Didn't Get the Laundry Done

I drove into Grants today to run errands - post office, laundromat, bank, groceries, phone calls - and thought I'd have time to do some exploring down New Mexico Route 53 that goes to the Ice Caves and Bandera Volcano, and El Morro ("The Headland"). So I bought gas, picked up my mail, went to the bank, bought the groceries, made the phone calls (spent a lot of money!!!), and stopped at McDonald's around 1:00 p.m. for a burger and restroom visit. By the time I finished my lunch it occurred to me that I only had so much daylight to explore, and the laundromat stayed open into the evening.

I decided that the laundry could wait, and headed down the highway, looking for adventure...About 25 miles later I pulled into a dirt road, following the signs to "Ice Caves". The caves and the volcano are privately owned and one takes a 'self-guided' tour to the sites, after paying the $10 entry fee.

The day was quite warm, and the nearby sign on the highway said the Continental Divide was at 7882 feet elevation. I must admit I struggled to make it to the volcano, uphill for two-thirds of the way, about a half mile total, one way. I did pace myself and rested at almost every place there was a bench - unfortunately, few of them were in the shade.

I stopped occasionally to take photos as well, some of which I've posted here. I love how the landscape was formed by all the lava spewing out of the earth. It is quite rugged, and beautiful. Bandera Volcano is one of about 29 volcanoes in the area. It was a little hazy to see many of them for photographing, so I didn't take any photos of the horizon; you can see the 'dots' of the other volcanoes from the trail. (I've posted an album of photos from this trip on my facebook page.) I was told it would take about an hour to see both sites; however, I think it took me an hour or more to complete the round trip to the volcano.

After a rest in the shade at the Trading Post, I walked in the other direction to the Ice Caves. Actually, there is one main ice cave that stays at a constant 31 degrees. As one walks down the steps to the mouth of the cave, even on a warm day like today, the temperature drops dramatically. The ice at the floor level is approximately 20 feet thick. It is green, from an Arctic algae. The moss on the rocks approaching the cave are rare Alpine mosses; the green and orange colors are lichen.

After climbing back up the multitude of wood steps, I walked back to the Trading Post that was built in the 1930s during railroad activity for logging. I got a nice cool drink and headed for El Morro, and a campground I heard was nice, that I wanted to check out. About another 25 miles later I came to El Morro, a very large sandstone formation that was visited by the Zuni Indians, the Spanish, and later Anglos. There is a pool at the bottom, and 'graffiti' from these visitors has been carved into the wall - petroglyphs, and the names of Spanish explorers, U. S. Cavalry officers, and others. The inscriptions were recorded by Lt. James H. Simpson and artist Richard Kern; Simpson gave the place the name "Inscription Rock". I may have to make another trip to see the inscriptions, but I'd had enough hiking for one day.

The campground at El Morro is small and doesn't have water at the sites, or electricity. I think sites can be reserved, so as an alternative to staying in the New Mexico State Parks, it's probably not as amenable to spontaneous decisions. The price is right, though - $5 a night. And what a pleasant view of El Morro!

I turned around from there and headed the 50 or so miles back to Grants, and then another 25 to Bluewater Lake CG. I got home around 6:00 p.m., exhausted. The laundry will have to wait until I make errands next week. (I hope I have enough underwear to last til then!)

Tonight the laundry sits where I put it this morning - in the passenger side of the truck...

More Leftovers

I wanted to share the photo I took of the Shiprock formation, for which Shiprock, NM is named. It is a striking landmark that can be seen before one arrives in the town, coming from the east. I was advised that if I hadn't seen it before, I should go there. The town isn't much to look at, so I wouldn't take that route toward Gallup again, but seeing the formation was worth it.

