Tuesday, January 07, 2003
Summary
Trailer miles 4,278; Truck miles 15,534
Parking $3997.15; Gas $2019.15
Parking $3997.15; Gas $2019.15
Monday, January 06, 2003
Quail Run RV Resort, Arizona City, AZ - Dec 7-Jan 6
We decided to spend a month here over the holidays because our afore-mentioned friends, Pat & Dennis Wood, are workamping here for the winter. We enjoy the holidays more when we are parked for the month, especially near friends. It is wonderful to just wander over for an interesting conversation or a challenging game of cards. It is also close enough to Tucson to visit with Doug's dad occasionally, which is especially nice during the holidays. We were even able to attend a Christmas open house at one of Doug's friend's house.
Our first week here we read about a world-record attempt to link 300 persons in a free-fall jump at a nearby sky-diving center. On Thursday we decided to go over in the afternoon and check it out. We were amazed at how many people were gathered at this tiny airport to watch what was going on. We were rewarded by getting to see one attempt and then the actual world record "performance". They have to have a planned formation, with all skydivers linked in a specific pre-planned position, and hold the links for at least 3 seconds. Judges jump with them and take pictures above & below which are reviewed before announcing that a record has been set. A final condition of success is that all the people must get down alive! There had been 4 attempts a day for 4 or 5 days before success. It was exciting and interesting to see so much of a completely foreign sporting event. The judges said that they actually held the formation for 7.2 seconds. We could see them clearly from the ground.
With a group from the park, we went to Organ Stop Pizza in Mesa for a lunch buffet. The pizza is not wonderful, but that is more than made up for by the performance on the "Mighty Wurlitzer". This amazing instrument was originally built in 1927 to accompany silent movies. Organ Stop purchased the instrument in the early 1970s and completely rebuilt & enhanced it. The organ has over 5500 pipes, with some several stories tall, and is currently the largest Wurlitzer Theater Organ in the world.
A couple we knew from games nights in Boulder have moved to Prescott recently. They were able to come down for a visit & a day of games while we were here. We were able to finally meet their 18-month old daughter, Julia. We had previously only viewed her photos on the web. She is quite adorable in person, too!For our Christmas dinner, we decided to try a vegetarian buffet at a place in Tucson. We were able to combine this with a visit with Doug's dad, which made it even more appealing. The food was quite good.
Doug got to achieve one of his "life goals" by going on a hot-air balloon ride with our friends. Willie has quite a fear of heights, so she remained on the ground. The balloon first took up a group of sky divers who all jumped out while Doug & Co (and two more skydivers) gave pursuit in the chase van. The balloon landed in a dirt lot in the center of Eloy and our group all clambered aboard as people from blocks around appeared on bike and foot, and traffic on nearby streets stopped and stared. It was quite exciting to have traffic stopped so you could go ballooning. They soared up & became a tiny dot in the sky. Then the two divers jumped out of the balloon, which was quite frightening for Doug, watching a human plummet free-fall toward the earth. After all were safely back at the parking lot we celebrated with a champagne toast.
We are planning a quiet New Year's Eve, playing games with our friends & their grown children, who are visiting for a few days. Tomorrow we will celebrate our 11th wedding anniversary. Next Tuesday we will head towards the Organ Pipe Natl Mon area for several weeks of sightseeing & hopefully some hiking & birdwatching. We have a few enjoyable birds in the park: an Anna's Hummingbird comes regularly to our window feeder, and a Burrowing Owl sits in a tree in the park during the day.
The cats are enjoying it here. Amber & Rainbow have been going outside on their leashes; Gracie & Trixie don't seem at all interested in being outside. Amber has become most insistent about going outside and has rolled in the dirt so much you can hardly tell how white she used to be!!Friday, December 06, 2002
Madison's Driveway, Tucson, AZ - Nov 28-Dec 6
Yes, we actually moved on Thanksgiving Day! It's not so bad when the destination is with family & you are just in time to bake your pies (in your own oven!) for dinner. In addition to Doug's dad (Gayle) and his girlfriend Gertie, Doug's brother Bob & girlfriend Paula and Doug's daughter Erin & husband Bryan were visiting from New Mexico & Colorado respectively. It was a warm, wonderful & delicious Thanksgiving celebration. It was Bryan's first visit to the Tucson area, and he was amazed at how green it actually is.
While in Tucson we were able to go to one U of A Women's basketball game and were happy to see them beat then-ranked #8 Georgia. We have never liked GA since they kept CU from going to the Final Four years ago. AZ has a new 6'5" freshman who shows great potential.
Also from Tucson we visited Biosphere 2 in Oracle where we spent the day with our friends Pat & Dennis Wood from New Hampshire (more on them later). Ever since Columbia University joined Biosphere 2 in 1996, many new educational & research programs have been developed which utilize the world's largest glass-enclosed laboratory. The goal of Biosphere 2 is to find ways for us to become responsible stewards of our planet, ensuring a good quality of life for present and future generations. It was very interesting to tour the grounds, both self-guided and with the tour group.
