Rockhounding, Ancient Pueblos July 11-12

Thursday July 11

This morning we headed out to find a few rockhounding sites from the book Anita and Kevin gave us on rockhounding in New Mexico.

We first retrace part of yesterday’s journey  to Eagle Nest and along the Enchanted Circle to Taos. Windy, twisting road through some beautiful mountains and meadows.  We see a few deer, magpies and the ever-present ravens. After taking a picture of these deer, 

I turned around to see the silhouette of this buck watching me from the hill above.   All the antlers are in velvet.

 Amazing how beautiful "weeds" can be!

Noisy ravens along a fence.

We stop for milk and then breakfast at Taos McDonalds, and head to the Rio Grande Gorge Bridge.  A huge steel structure which was quite a feat when built in the early 1960’s.

The low morning sun makes for sharp shadows.

There are some pretty blooming cactus at the rest stop here.

From here, we take several back roads to two different rockhounding sites.  Lots of cattle guards and free roaming cattle.  The first site is an old mine site with lots of mica, calcite and things we liked which we can’t identify for sure – mostly quartz and agate, we think.  I'm a sucker for the sparkly rocks with mica.

 It is beginning to get warm (80) as we head to the second site also on highway 519. Here there is more calcite and lots of red rocks.  We find a few nice ones with agate and then decide to keep heading north on 519…..on the map it LOOKS like it goes to the main road we want to be on.  And it does, eventually, after turning to gravel and dirt for quite a while.  The terrain is dry with scrub brush, sage and juniper.

We head west and north, through the Carson National Forest toward Colorado.  The  elevation climbs, so there is more green, cooler temperature and prettier scenery. 

At the top of one pass there is a gorgeous profusion of yellow flowers!

8 miles past the border of Colorado we stop for the night on Buckles Lake Road in the San Juan National Forest.  The road is rough, but the site is only ½ mile in.  A nice spot on the edge of the forest, so we are surrounded by towering spruce and pines.  We use a variety of "apps" to find sites, or sometimes just come upon them - this one was on freecampsites.com.

This is a dispersed camping site – no facilities other than a fire ring – but it is all ours and we see only a few vehicles pass by during our stay, as apparently the road eventually goes to a lake.  We discover that jeeps and four wheel drive vehicles are popular here for a reason.

 Perfect sleeping weather in the 50’s.

Friday, July 12

 Early this morning, we continue into Colorado.  We stop at Echo Canyon Reservoir, just to look around. The morning light is warm and golden on the lake where ducks and birds are stirring.  A few fishermen as well fishing for trout and perch (I asked).

Interesting ducks, some with little ones. This is a coot, which we've seen all over the country.

This one had a beautiful blue bill!

 Further down the road we stop for breakfast at a little restaurant called Two Chicks and a Hippie. Though I don't like the term "chicks" unless it applies to our feathered friends,  it seems a unique kind of place.   I have a great sticky bun while Greg feasts on a giant Burrito.  I think the hippie was our server and the place was hopping.

Next stop is Chimney Rock. I know there is a Chimney Rock in North Carolina and I’m pretty sure we went to one in Nebraska as well, but here we are in southwest Colorado.  THIS Chimney Rock holds ruins from a 1000 year old Puebloan culture.

 We sign up for a tour that will start shortly and drive the 2 mile road up to a parking area nearer the Pueblo.  Michael is our tour guide and we join a group of about eight other folks.  Michael fills us in on some history of the area.  

This site was built by the Chacoan people whose center was at Chaco Canyon, about 90 miles away.  This “four corners” area (where New Mexico, Arizona, Colorado and Utah meet) was once  heavily populated. A larger population than exists today!  Chimney Rock was probably one of over 350 outlying pueblos from Chaco, built for hunting and trading.  There is evidence of trade with Mexico, Arizona,  and as far away as the Iroquois. 

 This is the highest pueblo around and we hike up a hill to get to the main site.

This pueblo consisted of 2 stories and about 35 rooms finished about 1075AD.  The rocks used were carried up from the river, and they estimate that about 500 Ponderosa Pines were used.  There are also many individual pit homes, built about 2 feet into the earth.

 

 Archeoastronomy evidence shows the puebloans knowledge and use of astronomy.  Every 18 .6 years the full moon will rise exactly between the two chimneys for several weeks, before it begins a shift south.  They call this the Northern Lunar Standstill.  The dates of construction suggests this was a lunar observatory and the next event will be in 2023.

This and other sites, like Mesa Verde, were looted and vandalized in the late 1800’s.

