Inscriptions, volcanoes, lava beds....you choose

 

 Parked in the campground at Bluewater Lake State Park...WOW!. It is virtually empty, after September 15 - first come - first serve. It is a beautiful park @ 6800', and although many of the site roads are closed for the season , the walk to the lake is close by.

 

Agenda for today: view inscriptions @ El Morro outside Ramah, NM.  On the drive to Ramah we passed by the  El Malpais Information Center and decided to take a peek for a future visit.

 

 

 

This park is all about volcanic caves, lava flows and 

cinder cones, all viewable by hikes or scenic drives.

It's on our bucket list as our time in the area is short

and we still had mile to drive to El Morro.

 

the point of the park

Petroglyphs

 

Example of  some of the inscriptions

Big Horn Sheep petroglyphs...

 

Inscription and petroglyph

The visitor center was built in 1964, blends nicely into the sandstone and juniper landscape. Interesting displays of Spaniard conquest/Catholicism, information about the Ancestral Pueblo ruin, Astinna. There is also a 9 site campground that provides a Sky Night Program during normal seasonal hours...given that there is NOTHING even a close to a street lamp or Mickey D's neon sign -the stars must be amazing.

 

Twenty miles away you can find Zuni Nation - which offers a tour of the Zuni Pueblo if you happen to be in the area.  I left there with opal and silver jewelry...hey, I love jewelry artists too.

 

~Ciao...

Fred and Barney didn't dwell in these historical ruins....

Anasazi Heritage Center-Dolores, CO

Near Cortez, CO is one of the most interesting and beautifully curated visitor centers, Anasazi Heritage Center, that we have encountered on exploring our "bucket list" of national parks. A mere 3 miles outside of Dolores and 10 miles from Cortez this center was educational, interesting, visually gratifying and was filled with artifacts that have been excavated from the nearby Canyons of the Ancients sites.





Overlay of Anasazi cultures in the area

Displays of pottery by the period created, hands on educational displays, and even a replica of a pueblo and kiva that is accessible for close up viewing.

Educational drawers

Anasazi pottery 900-1150 A.D.

 

Sand Canyon site map



 

According to the information panels scattered around,Sand Canyon Pueblo consisted of 420 rooms, 100 kivas and 14 towers, in 13 room block. A community of several hundred people lived here between A.D. 1245 - 1290, and is twice as large Cliff Palace at Mesa Verde NP.  Excavation of the pueblo community was done between 1983 - 1993 and then re-buried to preserve the ruins.

 

Our day continued as we moved on to Painted Hand Pueblo....

 

        

 We ended our day at Hovenweep National Monument....stunningly beautiful, easy 2 mile stroll of the rim loop that captures both cliff dwelling and pueblo houses...well their remains at least.

 

 

Hovenweep National Monument & Visitor Center

Visiting during October can be risky at this elevation we lucked out with clear sunny skies and a brisk mid 40's afternoon.  Although the ranger informed us that the loop was 1.5 hours, we managed to see all of it in roughly 60 minutes, which included descending to and crossing the canyon floor.

The trail map below gives you an idea of where the buildings were located along the canyon rim.

If you are in Cortez you can see these and a few others that we didn't get to this trip. It certainly was worth the drive.  (I have included a separate slideshow on the right side of my blog with additional pictures of all three sites.)

~ Ciao

If you've seen one ARCH, you may have...

 

seen them all. Well, Landscape and Delicate Arches are unique and not just another, ah,

 hole-in-the-wall.  With that being said, the park is beautiful in a rugged-high desert-red dust- everywhere kind of way.

 

 

Visitor center plaza

 

Landscape Arch



Delicate Arch

 

No one really needs a guided tour, via my blog, of the Arches National Park, the landscape simply yields them without much effort. We spent 5 days touring the area around Moab, UT which has a number of national parks/bureau of land management recreation areas in which one can partake in whatever activity is of interest to you. There is a system of bike trails that parallel the main highways, hiking - both in and out of the parks, rock climbing, para-sailing, off-road jeep/atv areas, fishing and hunting when in season.  There is no shortage of things to do or see.

