Monthly Archive for May, 2008
I have traveled through the valley next to the Great Sand Dunes twice now and have enjoyed it each time. At roughly 7,000 feet elevation this valley floor runs for about 100 miles North and South and well worth traveling in a loop once, twice, or more if you have time for it. The following maps will help illustrate better:
(normal map - click to view)
(satellite map - click to view)
Here are a couple panoramic pictures from the area while riding through:
The pictures above don’t really do justice to the area so I guess I’ll have to go back again. 
If anyone is up for riding/camping in that area, let me know. BTW, here are several pictures of the Great Sand Dunes from a previous adventure there.
Traveling from one extreme to the other, I left the Chaco Culture (see Day1 and Day 2) in the morning, crossed into Colorado, and over the Wolf Creek Pass (on Highway 160 just north of Pagosa Springs, Colorado) by afternoon. Here are a few photos:
(click to view)
While these photos are from the summit, I passed the park entrance as I headed further North on Highway 160 and it appeared the ski lifts were still in operation.
A word of caution to fellow bikers, there is a snow shed just past the summit on the Northern side of Wolf Creek Pass. It was built to allow snow melt to run over the shed instead of the highway. The only problem is that water still gets inside the shed where there is no sun. The shed comes up quickly and with very little warning so be careful because if you start to slip on ice you will be sliding into oncoming traffic due to the way the road bends inside the shed.
Yesterday I made it to the Chaco Culture Historic Park. Today, I leave the park and continue the last leg of my journey home.
The following are pictures from the campsite and surrounding area including a short hike up the Sunset Trail which, as the name suggests, should really be done at sunset instead of sunrise:
(click to view)
The last pictures in the series above show a bit of what the road is like leading out of the historic park to Highway 550.
I really would have liked to have spent more time at this park but I was only passing through and barely scratched the surface. Besides the hiking and many trails found here there are also many ancient dwellings worth checking out:
- Pueblo Bonito
- Una Vida
- Penasco Blanco
- Hungo Pavi
- Chetro Keti
- Pueblo Alto
Check out the Park Photo Gallery to see more of what I mean. This is definitely a great place to visit for those looking for a back-country adventure.
I left Phoenix, Arizona around 8am and made it to the Chaco Culture Historic Park in New Mexico by 6pm. The park was full when I arrived as it is first come, first serve. Luckily, since I was on a motorcycle, they allowed me to stay the night since I have such a small footprint. I’m glad they did because I wasn’t looking forward to backtracking the 20+ miles of dirt road I had taken to get into the park or the other 30+ miles of dirt road it would take to get out of the park in the opposite direction. Speaking of dirt road, if you enter the park from the South on Highway 371, as I did, I would warn that this is the toughest road to travel. You are basically traveling through ranch land, cattle grates, and choppy roads with some rough rock. In speaking with the Park Ranger, I learned that some people actually end up with popped tires as the rock is so sharp.
The following pictures (except the first one) were taken during sunset after I had eaten and set up camp for the night:
(click to view)
The sky was very clear during the night. I spent 30+ minutes just gazing at crystal clear stars before going to bed.
I broke camp early after eating a little breakfast and then waited for the park to open at 9am. The following are pictures from walking by “Inscription Rock” and from hiking to the top of El Morro:
(click to view)
El Morro was known as a watering hole for travelers in the area since it was the only water source for fourty miles around. The water gets collected in small bond at the base of the cliff from snowmelt and rain water run off. Like all National Parks in this country, this was top-notch and the camping was excellent. El Morro is not a big attraction but worth checking out if you are in the area.
I left Colorado Springs, CO around 8am and made it to El Morro National Monument, NM around 5pm today. The trip was excellent but I will say that the 200 miles of interstate that I took from Sante Fe, NM to Grants, NM was not that exciting. In fact, once you leave Taos, NM the road becomes uninteresting but I needed to make it to El Morro National Monument by days end so had to take this more direct route. Here are pictures from the area:
(click to view)
Looks like the K2 theme is finally compatible with WordPress 2.5.x. I have worked with this theme in the past and enjoyed using it. I decided to use it on this site again and just made the switch tonight. The previous theme was proving too be buggy and while I still have a few issues to work through with the new K2 theme, it is much better than what I had before.
Truth be told, I’m hoping to get off the WordPress bandwagon soon and build my next site in Ruby on Rails. Let the porting process begin!