"Do You Know the Way to Santa Fe?" - July 10th

On a cool, beautiful, sunny morning, we said our goodbyes to Dillon, CO.  Daddy & I took our last morning walk by the path on the lake, I pranced through the tall grass wet with the morning dew. One last trip to Kula's Cafe to load up with sandwiches for the road. Then we were off to Sante Fe, NM.

One last walk with Daddy at Lake Dillon, CO.

We start our drive. Top of the Rockies National Scenic Byway - Colorado.

115 miles through the San Isabel Forrest and Independence Pass - with peaks over 14,000 feet high. That's really HIGH.  Dillon's elevation is 9,087 feet high.  The elevation of our home in Lake Havasu City is only 520 feet.

Gasoline in Leadville, CO - $3.64 per gallon.

Established in 1878, Alamosa (Spanish for "cottonwood") went from a tent city to a rail center and the hub of the San Luis Valley.

The Palace Hotel in Antonito, CO built in 1890.

The Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad  was built in 1880.  It is described as "America's Highest & Longest Coal Fired, Steam Operated, narrow-gauge train."

Our first adventure in New Mexico was a trip through Taos, NM.
If I didn't know better, I'd think we were on some alien planet.

Earthships are sustainable homes made of recycled materials.
There's actually a whole neighborhood of these homes.
I wonder what their CC&R's look like?

They are half-buried into the sand and look like something found in Roswell, NM or Area 51 in NV.  "E.T. Phone Home"

This one is a work in progress.

Its wooden doors are very unique. The facade and posts are made from aluminum cans.

This is the Rio Grande Gorge Bridge. It's a 650 foot drop to the water.

When the rapids are flowing, the Rio Grande carries kayakers and rafters through the Gorge.



 

The Taos Plaza dates back to 1796 and served as a central meeting place for the town.  It also holds the honor of being the first place in the United States to fly the American Flag both day and night since 1861.  Today, it is the site of concerts, festivals, shopping, and artistic displays.



Site of the Taos Drum Company. The drums are made of hollowed-out logs stretched with rawhide. Mommy & Daddy have two drums they purchased the first time they visited Taos about 15 years ago.

Here are some of the rafters and kayakers I mentioned.

 Doesn't this look like a lot of fun?

 I wonder how cold the water is?

As we continue on our way to Santa Fe, heavy rains fall on the mountain range towards Los Alamos, NM.

Hopefully, the rains are helping to extinguish the fires at Los Alamos.

Well - we've found our way to Santa Fe. Just in the nick of time, we've been able to beat the rains.