The Hand, The Moon and The Sun

[BD]

Intentionally selected our campsite so that the rising sun would be coming in the front of the funmobile so as not to disturb our well established circadian rhythm of late rising.  However, nature's habit of thwarting human plans resulted in the reflection of the sunrise off of the of the red-rock cliffs appearing like lava flowing in through the back doors.  Incredibly beautiful, but WAY too early.  So just to prove man's dominion over nature, we watched the sunrise and went back to sleep.

Eventually (9 am) we were off for a desert bike ride and hike down the canyon.  I should add that we spend a lot of time in not going very far.  We tend to poke and prod the local flora, fauna and geology, and gawk at the sites.  This trail, with desert flowers, critter tracks, numerous lizards, (no snakes), pueblo ruins, petroglyphs, and horizon-to-horizon desert scenery made for a 6-mile, 4-hour walkabout.  We saw a total of 5 other people during the stroll.  Would have been a couple of miles longer except the combination of rain clouds, and us being on the wrong side of the arroyo made it prudent to turn back early.

 

To give an idea of what drives us on these trips, the highlight was three small but very vivid pictographs, (painted, not pecked), displaying a hand, a quarter moon and the sun painted on the underside of a rock overhang 30 or so feet over our heads.   Sitting there you could almost imagine the artist up there putting together his story that we could never fully comprehend.  This was the turnaround point and we were completely satisfied.

Good night from Chaco Canyon.

Into The Hinterlands

[BD]

I suppose it's unnecessary to mention that we got on the road at 9 am.  New Mexico Destination - Chaco Culture National Historical Park.  The route takes you from Albuquerque north through some classic New Mexico geologic rift country, (described by VD more simply as eroded dirt).

We were last here 15 years ago and while the scenery is as spectacular as it always was, the local Native American tribes have followed in the steps of their ancestors and are now raiding the white travelers again.  This time through the use of several new casinos on State Rt 550.

Apache Nugget Casino NM Rt 550

 

What hasn't changed is the last 16 miles from Nagezie to Chaco.  It is still some of the most bone jarring, washboarded dirt road we've encountered, passing only a few modest “homes” with absolutely no hint of connection to the outside world. One has to wonder just what it is that the inhabitants do to subsist. 

After an hour and a half of that fun, we finally arrive at the park boundary where the road is suddenly paved again and leads you down into a wide desert canyon.  You instantly feel like you are in another time and place.  Sort of like those old movies where the explorers pop out the bottom of some old dormant volcano and you sense that things aren’t quite the same.

The was the home to a pre-pueblo culture who built at least 8 elaborate villages along the canyon walls.  Each village was built of hand shaped slabs or blocks of local rock cemented together with mud.  The intricate layouts and incredible craftsmanship of these multi-story buildings is truly impressive.  The first day is spent reconnoitering the area and deciding what to try and cover in the next few days.

While these ancient people definitely knew how to select real estate with an awesome view, they apparently didn't think too highly of bathing, grocery stores or texting, as the necessary elements for those modern day necessities simply do not exist here. 

The neighbors behind us weren't home.

Oddly enough, the drive in didn't deter the numerous campers who set up on a typically slow pre-season Sunday night.  Fortunately we arrived in the early afternoon and got a good site.  Unlike some who endured the road in only to have to drive back out again that night with no place to camp for 50-60 miles.

Mom Wasn't Particularly Pleased

My turn to cook tonight so I narrowed it down to the only thing I actually know how to cook, and we had fried eggs, over easy, no broken yoke.  Surprised even me.  Then off for an evening walk (before dark MM, I swear).  Along the cliff base were a couple of small dwelling ruins, some petroglyphs pecked into the rock (as opposed to pictographs which are painted onto the rock), and a HUGE 5' snake a few feet off the trail.  Non venomous desert racer with burnt orange banding on a light beige background.  Also a lot of 1" long Eleodes Armato beetles (Latin for "stink – armored”).  Not nearly as exciting but much more numerous. 

End of the day. 

Off To "Off The Grid"

[BD]

Yesterday we left the mountains ("A" on the map) for a second time and descended into the VALLEY OF FIRES, the black looking lake on the map which is actually lava.  The original plan to hike a ways into the White Mountain Wilderness was thwarted by the CG hostess suggesting that it was a great hike, and that the resident mountain lion was pretty friendly, but watch out for the sow bear and 2 cubs that hang out in the1st mile of the trail. 


