29 September – Colorado Springs to Durango

On the way out of Colorado Springs we passed the Olympic Training Centre “Where Team USA Trains”. They do tours, but we were wanting to get on the road as it’s a long drive to Durango. We saw big snow barriers along the highway, a reminder of just how cold it gets here.

We headed south on one of the big interstate highways before turning east towards the Rockies.

We followed the Silver Thread Scenic Byway and Historic Trail to Durango. As we climbed the mountains the road got steep and twisty, through tunnels and along canyons. We saw a helicopter bringing logs in dangling from a long cable and dropping them neatly onto a pile. Pretty amazing how quick and accurate the pilot was.

The mountains were lovely, with the bright yellow of the aspens contrasting with the green conifer trees.

Into Durango and an RV Park right next to the Durango – Silverton rail line. It’s our third stay here, it’s been a stopping point on a couple of earlier trips too. The 5 o'clock train was passing as we were getting settled.

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=37.32007,-107.85049&ll=37.32007,-107.85049&ie=UTF8&z=12&om=1

28 September – Colorado Springs

After having an RV maintenance man do some plumbing work, we headed out to Manitou Springs and the Pikes Peak Cog Railway.

In the late 1880's, one of the tourists who visited the Pikes Peak Region was Zalmon Simmons. Mr. Simmons rode to the summit of Pike's Peak on a mule as in those days, the arduous, two day trip on a mule was the only way to reach the top. Mr. Simmons was awed by the scenery and determined that the views should be experienced in a more civilized and comfortable manner so in 1889, he founded the Manitou and Pikes Peak Railway Company.

The round trip takes over 3 hours – over an hour in each direction with 30 mins at the top to look around and take pics. The reason for the short stay at the summit is that most people get altitude sickness after half an hour. Steve was fine, but Ros succumbed to dizzy spells and light headedness and had to sit down in the visitor centre. The summit of Pikes Peak is 14115 feet (a long way up!)

The trip is spectacular, with spruce trees, ponderosa pines and aspen groves lining the track. The aspen are in full autumn colours at the moment and are bright yellow against the deep green of the conifers. Parts of the track are a 25% grade, so it’s a very steep climb!

Once we were above the tree line the views were incredible!  To the east are the Great Plains out beyond the border of Colorado and Kansas. To the south, the Sangre de Cristo (Blood of Christ) Range stretches south to New Mexico.

After we returned to Colorado Springs, we fired up the scooter again and rode to the Garden of the Gods.

The park is filled with ancient sedimentary beds of deep-red, pink and white sandstones, conglomerates and limestones that were laid down horizontally, but have now been tilted vertically and faulted into "fins" by the uplift of the Rocky Mountains. 

We took a trail that wound its way around and amongst the most stunning of the rocks, and took lots of photos. Sadly the sky was overcast so we didn’t get the true colours showing in the pics, the way we would have if the sun was on the rocks.

27 September - Trinidad to Colorado Springs

An uneventful trip to Colorado Springs. The plains are big and flat with frequent wind farms and solar arrays. 

We checked in to the Garden of the Gods RV Park and after dinner we went for a walk along a great paved trail that followed the river upstream. As it got dark, we saw deer on the trail – they seemed quite unafraid of people and only scooted off when we got really close.

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=38.85864,-104.88522&ll=38.85864,-104.88522&ie=UTF8&z=12&om=1

26 September – Ojo Caliente to Trinidad

We were on the road early to head to Colorado. As we drove north from Ojo Caliente, we saw lots of locals picking something from the roadside conifer forests. Maybe some kind of pine nuts. We travelled through the New Mexico adobe towns and as we headed into the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, the scenery changed suddenly to forests. 

A mix of conifers and deciduous trees that are turning an iridescent yellow with the fall colours. The houses also changed from the red and pink adobe flat roof houses to log cabins with steep pitched roof lines.

As we continued to climb into the mountains, we drove through the Angel Fire ski resort at around 8500 feet, adjacent to New Mexico’s highest peak (13161ft – 4000 meters, or 4km).

