Southwest Trip, photos! Last entry

[Yellow]

*loving the photos*
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[phroggie]

OMG OMG OMG!! I can't believe you were in Rio Rancho and I didn't even know!! I know we haven't met yet but but, like I live here!!! :( Will you be coming back through Albuquerque or Rio Rancho?
Btw those are awesome photos and I have a father that takes great pictures and our don't look that good!! Tell hubby nice job.
:))

[blondiebear]

Philip just added the last set of photographs to the second set. The ones labeled Butler Canyon, do click on and enlarge them. Look into the natural caves that are kind of like not deep but look like they are chipped out between the horizontal layers of rock. Those are the cliff dwellings of the ancestral Indians.

The unlabeled photo includes my better half. When we stopped at the pass to take photos, a couple of gents stopped in their cars so we traded favors of taking pictures of each other with the camera belonging to the person in the photo. Does that make any sense?

Yesterday was driving and Butler Canyon. One particular bit of road called the Moki dugway basically works its way down a very high maybe 1000 feet, cliff. I don't worry about my husband's driving, it is the other people's that concern me. The Moki dugway overlooks Monument Valley.

The hike to Butler Canyon overlook wasn't far but I found it exhausting. I'm trying to learn how to properly use the aluminum walking stick I've had since 2003. It did help. Bare rock in that area is called slickrock for a reason. So having the rubber foot of the walking stick to provide a bit more support and traction was helpful since my right ankle is weak. I asked my husband if he would help me out and he said he would. He got out and screwed together the two halves of the walking stick. Bwat.

Today was just one awesome geology lesson! Sedimentary rocks, folding, faulting, lava flows and cinder cone volcanoes. Hogbacks and mesas. Layers of red and white and pink rock. It was a wonderfully mild day. We went over one last very high pass then worked our way down more canyons and valleys in the red and white rock.

I wish I had words to describe the desert. But it isn't one thing. All of the plants have softer colors than are found in plants in humid places. The scattered vegetation makes the geology of the area very easy to see. The plants are different in different places. Cactus is not all over a desert, it is amazingly picky about where it grows. When there is a stream or river it is easy to trace its route by the richer taller more green vegetation. Whenever we cross a bridge over a river I look to see if there is water in it. Most of the time there isn't but I know from looking at the plants that there is water flowing through the sand, below the surface.

I bought a couple of books. One is new to me, the other I read at the university library many years ago and am glad to have my own copy.

This is our last night. It may take between six and eight hours to get home tomorrow. The first couple of hours will be nice, after we go through the glittering gambling city of Las Vegas, the road gets boring.

I have a couple of errands to run on the way home, a pair of peridot earrings and a hemming tool for my sewing machine. My husband has agreed to get off the toll road an exit early so I can get the hemming tool and then learn how to use it before I have an appointment with a new client on Monday.

[blondiebear]

Home. Have the hemming attachment for my sewing machine. Store next to it had a great price on peridot earrings.

We had one last uh adventure. A flat tire on a stretch of freeway where the cops won't pull you over unless you're going at least 90mph. Fortunately there was a good wide shoulder. And this wasn't in the super dense traffic of the city. We've changed tires before in weird places so this wasn't bad and I've figured out how to help without getting in my husband's way. Compared to 13000 feet on Pikes Peak, this was easy.

The SUV needs some work, two recalls, fuel? pump and a tired repaired. My mom in law has already agreed to let us use her pickup truck for the week or two the SUV will be in the shop. It needs to go to three different places.

The cat has already told us how very unhappy he was that we were gone. He got me to feed him and my husband to cuddle him.

I checked the fabrics I got on the trip, the golden tan petroglyph pattern, the tan backing and the brown binding, against the blue bandanna and green bandana that I already had and they are fine together! Yay. Now I can start to put it together. It won't be small squares or anything, but big strips of fabric, blue in the center, green on either side of that and petroglyphs at the sides. The biggest difficulty I have is basting together the top, batting and backing before I start to tie the layers together.

I'm glad to be home. But if we can afford it we are going back to the mountains of southwest Colorado the first week of September when hopefully the snow has melted but the summer tourists are back at school. Ooh, maybe the aspens will be turning?

For all of you who have read this far, thank you. Philip just added the new photos to the second set, so now you can see what both of us look like. Middle class, middle age. Cold weather, warm hearts.

[Alchemyst]

it was so kl reading about your trip. thanx for sharing... it was super interesting

xx

[vrinda_sevini]

hey, i just checked the pics
they are great
i love the cactus pics
i adore cactus
ty for sharing!