In 1888 a Swedish archeologist heard about Mesa Verde and came here.  He removed 6 boxcars full of materials and took them back to Sweden. The locals tried to have him arrested and stopped, but there were no laws that he had broken.  This prompted Teddy Roosevelt to pass The Antiquities Act in 1906.  Other subsequent laws have strengthened protection, but theft and unauthorized access continue to be a problem.

From here we head into Durango for an oil change.  Then we continue west toward Canyon of the Ancients National Monument visitor’s center and museum.  The puebloan people of this area used to be called the Anasazi, but this term is no longer used as it was a derogatory term for enemies in Navajo language.  Now Puebloans is proper. 

 A tour was just about to begin, so we joined Jim, who gave us a quick history lesson as we toured highlights of the main gallery. This included pottery, weapons and other artifacts from the Basketry, Pueblo I, Pueblo II, and Pueblo III eras. 

 When a large reservoir was built in the 1970’s,  archeologist gathered information and materials from 125 sites that would be impacted and much of the information and artifacts are here at the museum, either on display or catalogued and made available to the public. Below are materials from an actual pit house.

 

In 1150 AD the average life expectancy was about 50.  Most lived in pit houses which used  geothermal heating with 2/3 of the building under ground level, 1/3 above.  Most of their time was spend in capturing or collecting, processing, consuming and storing food and water.    

Outside was a pretty desert garden, and a short hike up to an excavation of another pueblo site with nice views of the surrounding area.  They say there were thousands of such sites around the four corners area.

Most of the yucca plants we saw had fruit - we had seen them in bloom and plain at other times but never with fruit! They say it is usually roasted and tastes sort of like figs.  The fibrous spiny leaves were used in weaving,

 McPhee Reservoir is nearby. This allows much of the snow melt and rain from the "monsoons" in late July and August to be stored for the drier times.

Amala and Pam at the Visitor Center desk were enthusiastic and helpful!  Pam showed us a map with several dispersed camping sites on BLM property in the area, so after viewing a short film about Canyon of the Ancients and Hovenweep, we headed to one such site.

It was further than we’d thought, through mostly agricultural land with large irrigation systems. The roads were dirt and gravel and continued to deteriorate as we went on….the road to the first site was too bad to attempt.  The second one was doable and led to a terrific site at the edge of a steep cliff, overlooking juniper and sage covered land. 

The junipers were full of berries.

 A nice breeze was blowing, so we took outdoor showers, then perched on the cliff and took in the view!   Had dinner and watched the moon rise and sun set. Wonderful!

July 8-10 COLORADO, NEW MEXICO AND A TOUCH OF UTAH, JULY 2019

Monday, July 8, 2019

7AM.  In what will no doubt be another sweltering day in Spring, Texas, we finish loading the Trek and hit the road.  The high elevations and cooler temperatures of northern New Mexico and Colorado are calling!

But first we need to get out of Texas.  No small feat.   Up I45 and over to Fort Worth, then west to Amarillo where we’ve got a hotel for the night. We arrive there at 5:15 – lots of driving through Texas’ prairie and small towns. 

 Through “Tornado Alley” around  Witchita Falls with a little rain here and there but nothing ominous.

We share a rack of ribs and salads at Longhorn Steakhouse, which is within walking distance of the hotel. Good to stretch our legs!

Tuesday, July 9

We both wake early, so hit the road with the sunrise, taking

 some nearly deserted smaller roads through the panhandle – a mix of oil pumps, agriculture (we are in sorghum country), and cattle.  We stop for breakfast at The  Grill in Dalhart where our choices were The Grill, Mom and Papa’s, or McDonalds. Greg tries their special blueberry sausage – it tastes like a spicy sausage with scattered blueberries. I have a pancake which is the size of a dinner plate!

We cross into New Mexico and Mountain Time Zone at 8:07 and after a brief stint north on I25, head west to Cimarron Canyon State Park, which our friend Anne has recommended.  A few antelope here and there, their white butts making them easy to pick out in the sea of greens and browns.

 Elevation continues to rise and the terrain changes to hills and taller trees. In a green valley meadow we stop to watch a huge herd of elk!  Must have been over 50!  It looks like all females and young ones - cows and calves.

We arrive about 11:30 and find our reserved campsite – one of the few left when I made reservations. The park is about 8 miles long, following Cimarron Canyon, with three separate but small camping areas.  We are in Ponderosa – the first.

We set up our outdoor screened room, for some shade and because of the flies that insisted on welcoming us.