Another day we drove through Saguaro Natl Park West and the nearby Gilbert Ray County Park. We took the scenic Bajada Loop Drive and stopped to walk on all the short trails. We were rewarded with lots of lovely scenery, some exceptional petroglyphs and our first "new" bird in quite a while, the Gilded Flicker. The Gilbert Ray County park has a very nice campground which is of interest for future trips.
While in Tucson we were able to go to one U of A Women's basketball game and were happy to see them beat then-ranked #8 Georgia. We have never liked GA since they kept CU from going to the Final Four years ago. AZ has a new 6'5" freshman who shows great potential.
Also from Tucson we visited Biosphere 2 in Oracle where we spent the day with our friends Pat & Dennis Wood from New Hampshire (more on them later). Ever since Columbia University joined Biosphere 2 in 1996, many new educational & research programs have been developed which utilize the world's largest glass-enclosed laboratory. The goal of Biosphere 2 is to find ways for us to become responsible stewards of our planet, ensuring a good quality of life for present and future generations. It was very interesting to tour the grounds, both self-guided and with the tour group.
Another day we drove through Saguaro Natl Park West and the nearby Gilbert Ray County Park. We took the scenic Bajada Loop Drive and stopped to walk on all the short trails. We were rewarded with lots of lovely scenery, some exceptional petroglyphs and our first "new" bird in quite a while, the Gilded Flicker. The Gilbert Ray County park has a very nice campground which is of interest for future trips.Wednesday, November 27, 2002
SKP Saguaro Co-op, Benson, AZ Oct 30-Nov 27
Now we're back at the co-op getting re-acquainted with people plus making new friends in the area where we hope to have a lot some day. The place is as lovely & appealing as ever, and our name has dropped from 212 to 108 on the waiting list since we put it on two years ago. Typically people in the 40-60 range get lots that become available, so it won't be too much longer!
We have gotten back into the routine of twice-weekly bridge games and other activities at the clubhouse. We have driven up to Tucson to visit Doug's dad almost weekly, and have visited the nearby San Pedro River National Riparian Area, managed by the BLM, to do some birdwatching. Cochise County has the second highest diversity of mammals in the world (#1 is the rain forest of Costa Rica). It is amazing that so much thrives in such a desert-like environment. The many nearby mountainous areas certainly add to the diversity.We also visited Saguaro NP East: Rincon Mtn District one afternoon. We had time to view the excellent orientation film at the visitor's center, take the scenic 8-mile driving loop, plus do a 2-mile hike through the cactus forest. Formerly a Natl Mon, it became a Natl Park in 1994. The city of Tucson has stretched out to meet both the Eastern and Western portions of the park, and it is an ongoing struggle to maintain the quality of the park. The hike gave us a close-up view of many types of cactus, especially the giant Saguaro in all stages of its life, from just a few years old to tumbled down & rotting.
While we have done some birding at all the places we have visited, we have not as yet seen any new species. It is nice to visit some of the areas and get re-acquainted with old "bird friends".We are enjoying the AZ weather -- warm days & pretty cool nights. At 3500 ft, this is not one of the warmer places for wintering. The days get up into the high 70s, so it's plenty warm then! The cats enjoy sleeping in the sun puddles and have occasionally been out on leashes.
Tuesday, October 29, 2002
Hidden Valley Ranch, Deming, NM - Oct 24-29
On our prior stops at Deming, we have stayed at the SKP park; this time we thought we'd try one of the 3 Passport America parks in town, although "in town" is quite a stretch: the park, set on a 7700-acre ranch, is located at the end of a 5.5-mile-long dirt road that starts 4 miles north of town. This place defines "seclusion". There are quite a few long-term (3 to 11 months) and lease (yearly) lots in addition to 60 short-term sites, and with miles of hiking trails and nightly activities in the clubhouse, we were never at a loss for things to do. There are even petroglyphs nearby.We took a day-trip to Silver City and Pinos Altos, about 50 miles from Deming. Silver City was founded in 1870 when silver ore was discovered in the area. By 1890, the nearby hills had been completely stripped of trees, causing annual floods down Main Street, a natural channel for the runoff, despite annual attempts to divert the water. In 1902, especially heavy rains sent a torrent of water into town, washing away whole buildings and ripping others in half, creating an up-to-70-foot deep "Big Ditch", as the feature is now called. In the 1930s, depression-era workers transformed the ugly gash into a park and flood-control area, which still remains. Many of the Victorian houses have been preserved, including the Silver City Museum, which features the local history and changes in the area over the last 1000 years.
Pinos Altos, located 6 miles north of Silver City, was founded in 1860 by 3 frustrated 49ers who stopped for a drink in Bear Creek and discovered gold. Somewhat seedier than Silver City, Pinos Altos features Fort Cobres, a 3/4 scale replica of Santa Rita del Cobre Fort (~1804), a Spanish fort originally located above what is now the open-pit copper mine in Santa Rita; Pinos Altos Historical Museum where, for $1, you can view the contents of numerous locals' old barns; and the Opera House, a theatre for the local Melodrama Company. Fort Cobres, by the way, was closed and up for sale. Any takers?
