This is the seventh in a series of seven posts made during a 2017 US vacation.
1. Joshua Tree
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
We’re the home stretch of our journey. We’ve been nomads for exactly 63 days as I write this. It's been an extraordinary experience seeing so many amazing places and wonderful people. I'm truly thankful to be living in such a warm and wonderful place like the US.
This week we made it back into our beloved desert. After seeing some truly inspiring native ruins at Mesa Verde in South West Colorado, we continued onto Utah and Arizona through the stunning Monument Valley. Monument Valley is one of the first places that Craig and I visited in Utah many years ago. It’s home to nature's skyscrapers, these precarious cathedral spires that reach up into the sky thousands of feet. There are endless miles of red sandstone prairies that are so vibrant that the red color from the ground reflects a soft pink onto the clouds.
Thinking about all of the ancient ruins we saw, Craig and I have spent many vacations in the desert, but it wasn't until this trip that I realized how vast a territory the ancient Native Americans inhabited. It seems that everywhere we went in the west; New Mexico, Colorado, Arizona, and Utah we found ruins of the native people that once lived and farmed on cliffs and mesas there. It’s good to know that some of their decendents still exist in these areas and maintain the lands and customs for their children.
Side note: Perhaps you’re wondering if we are tired of the trip and getting a bit home sick. Frankly, it depends on where we happen to be. There have been times that we were feeling a bit worn down but sometimes it’s just a matter of changing our location and everything is great again. The reality is that when you travel this much to this many different locations, it's exciting and challenging at the same time.
I’m getting ahead of myself, here are lots of pics and some comments in this final post.
1. Joshua Tree
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
We’re the home stretch of our journey. We’ve been nomads for exactly 63 days as I write this. It's been an extraordinary experience seeing so many amazing places and wonderful people. I'm truly thankful to be living in such a warm and wonderful place like the US.
This week we made it back into our beloved desert. After seeing some truly inspiring native ruins at Mesa Verde in South West Colorado, we continued onto Utah and Arizona through the stunning Monument Valley. Monument Valley is one of the first places that Craig and I visited in Utah many years ago. It’s home to nature's skyscrapers, these precarious cathedral spires that reach up into the sky thousands of feet. There are endless miles of red sandstone prairies that are so vibrant that the red color from the ground reflects a soft pink onto the clouds.
Thinking about all of the ancient ruins we saw, Craig and I have spent many vacations in the desert, but it wasn't until this trip that I realized how vast a territory the ancient Native Americans inhabited. It seems that everywhere we went in the west; New Mexico, Colorado, Arizona, and Utah we found ruins of the native people that once lived and farmed on cliffs and mesas there. It’s good to know that some of their decendents still exist in these areas and maintain the lands and customs for their children.
Side note: Perhaps you’re wondering if we are tired of the trip and getting a bit home sick. Frankly, it depends on where we happen to be. There have been times that we were feeling a bit worn down but sometimes it’s just a matter of changing our location and everything is great again. The reality is that when you travel this much to this many different locations, it's exciting and challenging at the same time.
I’m getting ahead of myself, here are lots of pics and some comments in this final post.
Texas
Caddo Lake SP (TX)
"Bald cypress trees draped with Spanish moss tower over the maze of bayous, sloughs, and ponds of Caddo Lake."
"Bald cypress trees draped with Spanish moss tower over the maze of bayous, sloughs, and ponds of Caddo Lake."
I hadn’t quite gotten my fill of swamps so we made one last stop at Caddo Lake State Park in Texas. I was not disappointed at all. There were tons of birds, turtles, and big old Cypress trees. Although we didn’t actually see any endangered Paddle Fish, I was told that they lurk around in the deep waters here. I liked this Caddo Lake because it still had the feel of Georgia and Louisiana but was actually in Texas. We didn’t see any alligators here and from the calm demeanor of the turtles, I don’t think they were close by. The best part; I finally got to see fireflies again!
I’ve posted a video below because I wanted to share the sheer number of birds that live in areas like this.
I’ve posted a video below because I wanted to share the sheer number of birds that live in areas like this.
Mineral Wells SP (TX)
This lakeside park had a small top rope climbing area where they had set up anchors for about 50 different top roping climbs. Unfortunately, the cliffs were only about 45 feet so it made for quick routes. Funny note, you have to watch where you put your hands while climbing or you might accidentally grab a cliff dwelling frog! Sorry, no pics but they are very cute (you can click this link to see what they look like Frog Pic at Mineral Wells SP).
They call the place the mini Grand Canyon. There are several campgrounds and we stayed in the new in the valley called “Juniper”. I wouldn’t make a special trip here from the west coast but for folks in Texas, it’s great. The mountains are all less than 1000 feet but they are beautiful banded yellow, orange, gray.
