Go West Young ... (16) On to Los Alamos, Valles Caldera, "dirt road", Aztec Ruins and Farmington.

      Finally leaving Santa Fe, as it seem we have been here a very long time, touring the four points of the compass, North, East, South and West, and about town itself. The time has come to move on. Shortly after leaving Santa Fe we came upon a rather interesting rock formation which we will call the resting camel, just sitting there by the road, but it was certainly worth the stop for a photo.


Has anyone seen Lawrence of Arabia nearby
or perhaps members of the French Foreign Legion?


   The drive was interesting, some massive peaks in the distance around us, and lots of the Santa Fe National Forest. After some miles one comes up on the town Los Alamos, famous (or infamous) for the work that took place there during WWII, the development of the nuclear bombs that were dropped on the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Just follow the links.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Los_Alamos_National_Laboratory
http://lanl.gov/index.php
     We didn't take the time to stop in town, but only drove through, even alongside the high security fence, for what seemed a rather long distance. The town does look inviting though, and perhaps on a future trip. More links to follow.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Los_Alamos,_New_Mexico   http://visit.losalamos.com/
http://www.bing.com/attractions/search?q=Los+Alamos+Historical+Museum&qzattrid=w679700&FORM=ATRCCN
       After Los Alamos we came upon a most interesting feature on the ground. A very large what appeared to be a plain with a hump or two on the otherwise rolling hill. In the far distance we could see very large animals. This area was completely fenced off. We learned this is not just good cattle land, this is an extremely large caldera of an ancient volcano, and is named the Valles Caldera. It is one of only six known super land based volcano's and is 12 miles wide.
       We took a number of pictures, which when spliced together should work to form a panoramic view - some day in the future we will do that.

 That little bump in the middle of the photo is the lava dome.

The photo you find in Wikipedia is better.

 The person in the car visible is far away, though not visible 

on this photo but could be seen from the road.

He or she was taking pictures of the animals,

 which turned out to be a heard of elk.

http://www.vallescaldera.gov/      http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valles_Caldera
http://vallescaldera.com/              http://www.vallescaldera.gov/comevisit/
http://www.volcano.si.edu/world/volcano.cfm?vnum=121002-D
https://www.facebook.com/VallesCaldera

 

      After leaving the area of the Caldera we thought we would take a shortcut, and we found one, but the sign said "In Winter, No trailers, No motorcycles, No RV's, Four wheel drive only ....", heck we are driving a Subaru Forester that is only, at this point, 2 years and 2 months old. We meet the FWD requirement in that we are AWD all the time. Off we go onto the dirt road and up into the hills and mountains. We didn't see any other traffic, though occasionally we would see a cabin or house among the trees. The surface of the road was kind of like driving over an old fashioned washboard, very bumpy. After sometime we caught up with a motor grader that was leveling out the road, but because of the amount of dust created he probably didn't see us behind him, or didn't care, after all he was bigger and occupied the whole road.

The soil changed color to a kind of rusty brown. We had to keep the windows up, it caked on the windshield, it was in the air, being sucked into the air filter, all over the car - "Don't give into the temptation to use the windshield washer".

      After what seemed like an eternity we came off of this road and back onto solid pavement. We should have remembered to take a picture for the Subaru Magazine "Drive" because we looked like a Subaru should look out in "nature". Looking back on the map it looks like the road we took was the one from "Counselors" to the town of "Turley", a distance of some 40 miles. Was it a shortcut, yes, did it take off considerable distance, no but some, did it take off time, no. Was it interesting, absolutely yes and the little car proved its mettle.

      We now arrive at the town of Aztec and the nearby Aztec Ruins, a National Monument. Interestingly enough, when the first so-called "white" explorers came to this part of the country and found the ruins they thought them the work of the Aztecs, which they are not, but that is the reason for the name; the builders were the Anasazi. It is a most interesting place, full of lore and history. Here are several links with lots of information. There are many more links available and the information available is fantastic.
http://www.nps.gov/azru/index.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aztec_Ruins_National_Monument
http://www.americansouthwest.net/new_mexico/aztec_ruins/national_monument.html
http://www.nationalparks.org/explore-parks/aztec-ruins-national-monument
http://www.desertusa.com/azrnm/aztecnm.html

 A view of some of the Aztec Ruins.