The road finally descended to the plains as we followed the historic Santa Fe trail north. We took a detour to see the Capulin Volcano, an ancient cinder cone that pretty much goes straight up 1300 ft from the plain to top out at 8200 ft. 

It was a steep drive up around the volcano in a spiral to the car park at the rim. We hiked the rim trail and were rewarded with 360 degree views. On a clear day you can see 5 states – New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas, Colorado and Arizona. It was just amazing to see just how far you can see across the plains.

Leaving Capulin we headed north again and are camped up at Trinidad, just over the Colorado border.

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=37.13007,-104.51805&ll=37.13007,-104.51805&ie=UTF8&z=12&om=1

25 September – Ojo Caliente

We opted for a rest day today. We spent the day at the mineral springs, alternating between soaking in one of the many pools, and reading on lounges in the shade. The pools are different temperatures and with different concentrations of minerals. There is the arsenic pool, the iron pool, the soda pool and many others. They all feel different on your skin. Some leave your skin feeling very soft, others leave a residue. We finished the day with a drink on the verandah and a meal in the restaurant. Now for an early night.

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=36.30676,-106.04982&ll=36.30676,-106.04982&ie=UTF8&z=12&om=1

24 September – Ojo Caliente to Los Alamos to Ojo Caliente

We had a late start to Los Alamos to visit the Bandelier National Monument. Los Alamos was the site of the top secret Manhattan Project – the design and build of the first atom bomb. 

The Bandelier National Monument is the site of ancient dwellings, and the ancestral Pueblo people have migrated in and out of the area for 10,000 years, settling into more permanent dwellings over time. 

 We followed a self-guided walk past the village at the bottom of the valley, and up the cliffs to the cliff dwellings. The whole area is volcanic with extremely soft rock (ironically called TUFF) that is easy to hollow out. The cliffs look at bit like Swiss cheese, with a mix of natural and man-made hollows. The people lived in a mix of huts on the valley floor, buildings built against the cliffs for support, and hollowed out caves. It isn’t certain how they decided who did what.

On the way back to the visitors centre we encountered a rattlesnake. It was curled under a bush on the side of the track and if it hadn’t rattled, we would have missed it.

Arriving back at Ojo Caliente, we indulged in the hot mineral springs, a long massage each and finally a private mineral pool with a fireplace to watch the moon rise and the stars come out. Heavenly!

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=36.30676,-106.04982&ll=36.30676,-106.04982&ie=UTF8&z=12&om=1

23 September – Las Vegas to Ojo Caliente

We spent a while in the morning looking around the plaza of Las Vegas. The square was very pretty and surrounded by old buildings. Las Vegas is notable for the number of movies and TV series that have been shot in the area, including Red Dawn, No Country for Old Men, Paul, Due Date and Easy Rider. In the Plaza Hotel the hallways have framed photos of the stars that have stayed there while filming, including Hilary Swank, Miranda Otto, Lou Diamond Phillips, Woody Harrelson and Javier Bardem.

One of the buildings had a front door that was curiously labelled “Durant, Wyoming” and a Sheriffs star. We were told that is a set for a series currently filming in town called Longmire.

We left Las Vegas and headed north to Fort Union. The first of 3 forts on the site was constructed in 1851 at the junction of 3 major branches of the Santa Fe Trail, to protect the travellers and locals from Indian threats. The site was only in use for a decade before it fell into disrepair and was abandoned. From the site of the third fort, looking across the valley, we could see the remains of the adobe walls. Adobe, or mud brick, is relatively easy to build but must be constantly maintained so it doesn’t deteriorate in the weather. Hence, even though the remains of all 3 forts are not that old, they have slowly fallen apart due to weather action. The best preserved building is the prison because it was made from stone not adobe. Presumably to make it impossible to dig out of.

In 1861 a star shaped ditch and mound fort was hastily dug to protect the Santa Fe Trail from the Confederate Invasion, and was abandoned in 1862 when the Confederates were turned back.

