End of the year & unexpectedly found myself with a few extra days (my employer decided to close between Christmas & New Years). What to do? Kick around locally or road trip. Yep, I vote ROAD TRIP.
Durango & the many peaks on Colorado’s Western Slope have thus far eluded me – hard to spur motivation for the 7 hour drive. Having the extra days off however, no excuses. Drove 5 hours with M before camping near Pagosa Springs.
Day One destination – Mesa Verde National Park. Day Two – Dog Sledding…yep, dog sledding. Awesome idea, huh?
Added Mesa Verde to my Colorado bucket list from a AAA Traveler flyer viewed almost 3 years. Pueblo Indian ruins located in a Southwest backdrop? No brainer – gotta go!
Started at the Visitor Center educating myself on everything Native American. The Pueblo cliff dwelling people settled in Mesa Verde from 500 – 1200 AD (long ago for our continent). Their kiva dwellings were constructed under surrounding cliffs which protected from the harsh winter elements – but also trapped smoke in the village (largest cause of death).
A kiva is a room used by modern Puebloans for religious rituals, many of them associated with the kachina belief system. Among the modern Hopi and most other Pueblo peoples, kivas are square-walled and underground, and are used for spiritual ceremonies.
M & I hiked down to Spruce Tree House, Mesa Verde’s best-preserved & only cliff dwelling open during the winter. Unbelievable [that] these structures still exist & remain intact for visitors to explore. Hard to imagine these ancient people constructed buildings & planted crops 7,000+ft UP. SPECTACULAR!
Drove Mesa Top Loop Road, taking in other nearby cliff dwellings before enjoying late lunch/early dinner in Cortez.
Kick back, catch some zzz’s before tomorrow’s adventure? Nope 🙂
Ended the day at Four Corners Monument, a marker designating the border of 4 US states – Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico & Utah. Located in the middle of a Navaho reservation, kinda sad to see the poverty of our native people. The hour drive from Cortez however was BEE-UT-IFUL. Savored our last hour of sunlight in the neighboring New Mexico mountains.
LOVED this place, LOVED LOVED this day!
Road Trip: The Southwest’s Four Corners
https://travel.nationalgeographic.com/travel/road-trips/four-corners-southwest-road-trip/
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- Mesa Verde Nat’l Park
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- cliff dwelling people of Mesa Verde
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- chilly day in the American Southwest
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- Spruce Tree House
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- inside a native Kiva
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- LOVE Pueblo ruins!
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- smoke infused village (poor circulation)
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- adobe townhomes (500-1200 AD)
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- Navajo Canyon settlement (inset)
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- Cliff Place cliff dwelling
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- 75% of park has burned since 1925 (frequent lightning strikes)
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- cowboying near Cortez
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- Four Corners Monument – CO, UT, AZ & NM
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- sunset over New Mexico – SPECTACULAR!
Coming off a marathon run last weekend AND 2 weeks of crazy cold sub-zero temps, thinkin’ this might be my best chance/motivation to complete gift purchases & send out holiday cards. Only 11 days ’til Christmas!
Think again…. received an email from Fort Collins hiking buddy, Cammy – Erik & her are free 2 of the next 3 weekends. Winter 14er hike? Heck yeah! (I’ll get holiday inspired next week 🙂 )
Teamed up with M & caravanned down I-25 to the Sangre de Cristo Range – destination: Blanca Peak. Located the pull-off from Highway 160 & managed maybe a quarter-mile off road before burrowing deep in mountain snow. Erik unloaded chains – determined their Subaru would make the journey UP.
Most cars can drive about 1.5 miles up before it gets rough. 4WD SUVs and trucks can slowly make it 3.25 miles to several pull-offs at 8,800’, before the road turns nasty.
As the clock ticked 1 (a.m.), pulled out sleeping bags & crashed for a few hours before tomorrow morning’s ascent. Ice formed on the inside of M’s jeep – all liquids froze except for a last minute Gatorade purchase. Cold, super cold!
