Monday, May 26, 2014

Santa Fe, New Mexico to Holbrook, Arizona - May 19-25

We certainly enjoyed our stay in Santa Fe. Monday was another stellar day, with bright sun and a light breeze. Even though the thermometer read 53 degrees when we got up, the high elevation made the sun a lot more intense so it felt warmer. After breakfast we took a brisk 45 minute walk to “our favorite store” (Walmart) to pick up a few items. Then, while I stayed at the camper to write last week’s blog, Dick took a 50-mile motorcycle trip on a portion of the Turquoise Trail.

Turquoise Trail
The name “Turquoise Trail” comes from the now precious blue-green turquoise stone first mined by the early Pueblo people, who dwelled along the Rio Grande as early as 900 A.D. The trail, encompassing 15,000 square miles, is located in the heart of Central New Mexico, linking Albuquerque and Santa Fe. Its highest peak is Sandia Crest at 10,600 feet, overlooking Albuquerque and the Rio Grande Valley. Although there are seven towns along the trail, Dick’s short trip took him to just two: Madrid and Cerrillos. Along the way he passed through the Garden of the Gods.






Madrid sits midway along the Turquoise Trail, and at one time more than 3,000 people lived and worked there due to the mining of coal in the area. At its peak 250,000 tons of coal was produced in the town. Today, the pine and oak bar at the Mineshaft Tavern is still known as the “longest bar in the state, a lodge pole pine bar, measuring 40 feet. The town boasted the first illuminated baseball park west of the Mississippi, first turned on in 1922. The stadium, still in operation, was home to the Madrid Miners, a farm team for the Brooklyn Dodgers.


When the coal market collapsed, so did Madrid’s infrastructure. Eventually all of the town’s residents moved away and Madrid became a ghost town. The Wall Street Journal, in 1954, listed the entire town for sale for $250,000. In the 1960s and ‘70s an array of artists, crafts people and renegades rediscovered Madrid, and a new population began to form in the town. Today, there are about 400 residents—artists, craftspeople, gallery owners, restaurants, and business commuters to Santa Fe.
Cowgirl Red Trading Post
Madrid Ghost Town Trading Post 
One of the historic old homes in Madrid
Mine Shaft Tavern
As a side note, for those of you familiar with the movie Wild Hogs, part of this movie was filmed in Madrid, Arizona.

Maggie's Diner
Cerrillos is one of the oldest historically documented mining districts in the U.S., dating back to as early as 900 A.D. The Indian word “chalchihuitl,” taken from the Aztec word meaning “green,” became the name of one of the Cerrillos hills producing the largest source of turquoise. Today there are several working turquoise claims in the Cerrillos Mining District; rough, polished and finished jewelry can be found in area shops.

For centuries, the Pueblo Indians had obtained turquoise and galena (lead sulfide) from the Cerrillos Hills, turquoise for its ritual use and for its medicinal power, and the galena for paint used to decorate pottery.

Silver was discovered by Europeans in the galena mined in Cerrillos Hills in the 1580s, but it wasn’t until the late 1600s that a silver and lead mining company was formed. Unfortunately, that camp survived only a year, but it was the first settlement to bear the name Cerrillos. The rich Cerrillos Hills remained the private property of a few Santa Fe families, but the arrival of two prospectors in 1879 broke that embargo and from there word spread quickly of the reputed treasures to be found. The following year brought the railroad and soon Cerrillos Hills became the center of activity with people coming from around the world to make their fortune. Starting off as a tent city, Cerrillos soon became a town of hotels, saloons, dance halls, local shops and short order houses. There were a great many saloons, since all you needed to start a saloon was a tent, a glass, and a bottle of whiskey. (However, if you aspired to be a first-class saloon, you needed some upstairs entertainment.)

By 1900 the galena and silver production had diminished, and within 10 years the smelter shut down. Cerrillos never completely dried up, but it never achieved the dreams of so many who sought their wealth there. The charm and simplicity of the Old West can still be seen in Cerrillos: the streets remain mostly dirt, with adobe homes and Spanish-style courtyards nestled among giant cottonwood trees. Because of the 1800s feel, the town, like Madrid, is often used for filming movies and commercials.



Tuesday was spent getting things ready for our departure on Wednesday: checking tire pressure on both the truck and trailer, loading the motorcycle, fueling the truck, washing the bugs from the front of the trailer, etc. Our trip Wednesday was estimated to be about 5½ hours, so the more preparation we can do the day before we leave, the earlier we can get on the road.