 A view of the ruins, the circle in front is a kiva.

 On the grounds of the Aztec Ruins.

Norma is sitting way back there, several walls away.

 The Anasazi were smart people, though perhaps not very tall.

Small opening meant they were easy to defend against possible invaders.

 A view across some of the ruins, and inside an ancient Kiva.

 Here I am inside the great Kiva, the only reconstructed one in the South West.

I am out of focus, not a function of the "stuff" that I may have smoked

to commune with the spirits, but a function of the camera.

Norma in the great Kiva.

 

     We found the tour very educational thanks to a young National Park Ranger who gave a good talk about the history and the custom of the people. This young person only seemed to get a bit upset when I asked what they put in their pipes when the men went down into the Kiva's to have spiritual encounters. It appears that my question wasn't politically correct.

 

      We are now off to Farmington which will be our "home" for a few days. When we arrived at the La Quinta they looked at the car and asked, "where have you been?". We must also remember that this is a rather dry area, with little rainfall, so when I asked for a water hose to wash off the car and the bikes (which were now rust colored) I was politely given one, but with one of those "don't you know any better looks".

 

      A long and interesting day comes to a close. There will be more to follow later.



Birch Creek State Park at Lake Somerville Texas

     Last week was Spring Break for most school children and therefore giving their teachers, including my wife, a much needed break. This of course presened an opportunity to do something out of the ordinary. Since we were being visited by a sister-in-law from Indiana and all her children (7). (One lives with us while he studying at the University of Saint Thomas here in Houston TX. He wants to be a history professor).

 

     Perhaps the better part is to make plans for being away from such a large crowd in such a small house. In other words, make plans to take a number of nephews on a canoeing, camping, hiking and fishing trip for a few of days. Three nephews, ranging in age from 13 to 15, out of a total of ten nephews by marriage, decided they would like to go. It should be noted that out of the ten nephews six are permanent residents here in Houston, not counting the one living with us, the remainder from South Bend, Indiana ... are you confused yet?

 

      The original plan was to canoe Village Creek in East Texas near Beaumont, http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/fishboat/boat/paddlingtrails/inland/village_creek/index.phtml
http://www.eastexcanoes.com/canoe_texas.html
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M1VsU-xf4ck
but because of shuttle logistic issues this plan was dumped in favor of one fixed campsite and a very large lake to paddle in.

      As a result Lake Somerville, only 125 or so miles from my abode, was chosen because there are three Federal Parks (Big Creek Park, Yequa Creek Park and Rocky Creek Park) and two State Parks (Birch Creek Park and Nails Creek Park).
http://swf67.swf-wc.usace.army.mil/somerville/Recreation/Boating/Boatramp.pdf

       Lake Somerville is a fairly large body of water, http://somerville.lakesonline.com/Statistics.asp, meaning that there is enough water for a few days of paddling and enough shoreline for hiking.

       Provisions were purchased and thanks to a good and generous friend a second canoe was borrowed for the excursion. The car / canoes were loaded up, 2 tents, 4 sleeping bags, 2 ground covers, camp stove, fuel canisters for stove and lanterns, 2 lanterns, 4 life jackets, 6 paddles, 1 throw cushion (required under state law), 5 fishing poles (3 regular spinning rods, 1 bait casting rod and 1 fly rod). Considering that the taller of the group is also older than the rest by a factor of more than 3:1 or by 52 years any number of prescription medications were packed as well.

        The boys had very basic instructions; do not take anything that requires charging or batteries. At first there were howls of protest which were quickly calmed when the alternative was offered - you take this or that - and it will be given a float test; if it float and functions after being in the water for 20 minutes you can keep it, otherwise it either sinks or goes into the trash.


Loaded and ready to take off. Adventure awaits.

     

Resting after setting up camp and trying to decide what to do next.