Wednesday, October 23, 2002
Three Rivers Petroglyph Site, Three Rivers, NM - Oct 21-23
There are 2 water/electric RV sites here, plus a few picnic tables where dry-camping is allowed, although it is next to impossible to level one's trailer at any of them. Still, at $2/night, the price is right!
Around 900 AD, the Jornada Mogollon people established agricultural villages in this area and remained for approximately 500 years. Today, within eyeshot of White Sands Missile Range, their artwork remains. A small ridge within the park contains extensive carvings of geometric designs, animals, and masks; over 21,000 individual petroglyphs have been found, making this site, managed by the BLM, one of the largest and most concentrated rock art sites in the southwest. A short (half-mile) trail leads through a portion of the artwork, but it was impossible for us to satisfactorily see enough in just one afternoon (a school field trip inundated the park our first morning), so we spent an extra day here. For us, it was time well spent.Sunday, October 20, 2002
Santa Rosa State Park, Santa Rosa, NM - Oct 19-20
This is another pleasant, out-of-the-way park located 7 miles north of Santa Rosa. Santa Rosa's main feature is Blue Hole, an artesian spring 87 feet deep and 60 feet in diameter, where Scuba divers come from as far away as Montana to be certified. Santa Rosa sits on old Route 66, so many of the motels and restaurants are historic. The main section of road through town was completely under construction, however, so we avoided driving there. Instead, we drove out to Puerto de Luna, an abandoned Spanish settlement with an historic church, and where Coronado encamped to build a bridge across the river.
Friday, October 18, 2002
Kiva RV Park, Tucumcari, NM - Oct 17-18
This was a convenient stop on our way across NM. It is the nicer of two Passport America parks in town, and we got the nicest site. We went grocery shopping and washed the trailer, which is about all there is to do in Tucumcari.Wednesday, October 16, 2002
Black Mesa State Park, Kenton, OK - Oct 15-16
This is a very pleasant, if somewhat out-of-the-way, park with 34 RV sites and numerous tent sites. We were dry-camping, so we just set up in the picnic area. Black Mesa SP is named for the 45-mile long feature formed from a thick layer of black lava rock that stretches along the Colorado/New Mexico border into the panhandle of Oklahoma. Curiously, none of the mesa is actually in the park.
When planning our sightseeing loop drive for our one full day here, we were surprised by how much there was to see. Nearby is Black Mesa Nature Preserve, which features OK's highest point, at 4973 ft above sea level. We did not view the actual granite marker, as it was at the end of a steep, 4.2-mile trail. We did drive to the Carrizo Canyon Picnic Area, where the east fork of Carrizo Creek flows through this small canyon graced by juniper and cottonwoods, all in the fall foliage. Most interesting, there were petroglyphs found along the canyon wall -- quite a pleasant surprise, as we're always on the lookout for Native American rock art.
Our next stop was Picture Canyon, named not for the fact that it is picturesque (and it is!), but by the abundance of rock art here, both petroglyphs and pictographs. Unfortunately, almost all of the petroglyphs we saw were defaced or vandalized, a sad reminder that these treasures are irreplaceable; through one thoughtless act they can be lost forever. Some still survive, however, and may have had astronomical significance -- public tours are offered here during the Fall equinox. Both of these archeological sites are located in the Comanche Natl Grasslands in southern CO.
When planning our sightseeing loop drive for our one full day here, we were surprised by how much there was to see. Nearby is Black Mesa Nature Preserve, which features OK's highest point, at 4973 ft above sea level. We did not view the actual granite marker, as it was at the end of a steep, 4.2-mile trail. We did drive to the Carrizo Canyon Picnic Area, where the east fork of Carrizo Creek flows through this small canyon graced by juniper and cottonwoods, all in the fall foliage. Most interesting, there were petroglyphs found along the canyon wall -- quite a pleasant surprise, as we're always on the lookout for Native American rock art.
Our next stop was Picture Canyon, named not for the fact that it is picturesque (and it is!), but by the abundance of rock art here, both petroglyphs and pictographs. Unfortunately, almost all of the petroglyphs we saw were defaced or vandalized, a sad reminder that these treasures are irreplaceable; through one thoughtless act they can be lost forever. Some still survive, however, and may have had astronomical significance -- public tours are offered here during the Fall equinox. Both of these archeological sites are located in the Comanche Natl Grasslands in southern CO.Monday, October 14, 2002
Two Buttes Res St Wildlife Mgmt Area, Springfield, CO - Oct 13-14
This place is a real find! Also what you would call really boondocking. It's certainly in the "boonies", there aren't any designated camp spots & it's free!! There is no cell phone reception, no TV stations, & no weather radio. We feel quite isolated. The surprising part is that after driving thru totally flat country for about 140 miles, we are in red sandstone buttes surrounded by a small reservoir. The colors of the yellow aspen & cottonwood (plus the vivid reds & oranges of the poison ivy!) against the red sandstone walls & the very blue sky make for the most delightful scenery. Our spot is so level, we didn't even have to unhook the trailer. And walking around looking at all the birds is all the entertainment we need for a couple of days.As we head further south, we are enjoying the lovely fall days, even though they are getting shorter. We hope you are all happy, healthy & warm for the winter. We look forward to our time in Arizona. The cats don't hate us too much for being forced to travel again. They seem to enjoy these rustic areas as much as we do.