Weather on Wednesday didn’t disappoint us: beautiful sunshine and 57 degrees at 7:30 a.m. We were on the road by 9:30. Roads were good for the most part, but halfway we ran into heavy winds, both headwinds and side winds. We arrived at our destination in Sun Valley, Arizona at 3 p.m. and were set up by 4. We had a bit of a mishap with the door side slide topper; the screw holding the side cap came loose so it flipped off when we attempted to extend the slide. Fortunately, Dr. Dick was able to secure the screw to the topper so we were able to get the slide extended fully with the topper intact. 


Office
Not the office, but it is the laundry
Our site
These photos were taken from our site on
Saturday.

Friends Ron and Kathryn were in the area, in Holbrook, Arizona—just 6 miles away—so we met up with them for breakfast on Thursday, at Tom and Suzie’s Diner in Holbrook.  Breakfast was followed by a day spent in the Petrified Forest and Painted Desert. There are no words for this magnificent display of nature. Awesome!

Petrified Forest National Park is located in northeastern Arizona, encompasses Navajo and Apache Counties, and covers about 146 square miles. Once a vast floodplain crossed by many streams, this area produced tall and stately conifer trees. As trees fell over time, and swollen streams washed them into adjacent floodplains, a mix of silt, mud and volcanic ash from distant volcanoes buried the logs, cutting off oxygen and slowing their decay. Then, silica-laden groundwater seeped through the logs, replacing the original wood tissues with silica and thus petrifying the logs. Over time, through climate change and geological shifts, what had been a tropical environment became today’s arid grassland, and wind and water wore away the rock layers covering fossilized plants and animals.

The varied colors in petrified wood present a kaleidoscope of beauty. Iron, carbon, and manganese made patterns and blends of yellow, red, black, blue, brown, white, and pink. Petrified wood at the park is almost solid quartz, weighing in at 168 to 200 pounds per cubic foot, and is so hard it can only be cut using a diamond tipped saw. It has a hardness of 7.8 on the 10-point Mohs scale that measures scratch resistance. (As a side note, Dick took 310 photos of our day in the Petrified Forest…those following are just a few…)

Although petrified wood is considered fossilized, there are many other kinds of fossils besides trees. And, they can measure over 190 feet, like some of the petrified logs found in the park, or small, like a single tooth less than an inch long. One of the richest fossil-plant deposits in the world, containing more than 200 fossilized plants, is in this area. Also found in the park are fossil vertebrates, including giant crocodile-like reptiles, large salamander-like amphibians, and early dinosaurs, as well as invertebrates including freshwater snails and clams.

Our first stop was at the Crystal Forest Museum and Gift Shop at the southern entrance to the park, where we saw cut and polished petrified wood, selling for as much as $12,500 for a coffee table sized slab.


These fossils are clues to the past and tell the stories of ancient ecosystems, going back over 200 million years. The photos were taken at the Crystal Forest Museum and Gift Shop located just before we entered the park.
Hand-carved alabaster Navajo sculptures
Fossils found together in these slabs of rock, above and below.





Our next stop was at the Petrified Forest National Park Visitor and Information Center. Here we saw more dinosaur fossils, petrified long logs and other pieces of petrified wood.















Sites throughout the park tell of human existence for over 13,000 years. Evidence of these early people in the park fades around 1400 A.D., but their dwellings, potshards, and petroglyphs still tell their story. Inhabited between 1250 and 1380 A.D., the Puerco Pueblo Ruins are the largest known archological site within the park. These partially excavated remains are just a fragment of the original 100-room complex that surrounded a large plaza.



The photos above and below are Puerco Pueblo ruins unearthed
during an archological dig. The pottery was also found here, and is
housed in the Petrified Forest National Park Visitor's Center.


These petroglyphs are also at this Puerco Pueblo site.



 Another ancient Pueblo site is the Agate House, called this because almost all of this structure is built from chunks of petrified wood. Constructed about 900 years ago, this small eight-room pueblo is near to both agricultural fields and petrified wood deposits, and indicates that it was not a temporary residence or field house, but more a year-round residence for a family unit. Like most structures from this time period (between 900 and 1200 A.D.) it probably remained in use for only about 30 years. Also discovered during excavation were coiled and scraped pottery and various black-on-white painted ceramics with a few black-on red, and is closely associated with other Puebloan people, the Anasazi.

Agate House
Petrified wood used in construction of Agate House
We saw so many beautiful things in the Petrified Forest, including the Crystal Forest, Agate Bridge, Blue Mesa, and the Teepees. Sometimes the landscape appears to be other-worldly, bleak and desolate. But then your eye catches a flash of color. Life goes on.




My favorite photo: blooming cactus and petrified wood
At Crystal Forest, beautiful crystals still hide in the colorful petrified logs. We walked the ¾ mile loop through some of the most stunning examples of crystallization.










