prep school who lives just north of Taos in the delightful small town of Arroyo Seco.

Oh, to live in such a beautiful place no matter which way we look.

We are at 8,000 feet and Daisy seems to be doing okay!
We will next go to southern Colorado to meet up with Diana and Paul and camp for a week. See you then.

April 25 - May 3

We continue to battle the high winds through Oklahoma and the panhandle of Texas and are in constant touch with our NOAA weather radio to listen for tornados.

We felt lucky to only loose our refrigerator cover when we heard about a big fancy rig that lost it's roof!

At first we thought these were the crazies who chased tornados, but luckily, no.

First thing the next morning we were greeted with very dark clouds and then…but no tornados.

In the city of Amarillo the wind died down and we felt much safer. This interesting museum is sponsored by Western Texas A & M University. In grand Texas style the museum was huge with lots of space for each exhibit which means walk, walk, walk. In university style there was not a consensus on the focus of the museum so it covered everything! 
Palo Duro Canyon in Amarillo is eye candy for Texans and their flat flat landscape. 
Palo Duro is second in size to the Grand Canyon, but there is really no comparison as to greatness.

When  in Texas, eat beef!

As we leave Amarillo we see the famous pop art exhibit along Route 40.
We have now entered New Mexico just west of Albuquerque at Santa Rosa.

In Albuquerque, at the Petroglyph National Monument we learned that 150,000 years ago volcanos erupted leaving piles of lava rocks which the people of that time decorated with with symbols. 

First thing the next morning, Daisy had not forgotten about the wonderful doggie play area.

Getting ready for mountain exploring I can pop a pill to help me with altitude sickness. Daisy who is also affected by altitude gets special food for easy digestion.

We had dinner on top of Sandia Peak and were very surprised that is was not just a tourist trap.

While in Albuquerque we took care of a little malfunction …

… as well as other chores.

Now we are  heading NW toward Bandelier National Monument. 

Getting settled in camp.

Natural small caves in the rock provided homes for the people who lived here up to 600 years ago. Once their numbers increased they began building stone homes in front of the cliffs. 

Bandelier is a very popular place for school trips and we saw about three different groups that day. The bear that was wondering about had all the rangers out and on alert. The bear was not dangerous, but was also not shy of people. 

Of course riding our bikes down to the cliff dwellers  homes was a great ride, but going back up to camp was a chore. However we did make it!

The next day we wondered around a different area of cliff dweller homes which was not so popular with the general public. We had the area almost to ourselves which gave us a feeling of being in touch with those who lived here so many years ago. The area has not been archeologically explored or renovated so things were untouched.

The rainy afternoon was a good time to explore the Palo Alto museum.

On our way back to camp we followed the signs, but they led us right through the laboratory grounds (much to our surprise!). Because we are a  large vehicle we had to exit and let the guard, who was decked out in full combat (including bullet proof vest) outfit, examine our rig. 

We leave Bandelier and head toward the Aztec ruins going the long way just to see more sights.

The Valles Caldera was huge and we could only see about a quarter of it.

Spanish missions dot this area. There was an active monastery in this little town so in spite of being chased out back in the early 1600s they obviously returned.

We continue toward the Aztec ruins to the west of Taos.