I'm now at Bluewater Lake at a very nice camp site. I was helped to a non-reservation, 'first-come/first-serve site with electricity by the park staff. I can stay here for three weeks - that puts me through the Labor Day weekend. While I'm here, I'll be exploring the area around the closest town, Grants, NM. I plan to go into town tomorrow to do some shopping and make some inquiries. I'm pleased that while there is no cellular phone service out here, my air card works great!!!

Yesterday was a resting day - when I hitch up and unhitch twice in the same day I'm pretty exhausted. I found myself taking not one, but two naps! In the morning, though, I picked up the site - debris left by previous campers. It's amazing what people will just leave on the ground, when it's just as easy to put it in a bag and throw it away...In the process, though, I was blessed with a bluebird feather - I found it in the fire ring. Good thing I looked in there! There is a pair of Western Bluebirds that frequent the trees around me. What a joy!

Another joy has been making acquaintance of a couple from Florida, who was camping next door to me in Gallup. We visited several times, and the night before I left Gallup they'd invited me for dinner with them. They 'followed' me to Bluewater Lake and so we've been visiting here too. I had dinner with them again last night. Nice folks. They are continuing their journey today, heading for Roswell, NM. It's fun to meet folks, however briefly - it makes for a nice highlight to the day.

About that coat. Here it is...It's made from a "Three Corn Maidens" blanket.

Stay tuned...

Missed the Events

When I made reservations to come here to Red Rock Park for the Gallup Intertribal Ceremonial, I thought I was going to get to partake of some very special powwow activities. As it turns out, I managed to miss just about everything, for one reason or another. Yet, I don't feel too upset about it.




The powwows I've attended in the past haven't had the 'entertainment' flavor that this one has. It is a BIG deal here. As a stranger and a visitor, I had no idea what to expect - the information I was looking for appeared to me today, after the fact, through printed media placed in stores in the downtown area. When I arrived, I bypassed downtown by going on the interstate, and then the frontage road to the park. There weren't stacks of printed programs, etc. around the compound where the event was taking place.




Yesterday I walked over to the exhibition hall to see all the art work, pottery, rugs, jewelry, etc. and the Outdoor Indian Market. I was there all day looking at some very beautiful creations. One that especially moved me was a ceremonial warrior's cap made of fur, with feathers attached, and a sketch of the item with it, explaining the significance of the elements of the design. Very lovely. Photos were forbidden; otherwise I would post it.


There was a big thunderstorm that came through midday, that sort of stopped everything for a while. I was getting very hungry, so as soon as I could get to the food tent, I went. I had a 'Navajo Burger' - two thin hamburger patties, with lettuce, tomato, and onion folded into a very large frybread - $8.00. The drink was another buck. Sales were good though, and many folks had the same idea I did, eating under the cover of a small shelter...


I spent quite a bit of time talking to a woman who was selling coats made from Pendleton blankets - her sister made them. She and I had quite a chat, telling stories from our lives, just like we'd known each other for a long time. She'd suffered much. One of the coats really did draw my attention, and before we were through, I'd bought it! I guess it's better to spend the dough on something practical than to make the annual contribution to the Indian casino!!! It's a beautiful coat, and I will post a photo later.

After about six hours at the exhibition hall/market I walked back home. By then I was pretty exhausted, and even though I rested for about an hour before I might walk back for the evening events, I felt my body wouldn't take me over there and back again. So, the 'free' event of dancers and the main powwow was missed. It was still a beautiful day...

So today, I woke up to a very windy and blowing sand day - the first one like it since I left Deming three months ago. After visiting with my next door neighbors a while I decided to head into town to get some groceries. The last visit to the store was two weeks ago. I don't know what it is, but nothing I have to eat is what I want to eat. I don't want to cook anything. Even as I went through the store today selecting items, my stomach wasn't liking anything I selected.


When I first got to town I drove around a little, and found a place to park in front of this gallery. I went inside to ask a few questions, since I didn't know the town, and I was looking for a place to get a decent lunch (not fast food). Turns out the gallery is a small artist co-op where different artists display their work, like my daughter does in her town. We had quite a visit, and I took some photos of art created from 'found' things, recycled things. I've put a couple photos here.