The Agate Bridge is a 110-foot long petrified log, suspended between hard rocks after centuries of scouring floodwaters washed out the arroyo beneath it. Due to the continual erosion by wind and water, an architectural support of masonry pillars was erected in 1911, and in 1917 the present concrete span replaced the masonry work. (At one time you could walk across it, but that has been prohibted in order to preserve the bridge.)


This is a photo of a Western Tanager; we saw one flying
around the Agate Bridge but it wouldn't land long
enough for us to get a photo. The colors are beautiful!
The Blue Mesa, one of the park’s most visually stunning and dramatic examples of badland formation. Blue, gray, white, lavender and green striated mounds, cones, buttes and fins rise above an otherwise flat and barren landscape. The color bands are the combined result of mineral presence and water levels at the time that sediments were deposited.



The Teepees were our next stop, but because of the really high winds we were able to photograph them from the car. The bands of color, formed of mudstone and sandstone about 200 to 225 million years ago, are visible thanks to wind and water erosion.



One of the most amazing things we saw were the petroglyphs that were scratched, pecked, carved, or incised on the natural rock surfaces in the park. They represent means of communication, much like we do today through print and the internet. Surprisingly, some may not be meant to be understood. They probably all have a deep spiritual significance, and may even be considered prayers by some people. They may tell a story, mark a trail, or commemorate an event; they may have been made to ensure fertility or successful hunting, or even to keep track of the seasons. They may also represent a clan or family. We will probably never know their intention, and may have significance that can be explained only by the original artist.

More than 650 petroglyphs, the largest concentration of petroglyphs in the Petrified Forest, are etched into boulders that lie below the cliffs above where the visitor overview is located. The dark coating on the rock is called desert varnish, a patina which occurs naturally over time images are etched, or pecked away with sharpened tools to expose the lighter rock beneath.



We’ll be seeing more petroglyphs this week before we leave the Holbrook area, so be sure to visit our blog next week for more!

As we drove through the park, a storm appeared to be raging nearby, but we didn't get any rain--just wind.


The Painted Desert is part of the Petrified Forest National Park, and is located on the northern loop of our trek through the park. The Painted Desert got its name because of the rainbow of colors found through this expanse of badland hills and buttes. Here you can see colors ranging from lavenders to shades of gray with vibrant colors of red, orange and pink formed from iron and manganese compounds found in the fine grained rock layers.





This guy was merrily hopping along near one of
the Painted Desert overlooks.
Near the end of the 24-mile journey through the Petrified Forest National Park we came upon the Painted Desert Inn, a Pueblo Revival-style structure situated on a mesa overlooking the Painted Desert.


Built in 1920 the structure is constructed of wood and native stone, with walls more than two feet thick and finished with textured earth-toned stucco. Hopi artist Fred Kabotie painted murals on the dining room and lunchroom walls, reflecting Hopi culture. In 1935 the National Park Service purchased and began renovating building. The inn opened in 1940 to provide hospitality services to tourists and travelers on the Santa Fe Railroad. And for two years it offered Route 66 travelers food, souvenirs and lodging, as well as event and meeting space to the locals. The inn closed in 1942 as a result of America’s involvement in World War II, when government resources were shifted away from domestic programs.

The park scheduled the building’s demolition in 1975 because of structural damage over the years, but a public campaign helped save the building, which was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1976, and was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1987.

Following restoration, the Painted Desert Inn reopened in 2006, and now appears as it would have in 1949. Highlights include six hammered-tin Mexican-style chandeliers, and enormous skylight, and windows overlooking the desert. The skylight has multiple panes of translucent glass painted in Indian pottery designs. The inn still has the original murals on the dining room and lunchroom walls. And, a large and stunning mountain lion petroglyph, discovered in the 1930s is on display in the inn. The petroglyph is considered one of the finest, most vividly animated and lifelike depictions of mountain lions in the region.







After this spectacular day, dinner at Mr. Maestas in Holbrook was in order. What an eclectic display of “stuff” throughout the restaurant! We were stuffed after a meal of chicken-fried steak, a chimichanga, a hamburger, and a stuffed sopaipilla—oh followed by chocolate and strawberry crème ice cream. Oh, my… 
After dinner we played a hand of Golf at Ron and Kathryn’s camper. Whew! That was Thursday.

Friday Ron and Kathryn left for the Grand Canyon. We did a bit of grocery shopping, and visited the Wigwam Motel in Holbrook—a must see if you’re passing through, or doing the Route 66 trek.