3 of us crazies started the hike UP, catching the most beautiful pink sunrise. (M drove on to Alamosa for the day.) Snow was only wind-blown patchy in areas so I make an über dumb move & leave my snow shoes behind – opting for a lighter pack.
Another mile further we reached sunlight – warmth improved my spirit while ice dangled from my beard.
I struggled this day in knee-deep snow (why did I leave my shoes in the car? ARGH!) Found myself lagging far behind. Who wants to be that person? Decided this just wasn’t my day so I would head back – but needed to first catch Cammy & Erik. Not once but twice I almost reached the Super Hikers, only to see them complete their mini- snack break & push even further. LOL>
Snow is now waist-deep. Thinkin’ I’m D-U-N (done). Only .5 miles further to Como Lake. Totally do-able.
SUCCESS! Kicked back on the frozen lake, I refuel & catch some zzz’s.
Return hike is soooo much easier – no longer cutting a trail UP in snow. 11 mile roundtrip winter hike. No Blanca Peak today but gotta thank Team Ft Collins for pushing me this day. I’ll be back…in the summer 🙂
Wait, wait – this tale’s not finished.
Back on the highway & only another 15 minutes down the road, we take in an hour at Great Sand Dunes Nat’l Park. Sand dunes & snow — followed by Mexican food in Walsenburg. FANTASTIC finish, FANTASTIC day!
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- sunrise over the Sangre de Cristo Range
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- rated as the most challenging 4WD road in Colorado — no driving this day, we hiked UP
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- beard ice
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- staying alert – slab avalanche watch
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- only 1/2 mile further — Como Lake (trailhead to Blanca Peak)
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- creature comforts — camping here next year
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- pre-Cambrian granite (approx 1.8 billion years old)
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- tough 11 mile hike — waist-deep snow, 4000 ft elevation gain
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- Fort Collins represents at Como
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- Celebrate!
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- we’ll be back — 14er Blanca Peak awaits
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- Great Sand Dunes Nat’l Park
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- windblown ice crystals
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- winter sand
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- sand & snow against the bluest blue — WOW!
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- dune warriors
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- goodnight moon – amazing 18 hour day
Friday night flight into Phoenix, rental car pickup – then southeast 2 hours to Tucson. Marathon weekend!
Breakfast, race packet pick-up, runner’s expo purchase (picked up KT Tape Strips & 6 packets of GU), scheduled an after-race massage at the Hilton – chores over. Headed 20 minutes west – today’s adventure destination: Saguaro National Park.
In Alaska, my pre-race destination: ice climbing; while in Arizona, gotta do a cactus hike.
My dad was a huge fan of Westerns. So whether I was actively paying attention or not, gotta say John Wayne, cowboys, Indians, cattle & cactus were forever imprinted on my young mind. Plus if I run out of water, these spiny plants are full of liquid (assuming I remembered my machete to hack thru their tree-like trunks 🙂 )
Instead of leaves, from which water escapes easily, this magnificent plant has spines, which greatly narrow down water evaporation.
The saguaro cactus can grow unto an astonishing 45ft. Probably the most amazing fact about this plant is that even in its harsh climate some cacti can survive over 200 years! These adaptations allow certain cacti to survive 3 years without water; a human can barely survive 4 days.
Stopped at the Visitors Center for a photo opp with Santa, then a quick mile further to Hugh Norris Trailhead.
Tucson temps were far warmer than the sub-zero front fixed over Boulder for the past week. That said, surprisingly needed a jacket – windy & 45 degrees this day.
Ridge hiked for an amazing view of the valley, peppered with columnar cacti. In addition to saguaro cactus (my new fave), spotted barrel, cholla & prickly pear varieties too! FAAANNNTASTIC day!
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- Saguaro National Park
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- Merry Christmas — it’s Santa Cactus!
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- time for a short hike? heck yeah!
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- prickly situation
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- cacti forest — like an old John Wayne Western
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- cactus camouflage
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- Teddybear Cholla
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- Fishhook Barrel Cactus
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- primed & ready for tomorrow’s run