Then I went to lunch just one block away and had a great sandwich and some raspberry tea, my favorite! I had noticed some old buildings in the area, and some murals painted on the exterior facades of some of them. I'm quite sure the preservationists had something to do with that!!! All of these within one block. I've put photos of some of them here, too.

One place I'd like to find is a good beading supply place; however, there are lines of Indian trade stores, jewelry stores, etc., so it's hard to discern which would be the best one to visit. I might get a chance to check it out tomorrow - although I don't know if they are open on Sundays.

On the way back from town I spotted the low-priced gas my neighbor had told me about, so I stopped there to fill up. Then I headed for the Walgreen's pharmacy to get some ibuprofen - have been out for a while, substituting aspirin, and it's not cutting it...I got there just in time to be told that the store had had a power surge and the computers were all down - their customer support was coming from Albuquerque and wouldn't be there for another couple of hours - could I come back? Well I stood there long enough, that the long line of customers who had waited for an hour to pay for their goods, diminished enough that the manager let me in. So I was in and out in about five minutes. The down side was that I had to use the rest of my available cash to pay for the bottle of pain reliever because they couldn't take a credit/debit card...

Some days are just like that...

Leftovers

I wanted to share a couple of things from several weeks ago that I hadn't been able to mention because I didn't have access to do it in a timely manner.

First is this wonderful double rainbow that showed up the last night I was at Santa Rosa State Park. It was so exciting to view this natural wonder. This is my first attempt to make a panorama using software I've never used before!!! And photos just don't capture the real thing very well!

This green vehicle is a "URAL" ('YPAN' in Russian letters), a Russian-made side car cycle (it doesn't come apart - made to be only a side car vehicle) that was parked in the Chama Visitor Center parking lot one day when I was there to go online. John, the owner, and his wife Susan were on their way to their summer place in Pagosa Springs, CO. He insisted that I have my photo taken on it!

Also, I had the pleasure of seeing an old friend from when I lived in Denver. It had been six years since we last saw each other, but I had written her that I'd be close to Colorado this summer, and maybe we could get together. She had moved to Alamosa, CO, so she came for a visit to Santa Rosa over the July 4 weekend.

And she also came for an overnight during the Roadrunner campout at Heron Lake. It's an interesting feeling having a 'groupie' friend!!!

Chewing Gum, Duct Tape, Super Glue, and Paper Clips

(Note: I wrote this the day before I left for Navajo Lake Cottonwood CG on the San Juan River , where there was NO cellular phone service or air card access, so I'm just now posting...The photo here is sundown on the San Juan River at Cottonwood CG. Today, 8/13/09, I'm posting from Red Rock Park outside Gallup, NM where I'll be for the Intertribal Council until Monday. And YES, I have a phone and Internet service here!!!)

Even with all the fun things I've been doing, and places I've been going, there are also those mundane items that require attention from time to time. And sometimes, they come as surprises.

As a recent example, I was calmly eating a cracker (or something) when the tooth I'd been 'babying' because it didn't feel right sometimes, finally decided to split. It didn't come out at the time, but I could tell that it was fractured. And here I was, at night, in a strange, very rural place, not knowing where I could get help. As I don't have TV I have been trying to find local radio stations where I stay so I can find out something about what's happening in the world. The Chama, NM station is located about 20 miles from the Blanco campground at Heron Lake, and they had been advertising a local clinic where one could get all kinds of care - medical, dental, mental, and emergency, etc., and they would see walk-ins.