Then we set out to explore. First stop is the Palisades Sills – huge fin-like rock formations with a pretty stream at the base.  We talk with some fellow Texans who are suiting up to do some trout fishing.  As we will see, this area is very popular with fishermen.

After sandwiches, we decide to hike the Clear Creek Trail, about a four mile hike along Clear Creek. The day is beautiful – sunny and in the upper 70’s. A beautiful walk in the woods while Clear Creek tumbles and twists beside us, creating small water falls and some deep pools (with fish!). 

 They have had a lot of rain and snow this year and streams, lakes and reservoirs are full and vegetation lush.  Pretty wildflowers! 

We drive a little farther, out of the park, to Eagle’s Nest, a small town on a lake of the same name. Stop by the visitor’s center. This is a huge recreational lake and the town is basically marinas, hotels, cabins, a few restaurants and some residences, all to the right of the area in this photo.

Not much to do unless you want to fish, boat or horseback ride, but it is pretty.

 Back to the campsite where we read and relax, making worsts for dinner.

Wednesday, July 10

We wake to a wonderful 51 degrees and drink in the fresh, crisp, pine-scented air. Today we are going to drive the “Enchanted Circle”, a long loop through mountains and valleys, including Red River and Angel Fire ski areas, and Taos. We stop in this area of the park first,  where the morning light is gorgeous, and watch birds swooping for their morning drinks. 

And then we stop for breakfast and coffee overlooking Eagle Lake.  Lots of geese and white pelicans here! Wildflowers and prairie dogs/ground squirrels too, who chirp an alarm when we get too close.

The Trek is slow on some of the mountains as we pass Bobcat Pass at 9,820 feet.  We stop in the town of Red River and decide to get a better view of things by taking the long ski lift that they run in the Summer.  A nice ride with views of aspen, quaking in the breeze, and towering pines.

 Here we are looking back at the town of Red River.

At the top, we get off and walk a bit, enjoying the views from over 10,000 feet. Can only imagine what a winter wonderland this is when blanketed in white!  Quite a variety of wild flowers here and there.

Below you can see the road we came in on.

We continue the loop to the small town of Questa, where we stop at a Forest Service area to ask about rock hounding. The woman there suggests Cabresto Canyon, so we try to follow her directions down a dirt forest service road. We drive for quite a while and stop to explore, finding some interesting rocks.  Turns out this road is popular with ATVs.  Some interesting "houses" along the road too.

 Back to the loop and we turn south and head for Taos.  Lots of shops, galleries and such and we stop at Taos Clay Studio which we’d read is a sort of co-op for potters in the area. Turns out they are setting up for a show that starts this weekend, so much of the display area was empty. They did have some nice work in another room.

We have seen Taos Pueblo before, so bypass that area of town.  After stops for gas and groceries, we head east again on a very twisting road.  Unfortunately there was an accident  ahead and we had to stop and wait for emergency services to clear the area.  Good time for a snack!

  Greg snapped this shot as we drove by.

Next intended stop is a Vietnam Veterans Memorial, across from the airstrip at Angel Fire.   We enjoyed a picnic lunch with some other visitors, then went inside.  The memorial was created by the family of 1^stLeutenant David Westphall, who was killed in Vietnam May 22, 1968, along with 12 of his buddies.  

Very touching and moving displays, including a statement near the end that thanks people for visiting, commenting that they are glad that people are able to separate the warriors from the war. 

 There was also a display about local Native Americans who gave their lives in Vietnam and a section about POW's  and MIA's still missing.

And there was a very stark, simple chapel.

 From here we went to the town of Cimarron and visited the St. James Hotel.  Built in the early 1800’s, when the west really was quite wild.  It is mostly a museum now, though it does have a very active bar and restaurant and does offer rooms – you can stay in the same room where (choose one:  Bat Masterson, Jesse James, Annie Oakley, Doc Holiday, Wyatt Earp, Pat Garret or Zane Gray) stayed.  There are bullet holes in the tin ceiling of the bar.  Interesting décor!

This is the visitor's center in Cimarron, which gives you some idea of the size of the town! It is located on the old SanteFe trail.

We tried to visit the Aztec Mill, a wheat and flour mill from 1864, but it had just closed.

Back to our campsite. The flies have thankfully decided to go elsewhere.  We enjoyed some taco soup and snacks before taking the screened room down and packing up for tomorrow’s departure. Otherwise it would be wet with dew in the morning.

We take a short walk and return as the moon, just over half, rises.