Even city slickers like us know that is a combination not to test, so down the hill we went.






Since we got a late start, (seems to be a recurring theme), We decided to head directly for some place with showers to get rid of the 20-30 lbs of dust we'd each accumulated on the ride in and back out.

Though called the Valley of Fires a better name would have been Valley of Monstrous Cow Pies. Three miles wide and 50 or so long, it is a rugged moonscape but also covered with a cool assortment of vegetation.

Ansel Adams - Eat your heart out.

It also happened that this was a night of a full moon so bright that we couldn't resist a night walk around the circuit.  It was so bright that no flashlight was needed.  (Mom-Mom has already given me heck for doing that.)

In reality, the landscape is so forbidding that nothing larger than a pocket mouse lives there.  (And it was too cool out for snakes.).


So....  By the end of the day, we were clean, fed and thoroughly content with the trip so far.


It is now Saturday 5 May.  We made our way from Carrizozo to Albuquerque area where we are overnighting in a hotel in prep for the next leg of the journey.  Had an awesome Mexican dinner at a local joint with the best sopapillas I've ever had. (Actually the only sopapillas I've ever had.)  We've restocked the funmobile and tomorrow at the crack of dawn (or 9 am whichever comes later) we head to Chaco Culture National Historical Park.


This is a well developed NPS facility, but is located far out into the back country with very limited resources, (like food, water, and cell phone coverage).    The roads to the area are long, dusty and rough, but within the park, they are paved.  So the plan is to stay for 2-3 days and explore the area on our bikes.


Anyway, we do not expect to be able to access email or phones for the next several days but will have lots to report when come in off the reservation.


It's late again so that's it for now.






Brad and Val

Sand & Petroglyphs

[BD]

Came down outta da hills today.  Had to stop at the CG dump station, (won't go into detail about that process) and got trapped by the campground host.  I've concluded that you could write a book just about the people who pull their RV's into a selected CG and take on the paid role of campground host for the season.  A truly colorful bunch, and each with a story to tell, (if they get you captive).  The more remote the CG the more interesting the host.




First stop White Sands National Monument.  (Immediately adjacent to White Sands Missile Range and periodically closed for that very reason.)  A wonderful combination of vivid color and the purist white sand you can imagine.  All set against a backdrop of rugged barren mount ranges.


Then headed up north of Alamogordo to Three rivers Petroglyph Site.

 Run by the Bureau of Land Management, it's an excellent collection of early Indian rock art.  Basically a dirt path though the rocks on top of a mesa in the middle of nowhere where you can get very up close an personal with the images.


Mostly big horn sheep, lizards, birds and other inhabitants of the desert.  Others were intricate designs thought to be of deep religious significance.  (I'm thinking a bit too much Mescal.

WHAT SNAKE - WHERE??

Picking through the rocks was a tad scary what with the reminder of the local caretaker that rattlers are commonly seen in the area.  But no, we saw nary a one.


From the site we headed further into the Sacramento foothills to a really great CG.  (See map above.)  Large site overlooking the Tularosa Basin below and White mountain Wilderness above.


Uh-OH. Just realized (with a reminder from the better half) that it is midnight.


                                      Good night All

Day 2 In The Mountains

[BD]
Took short ride down the Sunspot Highway and then a 5 mile jog down a dirt road to Bluff Springs, which amazingly was a spring coming out of a bluff.  For those who may accuse me of being overly sarcastic, around this high dry mountain region, a spring coming out of a bluff is in fact quite amazing.

  
From the spring we took hike up through tall pine and meadow country.  Signs of elk and ATV's but saw neither.  Decided to camp the night there because the view up the meadow was really nice and not another sole was there.  Lazed around (again) watching the grass grow all afternoon until about 5 pm the winds picked up and started blowing in dust from the entrance road.  So we relocated back to last night's campground near Cloudcroft.





Tomorrow back down to the desert country.  White Sands Nat'l Monument, Three Rivers Petroglyphs, and Wild Bill's Carving Shoppe in Alamogordo.  (Not my idea.)  And maybe a shower.  Been 2 days without, (excluding the foot bath).




Brad & Val

Cooling Off

[BD]  Seems like VD is not going to be posting this trip.