Saturday, October 12, 2002
Flagler Reservoir State Wildlife Mgmt Area, Flagler, CO - Oct 11-12
We did not want to face the construction, traffic & mtn passes of I-25, so we figured out a route that heads east, then south before heading west towards AZ. With the help of some trusty "almost free" camping guides, we were able to find several CO Wildlife Mgmt Areas that have free camping in fairly remote places. Flagler was our first stop. The town of Flagler (pop ~500) is quite cute, with a nice park & attractive houses. It was the site of an air show accident in 1951 that killed 20 people. If anyone knows details of this, we would appreciate the info. The area does not have designated camp sites, but there are several places to pull off and have lovely views of the reservoir and the changing trees. We met a couple from Long Island who pulled in for thesecond night, who found the place in the same type of camping guide. Thursday, October 10, 2002
Shady Acres Mobile Home Park, Lafayette, CO - Aug 8-Oct 10
Did you notice there was a gap between nights in Salida and Lafayette? That was when we left the trailer at Casey's in Wheat Ridge (Denver suburb) & stayed in a house in Longmont for 3 nights. What an unusual but pleasant experience! Mickey Andreine, mother of our friend Pat, graciously opened her large downstairs suite to us & the 4 cats for as long as we needed, without even knowing us. It was a lovely space, though it felt strange to be out of our home for the first time in almost 3 years. The cats adapted quite well, and Rainbow was especially crabby about being taken from this nice place when we left. Trixie, however, was a little frightened by all the space. We think she was afraid she would end up "on her own" again!
We were VERY UNHAPPY with Casey's. With a lot of unpleasant complaining, we were able to get our major problem resolved to our satisfaction. We can only hope they packed the wheel bearings correctly. Most everything else we eliminated because they were so very expensive. They charge $89 minimum for each separate job, even though they are working on the same unit. Plus their interface is very unsatisfactory. We will not take our trailer back there again.
We are now parked in the same MH park in Lafayette where we have stayed twice before. It is a bit on the seedy side but shows signs of being here for several more years before "urban renewal" strikes. We plan to be here until at least 9/15 and maybe as long as 10/13. It is pleasant to be back visiting with our friends, playing bridge & going to concerts. We enjoy the Boulder area a lot.
The city of Longmont is having a "Wild Goose Chase", featuring whimsical geese sculptures on display all over the town. We have seen most of them, & they are quite cute. Boulder is having the same thing next year with 2-ft tall prairie dog sculptures to decorate. We are hoping to be back to see them.
We have ushered at a couple of Colorado Music Festival concerts & attended a chamber concert. We went to an evening of Contra Dancing on the plaza outside the Dushanbe Teahouse. We have had several get-togethers with old friends & have many more planned. Our bridge games start this weekend, which we are looking forward to greatly. We were also lucky enough to arrive just in time for the 25th anniversary celebration events for the Boulder Pearl Street Mall. This was especially fun for Willie, who was here in Boulder when the mall was built. There were a lot of pleasant reminiscences, along with a film about the history of the mall & old episodes of "Mork & Mindy".
Our stay here was a bit longer than we had originally planned, due to a number of medical issues that required follow-up care, plus just enjoying being with friends so much. We had many good bridge games and were able to eat at all of our favorite restaurants.
We did more birdwatching than we had ever done in this area before. We enjoyed weekly walks with the Boulder Birding Club, plus we went several times with our friends Bill & Becky Eeds. The highlight of these outings was when we got the opportunity to go with them to the Birds of Prey raptor rehabilitation facility. We got to assist in releasing 19 Swainson's Hawks and 15 American Kestrels. We each personally released one hawk and two kestrels. 
It was magnificent and a memory to be treasured. Since we hadn't been birding in the Boulder area before, we added quite a few new ones to our life list: Sharp-Shinned Hawk, Prairie Falcon, Wilson's Phalarope, Baird's Sandpiper, Franklin's Gull, Olive-sided Flycatcher, Pygmy Nuthatch, Sage Thrasher, Virginia's Warbler, and Green-tailed Towhee.
All the medical appts are over, and we are looking forward to heading south soon. We will miss our friends very much, but we hope to be back here in about a year.
We were VERY UNHAPPY with Casey's. With a lot of unpleasant complaining, we were able to get our major problem resolved to our satisfaction. We can only hope they packed the wheel bearings correctly. Most everything else we eliminated because they were so very expensive. They charge $89 minimum for each separate job, even though they are working on the same unit. Plus their interface is very unsatisfactory. We will not take our trailer back there again.