In 1863, the final fort was constructed. More a small city than a fort, the ruins stretch over a considerable area, and at its height, the forts grounds covered 104square miles.

Fort Union was the supply fort for 46 other forts and garrisons in the neighbouring states, and the annual budget was $2.6M at a time when the US Government paid $7M for Alaska. It was really interesting to walk around the ruins and imagine what it would have been like when the buildings were whole and the fort was full of people and animals.

Leaving the Fort we headed for Ojo Caliente to the historic mineral springs resort. They have an RV Park and we checked in and had dinner at their wine bar.

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=36.30676,-106.04982&ll=36.30676,-106.04982&ie=UTF8&z=12&om=1

22 September – Santa Fe to Las Vegas (NM)

We headed off from the RV Park for the drive into Santa Fe. As we neared the old town plaza the roads got very narrow, and we luckily found a car park with spaces for RVs. Sadly they were double the price of the standard car parks, but given we take up at least 2 spots, probably fair enough! We parked up and with map in hand, started walking.

First stop was the ‘oldest house in the US’. Constructed in 1646, on the foundations of an early pueblo from around 1200AD, it was continuously occupied until the early 1920s, by representatives of all the cultures of the area. It is a small adobe dwelling, with thick walls, low doorways and a small fireplace in each room.

Next door to it is San Miguel Chapel, the oldest church in the US. Constructed in the early 1600’s it is on the site of an earlier church, believed to have been built in 1598 over the site of an ancient kiva (spirit house). Over the next 400 years, the Chapel was damaged and rebuilt a number of times, and was properly restored in 1955. The Chapel was really interesting, with lots of historical features and art, including paintings on buffalo hide and deer skin, dating from the late 1600s. While we were there, they were setting up audio visual equipment for a concert, so the big screen covered the alter and the constant sound and lighting checks were distracting!

Next stop was the Loretto Chapel. The Loretto nuns undertook a dangerous journey into New Mexico to start a girl’s school. The Chapel was constructed as part of the school and contains an unusual spiral staircase. Legend has it that even engineers can’t work out how it was constructed as a double spiral without an internal post or external attachments. It is also rumoured to have been built out of a never seen before timber, now known as Loretto Spruce. Apparently the nuns prayed for a staircase and a carpenter arrived, built it, and mysteriously left without asking to be paid for labour or materials. The staircase has been the subject of many articles, TV specials, and movies including "Unsolved Mysteries" and the television movie titled "The Staircase." After the school was decommissioned, the Catholic Church sold the Chapel to a local family, who maintain it as a tourist attraction and a wedding and functions venue.

We then went to the Cathedral Basilica of St Francis of Assisi. This building dominates the town plaza, and apparently no buildings in Santa Fe are permitted to be built taller. One of the Government Buildings is 3 stories above and 2 stories below ground so as to not violate this rule. The Bishop ran out of funds and was unable to top the towers with spires another 80 feet high, but if he had built them, the city would look very different. It is a beautiful cathedral, and off to one side of the alter is the original church dating from 1610.

We then had a wander around the plaza and surrounding streets. The Palace of the Governor is the oldest government building in the US, and most of the many buildings had obviously been there for most of the 400 years of the city. Behind the street frontages, are little plazas with gardens and courtyard dining for the many restaurants and bars. 

We caught a tram tour of the city, which was well worth it. After telling us about the history of the plaza, we were taken to the art district and surrounding suburbs. The houses are all adobe or early colonial style often with brightly painted doors and window frames. The tram took us to the junction of the Santa Fe Trail and the El Camino Real trail from Mexico. 

Santa Fe was a big trading depot as it was at this junction of the Mexican Trail and the American Trail, right up until the railway bypassed it and made Albuquerque the main trading town. The City then reinvented itself as a recovery spa for tuberculosis victims, an artists retreat and finally a tourist attraction.

We headed out of Santa Fe to the nearby town of Las Vegas (New Mexico), not Las Vegas (Nevada). We are camped up about 5 miles from town and that will be tomorrows adventure!