View From the Bedroom

This morning we lazed around (seems like we are doing a lot of that), listening to the doves in the tree right outside the "bedroom window".  For what appears at first glance to be an arid wasteland, completely devoid of life, there is a surprising variety of flora and fauna, including the 8 inch long, orange-legged, black-backed centipede the greeted me on the way back from the morning shower.  No pics as I normally do not carry a camera to the showers.  Guess I should since that seems like where the cool critters hang out.   (That didn't come out right.) 

View From the Office

Still not being ready to tackle the next leg of the trip, decided to check in with work.  The view from my office is quite stunning.  As has been the case for several days, connection is really problematic.  Switched to "global roaming" mode which means I was probably going out through some cell tower on a mountaintop in Mexico and will get a data roaming bill for $1,000,000,000.






On the road about 10:30, we established a new standard Davidson start time.  The longest stretch yet of 90 miles absent of human habitation excluding Maryhill and Hope, neither of which showed signs of life.  We did pass Hope Cemetery on the way out of town.  (There's a snarky joke there if I were inclined to work at it.)

Arrived at Cloudcroft NM late in the afternoon.  Temps at the campground are 20 degrees cooler than Carlsbad with an elevation of @ 9,000 ft.  Our unopened bag of corn chips looks like 3-day old road-kill and ready to explode.  CG is nice and as has been the case, almost empty.















As a final comment for the day, VD is constantly taking pictures of me working on my computer as some sort of tech-weenie.  Hidden behind the cooler is VD's tablet.  I however will resist the temptation to strike back.


Tomorrow of to hike the Bluff Spring Trail down south of Cloudcroft.  "See" you all later.


Best Wishes,


BD & VD

Lazy Blogger

[BD}


OK, I confess.  We were only on the road 3 days, and I got lazy.  But then the 1st post warned that the whole point of retirement is "supposed" to be not having to stick to a regimen, which I definitely have not.  So, for catch-up...... 


Friday 27 April  -  Let's see.  when last posted, we were scoping out the arachnid population in Oklahoma at a campground just west of Tulsa.  The next morning we were off to Lubbock TX.  I believe I'd made some remark about a song to a girl from Oklahoma being a compliment.  Turns out it only applies if she is from east OK.


To ease the monotony of this leg, we took a side road through the Wichita (Oklahoma) Mountains.  More like large hills, but beautiful from the perspective of huge expanses of slick-rock hills surrounding prairie valleys of waving seas of green grasslands.  As an added attraction, there were periodic herd of buffalo and the occasional Texas Longhorn, (fled across the border from Texas to OK during the Bush years no doubt).

GPS stated "very slight bend to the
right in 28.5 miles." Note bugparts
on windshield.

And Jessica complains she has problems
 getting her garden to grow!!

Then out of the mountains through some of the flattest West Texas scrub land you'd ever want to see.  Roads straight as and arrow for 20-30 miles passing through small dusty towns that probably haven't changed much in the last 50 years, except maybe half of the population is gone.






Finally reached Lubbock around 10 pm for a planned hotel stay.  No campgrounds within a hundred miles and needed Wi-Fi to run some reports for work.  Pleasant staff advised that regardless of our confirmed reservation, they (and the rest of Lubbock) were completely sold out due to a volleyball tournament.  Happy to say that our recommendations for some serious attitude adjustment resulted in them coughing up a room.  Sad to say, some other late arrival was probably VERY unhappy.

Blogging is Hard Work

Saturday 28 April  -  Headed to Carlsbad NM.  More miles of desert scrub-land.  This time Texas scrub.  Oddly enough we (I anyway) loved this part of the country.  There are a shrinking number of places where you can see horizon to horizon with almost no sign of human habitation, (except the oil wells of course).  Staying a couple of nights at a CG north of town.  CG sits on a ridge where at night, the only thing thing to see is the distant twinkle of lights in some small town, and a massive number of stars in a 360 degree natural planetarium.  (And the long-eared prairie jackrabbit sitting not 15 feet away as I write this.)


Sunday 29 April  -  First actual destination point of the trip, Carlsbad Caverns. As avid spelunkers in our younger years, this area was a mecca fo us to find large and beautiful wild caves.  And Carlsbad is the grand-dad of them all.  (We didn't find that one.) You can take an elevator 750 down to the most decorated part of the cave, be we chose to walk in from the main entrance.  On the walk-in there was no one there!  We were seldom withing ear-shot of others on the trail.  Spent most of they day in the cave and going back tomorrow for a look at another section.