We are now parked in the same MH park in Lafayette where we have stayed twice before. It is a bit on the seedy side but shows signs of being here for several more years before "urban renewal" strikes. We plan to be here until at least 9/15 and maybe as long as 10/13. It is pleasant to be back visiting with our friends, playing bridge & going to concerts. We enjoy the Boulder area a lot.
The city of Longmont is having a "Wild Goose Chase", featuring whimsical geese sculptures on display all over the town. We have seen most of them, & they are quite cute. Boulder is having the same thing next year with 2-ft tall prairie dog sculptures to decorate. We are hoping to be back to see them.We have ushered at a couple of Colorado Music Festival concerts & attended a chamber concert. We went to an evening of Contra Dancing on the plaza outside the Dushanbe Teahouse. We have had several get-togethers with old friends & have many more planned. Our bridge games start this weekend, which we are looking forward to greatly. We were also lucky enough to arrive just in time for the 25th anniversary celebration events for the Boulder Pearl Street Mall. This was especially fun for Willie, who was here in Boulder when the mall was built. There were a lot of pleasant reminiscences, along with a film about the history of the mall & old episodes of "Mork & Mindy".
Our stay here was a bit longer than we had originally planned, due to a number of medical issues that required follow-up care, plus just enjoying being with friends so much. We had many good bridge games and were able to eat at all of our favorite restaurants.
We did more birdwatching than we had ever done in this area before. We enjoyed weekly walks with the Boulder Birding Club, plus we went several times with our friends Bill & Becky Eeds. The highlight of these outings was when we got the opportunity to go with them to the Birds of Prey raptor rehabilitation facility. We got to assist in releasing 19 Swainson's Hawks and 15 American Kestrels. We each personally released one hawk and two kestrels. 
It was magnificent and a memory to be treasured. Since we hadn't been birding in the Boulder area before, we added quite a few new ones to our life list: Sharp-Shinned Hawk, Prairie Falcon, Wilson's Phalarope, Baird's Sandpiper, Franklin's Gull, Olive-sided Flycatcher, Pygmy Nuthatch, Sage Thrasher, Virginia's Warbler, and Green-tailed Towhee.
All the medical appts are over, and we are looking forward to heading south soon. We will miss our friends very much, but we hope to be back here in about a year.Sunday, August 04, 2002
Four Seasons RV Park, Salida, CO - July 29-Aug 4
This is a lovely park if you can get a space along the Arkansas river, but one of the more expensive parks we have stayed at. Our friends Carole & Delbert (who live in Illinois and whom we met at Pioneer RV Park in Port Aransas in 12/2000) met us here for 4 nights. We had a great time playing bridge & other card games. We also took a long drive around the area together. We stopped in the little town of Saguache, where we toured the very interesting local museum. We hope to see Carole & Delbert in IL next year.
The town of Salida is quite charming & has many interesting activities. We enjoyed walking around the historic downtown buildings & watching kayakers playing in the river. We went to a chamber music concert in the restored Steam Plant building. The newly formed (actually still forming) group of musicians had very eclectic backgrounds: one was a lawyer from Salida with a BM in performance (he played French Horn); another was a former Trappist Monk who has masters degrees in both music & theology as well as a doctorate in education, who played oboe; the third was a pianist & piano tuner by day and a postal clerk at night, who formerly attended the Peabody Institute of Music and the Lamont School of Music; and the fourth was a semi-retired professional violinist, who had played with the Metropolitan Opera in NYC as well as with groups in the Detroit area. The concert was quite enjoyable, and many more interesting events are planned at the Steam Plant. Willie celebrated her birthday here (only one more year until she can get a Golden Age pass -- free admission to Natl Parks and half-price camping in federal areas -- YAY!!). We went out to a local upscale pizza place for a late lunch and then went to the Chaffee County Fair & Rodeo for the rest of the day. It was quite a different experience, but basically enjoyable. If anyone has concerns that women are advancing too rapidly in our society, we want to assure you that chauvinism is alive & well in the world of rodeo!! Those "pretty girls" just keep on riding forever!!We also took a lovely hike near Salida, which started with a rather frightening ride along a 4-wheel drive road (mainly frightening due to the narrowness of the road and the large size of our truck!). It was along Pass Creek, though we did not get as far as the lake. It was nice to walk along the creek & see the cascades, beaver ponds & open meadows where there used to be ponds. We were pretty close to treeline when we decided to turn around.
Sunday, July 28, 2002
Grandview RV Park, South Fork, CO - July 22-28
We don't often mention "Moving Day", but this one took us over Wolf Creek Pass. The pull itself was not bad, but there was construction at the top -- a 4-mile stretch of jaw-jarring, dirt washboard. To make matters worse, a bicycle rally was going the other way. Most of the riders were on street bikes; a few were carrying their bikes over the terrain. On the way down, there was a delay where they were blasting a tunnel to widen the road. While we were stopped, our cats let us know in no uncertain terms that they thought this was a fine place to camp! There's not much to say about South Fork, in our opinion. 