 

 



         I pick up from the journal kept by Paul S..... "We came to the site and set up camp. We are in the big tent in front and Uncle Allan in the blue tent in the back. We had a delicious lunch of hot dog and "extremely" toasted buns. (italics mine - buns are the hot dog buns, not the cushion on which one sits) After that we hiked 4 miles."

 Off through the woods, looking out for flora and fauna.

Here we are only about 1/2 mile from the campsite.

 A dead tree seen along the way. This would make good firewood,

but one cannot pick up fire wood in the park. It must be purchased.

 The young people are already taking their first break,

and we have only covered about 1 1/2 mile at this point.

 Lazy bums, sitting down again, in the same order.

One wonders if they are posing in this manner for the pics.

 A wild flower of some sort, but I do not know what kind.

They are probably trying to impress some imaginary girls

with their great strength, after all they had a lunch
of hot dogs and "extremely" toasted buns.

      Here I have to add my own notes. Two of the boys were not wearing the proper foot wear for hiking, they were wearing "crocks" and the little one, the one in the black shirt, was having trouble keeping them on.

This time we have a collective break, about 2 miles into the hike.

 

       I do remember sitting on that very same log on a previous camping trip with my wife Norma  but it appears that at that time the camera was very crooked or the earth tilted at a high angle.





 

       After returning from the hike the boys decided it was time for paddle in the lake, and a time to take the opportunity to fish, after all, they are "GUYS" and so they will catch fish for dinner, although I don't seem to remember any of them offering to scale, clean and fillet any fish caught.
 

      We continue with Paul S....'s notes "When we came back we went canoeing and fishing".

 :Paul and Daniel carrying the load while Thomas is showing off how tough he is.

 Pushing away from the shore.

Somewhere out here are lots of fish, "we just have to find them".

 

       Well, they didn't find any fish and since the only other meat available was for breakfast and dinner tomorrow, we put together some vegetables (it is amazing what can be done with celery, carrots, onions, potatoes, garlic, salt, pepper and of course a can of beef broth) and the story continues ...

 

 

For some odd reason these guys like to show off their imaginary muscles.

They are not remembering that a watched pot will not boil.

 

      From Paul's journal, "After we came back Uncle Allan and Thomas went off for firewood while Daniel and I stayed back to watch the vegetable soup we will have for dinner since there are no fish to fry.They came back and told us there was no firewood available.

 

       After we had dinner they began to laugh and surprised us by pulling out some large pieces of firewood from the back of the car. The fire was lit but was not very successful because the wood is too wet and would smolder but not really burn.

 

Here they are in front of a very poor fire having fun.

I am not sure I like the suggested "gang gestures" with left hand.

 

        We then walked to the pier, a walk of about 1/2 mile each direction. Lots of people there were catching fish, crabbies, using minnows for bait. Since we didn't have any minnows we watched for a while and then returned to the campsite and turned in at about 9 PM."

 

The boys tent with a light inside. They are supposed to be asleep

but talked, chuckled for a long time.

 

My notes again.  During the dinner it seemed that Thomas (the youngest one) had injured his left leg during the hike, so much so that he had trouble walking later. We discovered an amazing cure, when the boys used my phone to call their respective parental units (mothers) to let them know they were OK, his leg improved 100% instantly. The day was fantastic, with lots of sun and clear sky and comfortable temperatures but the night turned out to be very cold, almost freezing, which made for a very uncomfortable night for an old man.

 

     Paul writes about day 2 "We were woken up at 7:15 AM and at 7:45 potatoes were peeled and onions sliced and diced, then the potatoes were sliced or grated into hash. The breakfast was good and filling, just hashed potatoes with onion mixed in. (Uncle Allan forgot he had a large sausage which was supposed to be part of this breakfast.) There were a lot of dishes to wash and also pots and pans.

Life is so much simpler when one has the proper equipment,

in this case a portable "kitchen counter" with racks and hooks for utensils,

a place to put trash, shelves to hold pots and pans, and a sink.

 



      Paul continues "We went canoeing and a strong head wind prevented  us from moving quickly. It took us 38 minutes to do 1 statute mile (1.61 km) meaning our average speed was just 1.7 MPH (2.737 kmh). We saw some interesting birds enjoying the wind. We also saw a ball in the water. We also tried our hand at fishing but once again Uncle Allan reminded us why it is called fishing and not catching.