So now we've caught up.  The rest of the evening" we've got to re-route the trip as the temperatures are forecasted to be too high (upper 90's) to do the originally planned El Capitan trail into the Guadalupe Mountains.  Will probably strike north for higher elevations and cooler temps.


Monday 30 April  -  Actually, got delayed another day.  Partly due to technical difficulties, (really challenging connectivity issues), but more realistically just laziness.  Anyway, today was another trip through Carlsbad.  Even more beautiful than yesterday.  First a 2 hr trip guided by a ranger who plied us with stories of his youth.  Son and grandson of Kentucky coal miners.  Escaped the poverty to join the Park service as a wilderness ranger counting bears, eventually to end up at underground Carlsbad.  (You can't escape your ancestral heritage I guess.)


So long for now.  On our way to Cloudcroft NM for 70's instead of 90's.


Brad & Val

"You're The Reason God Made Oklahoma"

[BD}

Whoever the aforementioned country song was written for should thank the writer.  Very green rolling wooded hills.  Not what you would expect for Oklahoma..  (Good song even if you are not a country fan.)

Awesome weather.  Sunny, evening temps in 60's, daytime 70's to 80,s.  Up at 0700 to christen the K-cup coffee pot which takes up WAY too much valuable counter space so I'm frequently advised.  We compromised by my promising to bring VD hot chocolate in bed every morning.

Left Lane Springs CG at required 0900 and before Freddie got up.  First task of the day was to rescue a post turtle, (google "obama post turtle"). Based on the quantity of road kill we saw the rest of the day, Missouri either has a LOT of wildlife, or lesser amounts of not very smart wildlife, especially armadillos.  Saved two more turtles later in theday.

Uneventful trip the rest of the day.  Gas down to $3.55/gal.  Conducted a thoroughly exhilarating training session on the use of GPS #3 (of 5).  It appears that VD's Law of Disappearing Electrons applies in Oklahoma also.  Will try again this evening.

Last stop of the day...  a quilting shop in Tulsa.  Seems OK quilt material is different than IL quilt material.  I amused myself by examining (and then throwing a quilt over) a $12,000 sewing machine.  My retirement car cost less.

Overnighting at Heyden State Park just west of Tusla.  Excellent CG with hot water showers and flush toilets.  (So much for "off the grid".)  Populated only by a few old retired people.

Had a nice little bedtime surprise coming back from the showers.


YES!  IT'S A  #$%!**!  TARANTULA!!  Small for a tarantula, but where's MAMA.

Night All

On The Road Again...Just Can't Wait...

[BD]

So here we are at the end of day 1 of the rest of our lives.  And a glorious day it was.  Up at the crack of dawn trying to think of all of those things that we obviously missed last night when we decided "we have it all!!"  Grabbed another couple of hundred lbs and stuffed it into the unused nooks and crannies.  Time of departure at precisely 0900 as per long established Davidson protocol.

0905 hrs - 2.5 miles  -  First stop  -  CARIBOU COFFEE.  Two large light roast with room and a couple of muffins.  Enough  of the right stuff to get us 450 miles down the road.

0915 hrs - 5.0 miles  -  Second stop  -  SPEEDWAY GAS.  OMG!!!  Who woulda thunk.  By my estimate we'll run out of cash somewhere between Peoria and Springfield.

1730 hrs - 401.7 miles  (won't bore you with the in betweens)  ARR Lane Spring CG a few miles south of Rolla MO (home of the Missouri School of Mines). No sights at the CG, just a place to spend the night.  Better than the K-MART parking lot.

CG completely empty except for the CG Host who appears to be a cross between Freddy and "The Scream", although very friendly.  (Please take note of the last dot on the Everytrail Tracker.  If there isn't another one there by about 10 am Thursday.....)

For anyone inclined to need to know where we are at every second, go to www.everytrail.com and type davidso1 into the search box.  You'll need to navigate to our list of trips and pick the one at the top of the list.  Should be the most recent segment.  There are still some technical challenges to getting it to display on this blog, but I should have it figured out by the time we get home.

That's it for today.  Don't expect too much for Thurdsay.  Crossing Oklahoma and the Texas panhandle. Not a lot of photo ops.


Good Night