It's where the South Fork of the Rio Grande meets up with the main branch. It's "on the way" to lots of gorgeous scenery further up CO149 towards Creede & Lake City. South Fork itself is just a highway junction with many, many large, crowded & unattractive RV parks. We enjoyed our stay because of the surrounding area & also because we met some interesting Escapee workampers. The woman was able to help Willie correct a knitting problem she has had for years & show her interesting new ideas for knitting socks.
We spent a day going to Monte Vista & Del Norte to visit local museums & the Monte Vista Natl Wildlife Refuge. We learned that this region is one of two major locations for Colorado potatoes & actually saw the Colorado Potato Administrative Council building!!
We spent two days up in the Creede area. For one thing, a shop in Creede has the best fudge we have ever tasted! The first day were were there we took a walking tour of the town of Creede, followed by a driving tour (called the Bachelor Loop -- named for a ghost town along the route, not the marital status of the miners!) of the old mining areas above Creede. 
We saw many buildings that were built in the late 19th century. A lot of the old mining buildings were still standing. The second day, we went further towards Lake City from Creede & saw North & South Clear Creek Falls. Despite the drought, there was lots of water coming down. 
At South Falls, we could walk down to the base, sit on rocks & enjoy the cool refreshing spray. There were even a few wildflowers. We found some beautiful camping areas for future reference.Sunday, July 21, 2002
Riverside RV Park, Bayfield, CO - July 7-21
Bayfield is located about 20 miles east of Durango, and is also about 20 miles south of the southern part of the large Missionary Ridge Fire that devastated over 70,000 acres. Luckily for us, the fire was mostly contained just before we arrived, so the smoke had pretty much died down. This small cg is the most reasonably priced in the area and actually has grass & trees & water in the pond, stream & Los Pinos River, which are all adjacent. We were lucky enough to get the best site in the cg, bordering both the pond & stream, with some shade & lots of privacy. At our site we enjoyed our first sighting of a Lewis's Woodpecker. Plus there have been many hummingbirds (mostly ruled by a couple of Rufous), and a group (family?) of about 6 American Kestrels, who are often squabbling in nearby trees.
Mark & Susan, our friends from Boulder, arrived Weds to spend a couple of nights with us. We were happy to be able to offer them such a lovely place to pitch their tent. While they were here, we visited Mesa Verde NP, most of which was closed to the public due to fire danger. The only parts open were Wetherill Mesa (because it had all burned 2 years ago) and Spruce Tree House, both by guided tour only, and you were only allowed to do one per day. 
We picked the Long House Tour on Wetherill Mesa, because you were allowed to do some short hikes on your own out there. We spent a very enjoyable afternoon and, while driving out, spent most of the early evening watching the sun set from a fire tower overlook. The next day we relaxed at the campsite, enjoying a leisurely breakfast, reading, doing puzzles, & playing games. For dinner we went to Ignacio, home of the Sky Ute Casino, for their Friday seafood buffet. We were pleasantly surprised to find that we could sign up for a gambling card and get a coupon for a free meal, so we enjoyed a wonderful seafood buffet and then tried our hand at the slot machines for a while. Susan had a bit of luck, but the rest of us just made up for our free dinners!
Mark & Susan left to spend 2 nights at the historic Strater Hotel in Durango and attend a statewide Sierra Club meeting. We joined them that evening for a pot luck with other Sierra Club members. This week we concentrated on seeing some more area attractions before we leave on Monday. We took two scenic drives, one up around Vallecito Reservoir, where we were able to observe much of the fire damage and see how many places had very close calls. 
After seeing that, we really have to hand it to the firefighters -- they did some amazing work up there, and at the many other wildfires that are raging in the West. We also drove up towards Silverton, stopping at Coal Bank Pass (10,660), Molas Pass (10,899) and Andrews Lake, where the NFS has created a lovely picnic area, fishing area & trailhead, with (amazingly!) no day use fee. It is a beautiful alpine lake with good fishing & hiking. We saw a group of baby American Coots and were interested to learn that the babies have red heads with a black circle on top (the adults are all black with white bills). This is only shown in one of our 3 bird books. We spent an afternoon in Durango, walking along the Animas River Trail, a well-constructed multi-use trail that goes for many miles along the river, and then walking up & down Main St, looking at the interesting shops. We also went to Navajo Dam, NM, less than 40 miles away, for an encore Yoga class which was marvelous for our bodies.
Finally, we visited Chimney Rock Archaeological Area, owned by the NFS but administered by a group of volunteers. We had an informative & interesting tour of the area, which contains early pithouses as well as Chacoan style pueblo buildings. The twin pinnacles of Chimney Rock are home to some introduced Peregrine Falcons.
Mark & Susan, our friends from Boulder, arrived Weds to spend a couple of nights with us. We were happy to be able to offer them such a lovely place to pitch their tent. While they were here, we visited Mesa Verde NP, most of which was closed to the public due to fire danger. The only parts open were Wetherill Mesa (because it had all burned 2 years ago) and Spruce Tree House, both by guided tour only, and you were only allowed to do one per day. 