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=35.51189,-105.25352&ll=35.51189,-105.25352&ie=UTF8&z=12&om=1

21 September – Albuquerque to Santa Fe

After waking up (still a little tired from waking up at Aussie morning time during the night LOL), we partook in the RV park’s complimentary, continental brekkie and Steve finally got to try an American Bagel and coffee. On the way back to the RV we passed some people who really take their tow vehicle seriously.

After heading to Camping World to book the RV in for a check over when we are back in Albuquerque, we headed for Santa Fe along the Turquoise Trail. Starting in Tijeras the trail is a scenic byway that loops through the mountains and past little towns, some of which were ghost towns for many years after the mining stopped, and have been recently revived as artists’ communities. 

We stopped for a lunch break in the quirky town of Madrid (featured in the movie ‘Wild Hogs’). 

The town is a main street of colourful painted houses, most of which are now art galleries and jewellery shops. Parking the RV was problematic, but we were allowed to park alongside a jewellery shop and we bought some gifts and trinkets for Ros, Alysha and Kurumi. 

We walked up the street looking at the different shops etc, mostly art, jewellery & clothes.  The buildings were interesting, one in particular was fairly dilapidated but looked like someone was still living in it! 

We stopped at an old style soda shop and shared a banana milk shake. Glad we shared as we were both full from it. Next door was an amazing art gallery where the artist makes handcrafted glass chandeliers. Incredible colours and shapes.

On we went making our way to Santa Fe for the night. Something we noticed as we got closer to Santa Fe were the number of houses. Very spread out, so obviously on large allotments, most of them were reminiscent of Tatooine from Star Wars and we could definitely see where George Lucas got his inspiration from!  

We arrived in Santa Fe around 4pm so went directly to an RV park. Exploring Santa Fe will wait til the morning.

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=35.54731,-105.86462&ll=35.54731,-105.86462&ie=UTF8&z=12&om=1

20 September – Albuquerque

After a leisurely breakfast, we packed up and headed into Old Town Albuquerque. The Old Town was founded in 1706 on the banks of the Rio Grande, but most of it was devastated in a flood in 1792. Only 1 building survived unscathed - one of the casinos. Old Town is a lovely little precinct of adobe buildings, little plazas and a town square fronting an impressive church. Lots of shops, and we did some olive oil and infused vinegar tasting. We loved some of the flavours and bought some vinegars and oils to bring home. We were enticed into a history tour in a pedal powered rickshaw – it was fun. The guide did spend a bit of time spruiking some of the shops, so we suspect he was getting kickbacks for sending people in.

The church garden has an old cottonwood tree (now dead) with a sculpture of Our Lady of Guadeloupe carved into the trunk. The tree was hit by lightning in 1956 and split, so the artist used the split wood to carve his sculpture.  

We visited the Rattlesnake Museum, an eclectic collection of live snakes, fossils and even a Steve Irwin exhibit (!) featuring a shirt worn by Terri Irwin and some signed photos of Steve (signed by Terri). The live snakes were not too creepy, but the live spiders really put Ros off. Especially the tarantulas.

After lunch we headed to the Sandia Mountains for a ride to the summit of the Aerial Tram (Hobart so needs one of these!). The tramway takes in the spectacular views as it climbs steeply up the range, before plunging over the crest of a ridge and over an extensive valley before climbing again to reach the summit at 10378 feet. From the summit we had the perfect day for a view with the vista capturing 11,000 square miles. Just stunning!

We spent some time walking the boardwalks along the top of the range and taking pictures, before the ride down. On the way down the attendant pointed out the crash site of TWA 260. The aircraft left Albuquerque for Santa Fe in 1955, but instead of skirting round the mountains, flew into the side of the range in heavy snow. Apparently when the sun is at the right angle, you can see metal plane parts glinting. Bit morbid!

After the aerial tram ride, we headed back to the RV park. We are looking at looping back to Albuquerque in early October for the balloon festival (hot air balloons). So tomorrow we are heading out.

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=35.05879,-106.79692&ll=35.05879,-106.79692&ie=UTF8&z=12&om=1