The next morning, as the camp host walked by, I inquired about where I could get some help. He offered that the clinic I'd been hearing about was just a few miles down the road. So shortly after 8:00 a.m. I drove to just outside Tierra Amarilla to La Clinica del Pueblo de Rio Arriba (Whew! - say that three times fast!) I signed in and was directed to the dental clinic area. After a fairly short wait, I was seen and the dentist advised that yes, the tooth was fractured, and the broken part came out easily. Luckily, there was no nerve involvement, so he could just put a patch on it, and eventually I would need a crown. Two numbing shots to the mouth and some compound set over the surface, I was ready to go. I commented to the dentist that the repair was a little like super gluing a cover onto the tooth - he agreed.

Well, since I'd just become eligible for Medicare, and they offer a free exam upon first eligibility, I inquired about getting an appointment for that. They said they do do those exams and I was given a 1:00 p.m. appointment for the next day. I was so pleased with myself!!!

Until that night. I ate my dinner without any problem chewing with my repaired tooth, and I brushed my teeth with no problem. It was the dental floss snagging the repair that jerked it half off, leaving a bit of a 'hole' I could feel with my tongue. I was very upset and began to cry like a child!!! What a disappointment.

So the next morning I arrived bright and early to let the dental staff know I was ba-a-a-ck! So that I wouldn't have to wait several hours, they suggested that I come back after my Medicare exam, and they gave me an appointment for 2:00 p.m. At that point I went into Chama to go online for a while.

After lunch I returned for my exam - the BP is a little concerning, but may settle down after I'm not upset, or at such a high elevation (7,800 ft.), and I need to see a dermatologist, but mostly I'm fine in the medical department. So on to the dentist - a different one this time. Once again he had to give me numbing shots, and this time they really hurt, to the point that I began to weep in the office. Both the dentist and his assistant asked me if I was okay - I said it hurt, dammit!!! But this time the dentist built a new cusp for the one that broke off, and I'm sure I will need a crown in the near future. BUT, I can floss without worrying that it will come of!

So next, the chewing gum piece - well, it wasn't chewing gum, it was pine pitch. I sat on it, on a log by the lake, and didn't notice. I was very annoyed when I stuck to the log when I tried to get up!!! A couple of days ago I bought a very expensive spray can of something that will remove almost everything sticky, oily, greasy, etc. I sprayed it onto my shorts and put them in the wash. It seems sometimes that something always goes 'wrong' - this time, both loads of laundry had hidden Kleenexes tht disintegrated in the wash. And the load with the sprayed shorts came out smelling like solvent. I had run out of money for drying, so I hauled the wet laundry home and hung it all over the trailer! BUT, the pitch came out, and the air-drying got rid of the smell. AND the Kleenex pieces were left at the laundromat!

I've been in this trailer full-time for almost five years, and for about four and a half of those years the latch on the door to the compartment for the electric cord has been broken. The original 'fix' was tape - clear duct tape. It held the door fine, but over time, it became soiled, and new strips of tape replaced the old ones, over the dirt. A former RVing friend of mine in Tucson gave me an idea for how I could make a different fix, but I didn't do anything about it until a few days ago. I found a plastic tent peg with a broken 'hook', so a rope couldn't be attached to it, one of those bungee cords that's a loop with a big ball attached, a bent aluminum tent peg, and a cork from a wine bottle, and created my own version of my friend's idea. Then I used that expensive spray that removes all that sticky stuff, and got rid of the residue from the clear duct tape. It took off some of the paint as well, so I'll deal with that 'mundane' item later...

Also for the last almost five years I've had that aluminum insulation you can buy in rolls, cut to fit and installed in most of my windows. Well, I decided it was time to be able to see out of the windows for a while and to actually clean them. So now I can see out, and the light can get in - also the heat or the cold - oh, well. I have Venetian blinds at the windows, and for some reason they've decided it is time to let go of their bottom rails. Well, I fixed THEM!!! I used paper clips to wrap around the main cord just above the bead that's supposed to go through the rail at the bottom. I cut the turns of the paper clips off, and poked the remaining wire through the hole in the rail and twisted it. So THERE! It ain't pretty, but it works, and unless you look closely, you won't notice when you come to visit!!