We picked the Long House Tour on Wetherill Mesa, because you were allowed to do some short hikes on your own out there. We spent a very enjoyable afternoon and, while driving out, spent most of the early evening watching the sun set from a fire tower overlook. The next day we relaxed at the campsite, enjoying a leisurely breakfast, reading, doing puzzles, & playing games. For dinner we went to Ignacio, home of the Sky Ute Casino, for their Friday seafood buffet. We were pleasantly surprised to find that we could sign up for a gambling card and get a coupon for a free meal, so we enjoyed a wonderful seafood buffet and then tried our hand at the slot machines for a while. Susan had a bit of luck, but the rest of us just made up for our free dinners!
Mark & Susan left to spend 2 nights at the historic Strater Hotel in Durango and attend a statewide Sierra Club meeting. We joined them that evening for a pot luck with other Sierra Club members. This week we concentrated on seeing some more area attractions before we leave on Monday. We took two scenic drives, one up around Vallecito Reservoir, where we were able to observe much of the fire damage and see how many places had very close calls. 
After seeing that, we really have to hand it to the firefighters -- they did some amazing work up there, and at the many other wildfires that are raging in the West. We also drove up towards Silverton, stopping at Coal Bank Pass (10,660), Molas Pass (10,899) and Andrews Lake, where the NFS has created a lovely picnic area, fishing area & trailhead, with (amazingly!) no day use fee. It is a beautiful alpine lake with good fishing & hiking. We saw a group of baby American Coots and were interested to learn that the babies have red heads with a black circle on top (the adults are all black with white bills). This is only shown in one of our 3 bird books. We spent an afternoon in Durango, walking along the Animas River Trail, a well-constructed multi-use trail that goes for many miles along the river, and then walking up & down Main St, looking at the interesting shops. We also went to Navajo Dam, NM, less than 40 miles away, for an encore Yoga class which was marvelous for our bodies.
Finally, we visited Chimney Rock Archaeological Area, owned by the NFS but administered by a group of volunteers. We had an informative & interesting tour of the area, which contains early pithouses as well as Chacoan style pueblo buildings. The twin pinnacles of Chimney Rock are home to some introduced Peregrine Falcons.Saturday, July 06, 2002
Twin Rivers RV Park, Chama, NM - June 30-July 6
Twin Rivers is an adequate, relatively inexpensive RV park located at the intersection of the two main highways in Chama and along the Chamita River, which like all bodies of water in this area, currently doesn't have much water in it. It was a quiet scenic place to "hide out" for the July 4th Holiday. Chama is located at the southern terminus of the Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad, which unfortunately wasn't running because of the fire danger inherent with a coal-driven engine. Because of this, the town was suffering economically. While not good for the area, it was quite pleasant not to be with crowds of tourists.We took a long, scenic loop drive, over Cumbres Pass to Antonito, CO, south to Tres Piedras, NM, then west to Tierra Amarilla and back north to Chama. The mountains, passes & meadows were all lovely, although there were not as many wildflowers as usual. The fields were still green and the streams had water flowing.
Other days we took scenic drives to areas south of Chama, including the Brazos Cliffs, Heron Lake SP and El Vado Lake SP, the last being the site of our dead-battery adventure and associated flurry of excitement before we could get back to Chama and have a new battery installed. The old one died completely, with absolutely no warning, and we certainly feel fortunate that it didn't happen at a more inconvenient moment! We visited the tiny town of Los Ojos, home of Ganado del Valle, a project to create sustainable rural communities by developing people's skills, and founders of Tierra Wools (a worker owned enterprise that weaves from locally grown wool) which employs a number of local people in all capacities. 
There are almost always weavers at work, and you can talk with them and watch them work, using a stand-up technique at a loom called the Rio Grande Valley style of loom. All the wool is dyed on-site using natural colors. We enjoyed watching & talking with the dyer. Wool of all types & colors is available, as well as many woven items. There is also Pastores General Store, offering handcrafted local items, and Otra Vuelta, which cleans up the environment by weaving discarded tires into floor & vehicle mats & other household items.Saturday, June 29, 2002
Downs RV Park, Farmington, NM - June 23-29
This place has nothing to recommend it other than the fact that none of the other RV parks in Farmington seem to be any better. The electric is exceptional, and they do have a weekly rate.
Our first day of touring took us to Aztec Ruins Natl Mon, a Chacoan "great house" similar to those found in Chaco Canyon. Early explorers erroneously thought that only the Aztecs could have built this impressive structure of over 400 rooms. In fact, the Aztec empire wasn't founded until centuries after the Chacoan civilization flourished. Aztec was built around 1100 and abandoned about 1150, then occupied and remodeled a few decades later by the Mesa Verde people. 
We then visited the Visitor's Center for the town of Aztec and found out that there are yoga classes offered in Aztec, which we took advantage of the very next morning. It was an excellent class! We also found information on local natural arches which, while they'll never put Arches NM out of business, were pleasing in their own way. Plus, Aztec has its own UFO Museum, much smaller than Roswell's. Supposedly, a UFO crashed near Aztec on March 25, 1948, one of 14 UFOs that (allegedly) crashed in the western US around that time, including the one in Roswell. 