New Mexico
Both Craig and I were surprised with New Mexico. Neither of us expected to see the forest that could have been in Tahoe. Santa Fe was a neat town. I loved the artsy vibe and it reminded me of Santa Cruz complete with purple hair and random musicians. ALL of the buildings have the same Santa Fe style red stucco and styling. I was amazed at how well the houses blend with the natural environment. I posted a picture below of a view of Santa Fe from on top of the hillside.
New Mexico Skyline - You can't even SEE the houses!
New Mexico Skyline - You can't even SEE the houses!
Classic Stucco style building
Cool Wall Art
Ute Lake SP (NM)
Storrie Lake SP (NM)
Hyde Memorial SP (NM)
Not at all what I expected New Mexico to look like.
Elevation, approx. 9,000 feet.
Elevation, approx. 9,000 feet.
Colorado
Mesa Verde NP (Co)
There's no denying that Mesa Verde is a pretty amazing place. We've seen cliff dwellings similar to these before but the sheer number of ancient ruins (4,300 sites, including 600 cliff dwellings), at this location is pretty darn impressive. From what I understand, at one time during the 13th century there were up to 22,000 Ancestral Puebloans living either in the cliffs or up on the bluffs. Also, the native people left behind some amazing artifacts that can be found in one of of the best museums I've ever seen in a National Park.
Craig coming out of the 12ft tunnel that was the original entrance to the cliff dwelling. Back in the day, the people who lived here would have to complete a 60ft down-climb of open rock face before even getting to this opening. As you can imagine even small children were excellent climbers. I'm guessing that this tunnel was built for security.
Utah!
Hovenweep & Canyons of the Ancients National Monument (UT)
Mesa Verde NP (Co)
There's no denying that Mesa Verde is a pretty amazing place. We've seen cliff dwellings similar to these before but the sheer number of ancient ruins (4,300 sites, including 600 cliff dwellings), at this location is pretty darn impressive. From what I understand, at one time during the 13th century there were up to 22,000 Ancestral Puebloans living either in the cliffs or up on the bluffs. Also, the native people left behind some amazing artifacts that can be found in one of of the best museums I've ever seen in a National Park.
Cliff Palace is the largest cliff dwelling in Mesa Verde National Park. This one is special because most of the dwellings found in the park have 1-5 rooms but this one had 150 rooms and estimated population of 100 people.
Cliff Palace is said to have only minor repairs done over the years to keep it intact. A ranger told me that it's 95% original..
This adorable little guy/gal was gathering bark from a nearby Juniper tree.
For $5/each we were able to take a tour the of the Balcony House cliff dwelling. That's me trying to figure out how to sneak a grinding stone under my shirt :)
This was a walkway to the upper floor. The wood was used to carbon date the age of these buildings.
Pretty steep exit from the tunnel. You can get an idea of how high up the dwelling was by noticing the valley floor below. The original trail down (I was told) is about 100ft to the left of this exit point.
There weren't a lot of petroglyphs identified by the park but these were pretty amazing!
Utah!
Hovenweep & Canyons of the Ancients National Monument (UT)
We found a place called Hovenweep bordering Colorado and Utah - The name Hovenweep is Ute/Paiute for “deserted valley” known for its tower like ruins built between 1230 to 1275 CE. This was a chance find since we were planning to drive straight to Natural Bridges National Monument. This place is a little gem with just 31 campsites. It was dead quiet at night and a stargazer's dream. I think we’ll be back someday.
Horseshoe Tower
It's so odd to see horses running free we had to take a picture
A beauty and her foal
Hunting Hounds...there were three more one other side and another truck with more nearby. Not sure what they were hunting.
Natural Bridges National Monument is located in Utah surrounded by the beautiful Bears Ears National Monument. Aside from it's location to Bears Ears and giant bridges, it's it is one of the darkest National Park Service in the US. I can speak from experience that the Milkey Way is AMAZING to see at night there.
| Bridge | Height | Span | Width | Thickness |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| m (ft) | m (ft) | m (ft) | m (ft) | |
| Owachomo | 32 (106) | 55 (180) | 8 (27) | 3 (9) |
| Sipapu | 67 (220) | 68 (225) | 9.5 (31) | 16 (53) |
| Kachina | 64 (210) | 62 (204) | 13 (44) | 28 (93) |
Monument Valley UT
If you look close, you can see the clouds reflecting a pinkish tone from the red dirt.
Thanks for reading, I really enjoyed sharing my pictures!
Monument Valley is breathtaking. Nice photo of you two.
ReplyDeleteThanks Jim. If you haven't been there I hope you get to go someday soon.
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