What becomes the challenge outside of driving past the formations of red dirt or following the trail guide to the nearest arch is locating the local art. Whether it is pictographs in a location that supports that history, as this @ Wolfe Ranch and is close to the parking lot for Delicate Arch trail head.




Wolfe Ranch pictographs

So I look for the art that defines the character of the local populace. Whether it is ancient Indian writing, tourist traps (aka - 'rest-stops') or the city sponsored art walks I try to capture it. Here is some of what I found in and around Moab....



Indian writing on Hwy 279 to Potash

 



Residential Gate decor

Everyone loves a totem pole

Metal Bull sculpture

Bull nuts and bolts

Artist rendition of Elvis' hit

Pizza delivery? out front of the shop



 We spent one day Dead Horse State Park - located within the Canyonlands Recreation Area

 

 and while we took the usual bazillion still photos on two cameras this short 38 seconds will give you an idea of the view from most all of the viewpoints in the park. The park is beautiful and there is camping and hiking trails to enjoy.

Hope you enjoy our visit...the slide show on both Arches & Canyonlands provides more photos to fill out the spaces/gaps here.

~Ciao








Plans go just a smidge awry....

 

 

Emigrant Springs State Park in the Blue Mountains of Eastern OR...pine trees surrounding camp facilities for horses, tent campers, rv's and those who prefer to 'rough it' in a cabin....gorgeous park!

We still shake our heads thinking about being the first wagons to weave their way through the pine forests that are still as thick, mountains still treacherous and steep and not a Mickey D's or Starbucks anywhere along the way. OUCH...just thinking about the trek makes my feet hurt.

 

 

where is our screwdriver?

This really should have been our first clue that all was not kosher here. Having seen those brown Oregon highway signs that denote something of interest LAST year just outside of Pendleton we were really excited about visiting the Oregon Trail Interpretive Center near Meacham, OR. We spent a cold (burr - mid 20's) night at Emigrant Springs State Park roughly 10 miles from there with the idea of getting a good start on our day.

At the exit we saw this sign....so onward we drive......

 

 

only to be met with:


and when it is open, it's T - SU...today is a Monday. (Head slap.)

 

hmmmm...my driver was less then happy. Regrouping began and off we went to explore the local area - namely,

City of Meacham

and  Hilgard Junction State Park and La Grande in search of evidence that Oregon Trail history isn't just gathered in one stagnate area of the state.

Entrance to Hilgard Junction State Park

Grand Ronde River near Hilgard Junction ... so pretty

Upon our return home we discovered that the real Oregon Trail Interpretive Center outside of Baker City is where we really ought to have gone today...so as we head out of Oregon tomorrow we will pull in there for a walk-about history break.

Hope you will join us....

~CIAO

And we are OUT and About again....

It's our third winter departure...one would think that the actual process of getting ready to leave would become easier, quicker, certainly more familiar. It hasn't. Jeez, I am exhausted by the time we get into our truck, it as if we were going to be eliminated if we didn't cross the finish line without record time.

The drive up the Columbia River Gorge was stunning today....Oregon is experiencing an exceptional October blast of sunshine.

.
Our final destination, several weeks out for sure, will be Brownsville, TX. However, in the meantime I'll chart our journey as in previous winters with photos, dialogue and the occasional "history lesson of the day"...may even throw in a pop-quiz to see if you all are paying attention!

So today we pulled into .Emigrant Springs State Park, just 25 miles SE of Pendleton, OR, for two nights. We saw this last fall when we left Pendleton far too late to pull into and look around. We are going to "use Emigrant Springs as a base camp to explore nearby attractions such as the Blue Mountain Crossing Oregon Trail interpretive park or the Pendleton Woolen Mills".... not the mills, but certainly the interpretive park tomorrow before we continue east into Idaho.

The park boasts both cabins, yurts, tent camping and rv spots. Our full hook-up is $16/night, but the prices can be slightly higher during the summer season.

 

 

Nice parking slot with a trees! Smells like the pine forests I love...all snug and surrounded by pine trees. Heaven!

 

 



 Next: Oregon Trail Interpretive Center.

~CIAO!