 Fauna and a ball in the waters of Lake Somerville.

 The heron took flight as we approached.

 These "guys" sitting there facing into the wind, not moving.

 Paul and Daniel battling wind and waves on the lake.

They are now closer to the shore and

out of the worst of the wind and out of the waves.



 They have had a break and are setting off again.

The Pelican Bayou Canoe is heavy.

 Thomas and I in the Pelican Colorado.

 The Colorado is relatively light and moves fast with little effort.

 Posing for a picture.

If we keep up this course we will hit the photographer.

 

 

      After the morning paddle in wind and waves Thomas tried his hand at Fly Fishing, he didn't catch any.

With some practice he will get the hang of Fly fishing.

 

 

    Uncle Allan insisted we could not leave the canoes, fishing rods, tackle boxes and life jackets by the shoreline, they had to get back to the campsite. Thomas found an easy way to assist, he "paddled", which is why during our Saint Joseph River paddle of 4 years ago he was named the "piddle paddler".

Paul and Daniel look tired while Thomas is "piddle paddling".

 

 

      The  only real accident occurred while preparing lunch, a noddle soup, with chicken and garlic. This is instant soup and while adding very hot water to one of the containers, the water was spilled on Uncle Allan's left hand. (My note: the left thumb was actually scalded, but thanks to a container of cold water sitting close by, the worst damage was avoided. Now, a week later, the thumb has lost a great deal of skin and the new pink skin is showing up and it is itching like craze.) Thomas ate a large piece of garlic and now he is breathing his "garlic breath" on all of us. Daniel and I went hiking and found a fishing pond. Uncle Allan took a nap because he told us about the "RULE BOOK OF UNCLES" which on page 19 says that uncles over a certain age, and he is old, must take a nap every afternoon when the opportunity offers itself.

 

     So we came back for the fishing rods,

We are ready to get them - dinner???

 



and found that this little pond was full of really small minnows, more like fry, but we caught a bunch in styrofoam cups, meaning we will have minnows for bait tonight at the pier.

Thomas with his cup of minnows.

 

 

      Aunt Norma called Uncle Allan and told him that a new pope had been elected, Francis from Argentina. Before dinner we went outside the park to the little store and bought some "Gatorade" drinks and ice cream. After dinner, was a good hearty beef stew, we went paddling again, this time with Uncle Allan trying to teach us how to work as a team. We paddled a couple of miles along the shoreline while trying to go straight.

 

 Teamwork guys, teamwork!!

 Looks like they are getting the hang of it.

A view across a part o the Lake by Birch Creek State Park.

The sun is setting and there is a smudge on the middle of the lens.

 

      Paul writes "After canoeing we hiked to the pier to do some more fishing, but our tiny minnows fell apart when they were put on the hook, so that didn't work. Two lines got caught on the bottom and the lines broke, and one had to be cut. We came away very disappointed, but at least we had a nice sunset with just a slice of the moon visible. We also had a decent campfire this evening, and we enjoyed that before turning in.

 The slice of moon is visible in the extreme upper portion of the photo.

The campfire, helped with some "charcoal starter" is burning briskly.

 

     Day 3, "We woke up and had a good breakfast of more beef stew, but this time with the sausage. After that we packed up camp and loaded the car and canoes. This took almost two hours, then we headed back to Houston.

 

Again trying to convince the world, and themselves I think,

that they have developed muscles.

 

      We also made a short video of this outing, using a most un-sophisticated video camera, a FLIP.

Here is a link to the Youtube site.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-tJ5UI8sgMk



     A great time was had by all. We are a bit sunburned and a bit tired. In all honesty I think I can say that I kind of wore the boys out, but they sure did their best to do the same to me. Village Creek will have to wait for some future date. The boys said "come join us on the next adventure" and one actually paid a rather nice compliment, most likely without realising it. He said "When I grow up I want to be an uncle who takes his nephews canoeing, camping and fishing." Surely it doesn't get any better than that.