This crash site is on public land, and, after a few wrong turns, we were able to find the site and the modest plaque that the Aztec UFO Information Center erected there.
The next day (after yoga) we visited Salmon Ruins, another Chacoan great house, similar to Aztec in that it too was built and later abandoned by Chaco-like people, then briefly occupied by people with close ties with Mesa Verde inhabitants. The main difference is that Salmon Ruins was on property homesteaded by George Salmon, whose family protected the ruins from vandals and treasure hunters for over 90 years. San Juan County purchased the land in 1969, and began archeological excavations in 1972. Although only one third of the ruin were excavated, over 1.5 million artifacts were discovered from 1972 to 1978.
We visited two fairly new Wilderness Areas about 40 miles south of Farmington: Bisti and De-Na-Zin, both administered by the BLM. These are both badlands with no marked trails. Bisti, a Navajo word, means "a large area of shale hills" and De-Na-Zin comes from the Navajo word for "cranes" because petroglyphs of cranes were found just south of the wilderness. In 90+ heat, both areas are fairly daunting, so we only walked a short distance at each area. 
We also visited the Angel Peak Rec Area, also managed by the BLM, which has nice picnic areas, a free campground, and a nature trail, also through badlands. Angel Peak is sacred to the Navajo and is quite attractive. Unfortunately, since the BLM allows oil & gas drilling on land not designated as wilderness, the surrounding vast badlands are dotted with wells & roads.
We also visited Chaco Culture Natl Hist Park from Farmington in order to do one of the longer hikes. The drive from Farmington is much shorter and the 16 miles of dirt road much smoother. We hiked to the Pueblo Alto ruin complex and continued on a loop trail that took us past the Jackson staircase (prehistoric) and fantastic views overlooking both Chetro Ketl and Pueblo Bonito. It was a 5 1/2 mile hike and 94 degrees, so we both found our new hydration packs of great value and sufficient to the needs. We treated ourselves to a pizza on the way home as a reward for a hard day's "work"!
Our first day of touring took us to Aztec Ruins Natl Mon, a Chacoan "great house" similar to those found in Chaco Canyon. Early explorers erroneously thought that only the Aztecs could have built this impressive structure of over 400 rooms. In fact, the Aztec empire wasn't founded until centuries after the Chacoan civilization flourished. Aztec was built around 1100 and abandoned about 1150, then occupied and remodeled a few decades later by the Mesa Verde people. 
We then visited the Visitor's Center for the town of Aztec and found out that there are yoga classes offered in Aztec, which we took advantage of the very next morning. It was an excellent class! We also found information on local natural arches which, while they'll never put Arches NM out of business, were pleasing in their own way. Plus, Aztec has its own UFO Museum, much smaller than Roswell's. Supposedly, a UFO crashed near Aztec on March 25, 1948, one of 14 UFOs that (allegedly) crashed in the western US around that time, including the one in Roswell. 
This crash site is on public land, and, after a few wrong turns, we were able to find the site and the modest plaque that the Aztec UFO Information Center erected there.The next day (after yoga) we visited Salmon Ruins, another Chacoan great house, similar to Aztec in that it too was built and later abandoned by Chaco-like people, then briefly occupied by people with close ties with Mesa Verde inhabitants. The main difference is that Salmon Ruins was on property homesteaded by George Salmon, whose family protected the ruins from vandals and treasure hunters for over 90 years. San Juan County purchased the land in 1969, and began archeological excavations in 1972. Although only one third of the ruin were excavated, over 1.5 million artifacts were discovered from 1972 to 1978.
We visited two fairly new Wilderness Areas about 40 miles south of Farmington: Bisti and De-Na-Zin, both administered by the BLM. These are both badlands with no marked trails. Bisti, a Navajo word, means "a large area of shale hills" and De-Na-Zin comes from the Navajo word for "cranes" because petroglyphs of cranes were found just south of the wilderness. In 90+ heat, both areas are fairly daunting, so we only walked a short distance at each area. 
We also visited the Angel Peak Rec Area, also managed by the BLM, which has nice picnic areas, a free campground, and a nature trail, also through badlands. Angel Peak is sacred to the Navajo and is quite attractive. Unfortunately, since the BLM allows oil & gas drilling on land not designated as wilderness, the surrounding vast badlands are dotted with wells & roads.
We also visited Chaco Culture Natl Hist Park from Farmington in order to do one of the longer hikes. The drive from Farmington is much shorter and the 16 miles of dirt road much smoother. We hiked to the Pueblo Alto ruin complex and continued on a loop trail that took us past the Jackson staircase (prehistoric) and fantastic views overlooking both Chetro Ketl and Pueblo Bonito. It was a 5 1/2 mile hike and 94 degrees, so we both found our new hydration packs of great value and sufficient to the needs. We treated ourselves to a pizza on the way home as a reward for a hard day's "work"!