While passing through Cave City, Kentucky in 1938, Chester E. Lewis was so impressed by the distinctive design of the original Wigwam (not Teepee!) village (constructed in 1937 by architect Frank Redford), that he purchased copies of the plans the right to use the Wigwam Village name. The purchase included a royalty agreement in which Mr. Lewis would install coin operated radios in the wigwams, and every dime inserted for 30 minutes of play would be sent to Mr. Redford as payment. Seven Wigwam Villages were constructed in various locations between 1936 and the 1950s. Finished in 1950, Mr. Lewis’ village in Holbrook, AZ, was the sixth, thus it is designated as Wigwam Village #6.

The Wigwam Motel is comprised of 15 free-standing concrete basic motel rooms arranged in a semi-circle around the main office, representing the quarters of the chief and his family. Each teepee is 21 feet wide at the base and 28 feet high, and painted white with a red zigzag about the doorway. The rooms feature the original hand-made hickory furniture, and equipped with a sink, toilet and shower. Vintage automobiles are permanently parked throughout the property, including a Studebaker that belonged to Mr. Lewis. Part of the office has been converted into a museum, by Mr. Lewis’ family, and is open to the public. It displays Mr. Lewis’ collection of Indian artifacts, Civil War memorabilia, Route 66 collectibles, and a petrified wood collection. Wigwam Village Motel #6 was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2002.”  Excerpted from http://www.nps.gov/nr/travel/route66/wigwam_village_hotel6_holbrook.html




Friday we also had a visit from Future Tire, located in Holbrook, to repair a flat tire on the trailer. Glad to have that done, as we do not want to blow a tire as we travel!

Saturday, we rode the motorcycle back into Holbrook to the bank, and to see the Navajo County Courthouse Museum.
Commodore Perry Owen; his hair
was almost down to his waist by the time
his service as sheriff ended in 1886.

Originally part of Apache County, Navajo County was established in 1881 to help bring law and order to the area which was already torn by range wars between the newly settled Texas cattlemen and the already established Mexican and Indian sheep men. Navajo County was a rugged stretch of land complete with a saloon called the Bucket of Blood, so named because of a drunken brawl and shots from a .45. Until a sheriff was hired, law and order in Holbrook were non-existent, gambling was popular, and painted ladies far outnumbered “proper women.”  Sheriff Commodore Perry Owens was hired to settle down the lawless elements of Navajo County. He had already gained a reputation for cleaning up the territory, so much so that he was called “Saint George with a six-shooter.”


Built in 1895 at a cost of just $15,000 the courthouse included a $3,000 jail. The museum houses 3 1/2 floors of memorabilia and artifacts dating back to 900 A.D. including pottery shards from the Puebloan community, who inhabited the area.

Navajo County Courthouse, built in 1895.
Holbrook was the home of the Hatchknife Pony Express 

Original chuckwagon used by cattle drives that went
through Holbrook
The jail was particularly sobering, as it was constructed in the basement of the courthouse, and manufactured as complete units in St. Louis, Missouri and shipped to Holbrook on railroad flatcars. The small, dark cells were very effective, in that no one ever escaped from them. They leave the jail as it is—all they do is sweep the floors. Artwork on the jail and cell walls was done by prisoners.

Original sheriff's office in the basement of the courthouse, next
to the jail





This and the following 2 photos are of actual artwork
from prisoners held in the jail.


These Wanted Posters were posted in the sheriff's office.



It is also home to a couple of resident ghosts, the most prominent being George Smiley, the one and only man ever hanged at the courthouse. After keeping his date with the noose in 1900, he has been seen wandering about the building and pacing up and down the stairs. The Historical Society staff blames this ghost for doors closing on their own, and strange noises heard through the building, and objects that have mysteriously moved from one spot to another.

Another ghost seen looking out of the windows is a woman named Mary, who was a former prisoner. According to legend, Mary died inside one of the old jail cells while looking out a window longing for her freedom. (Note: we didn't see or hear anything during our visit...)

That evening we decided to eat out at the Hopi Truck Stop and Café, just about a mile from our site. I have to say that was perhaps the best hamburger I have ever had: ½# ground chuck, crusty on the outside, well done but juicy on the inside, served with a thick slice of white onion and pepper-jack cheese. YUM! Dick chowed down on 3 enchiladas: beef, chicken and cheese. YUM!

Sunday was spent relaxing around the camper. While I worked on the blog, Dick washed the exterior windows and checked the recently fixed trailer tire, and removed a bent bolt from the slide topper (which will be replaced before we head out on Wednesday).

I know this report is really long, and filled with perhaps more than you care to read, but it’s such cool stuff! At least I know you’ll enjoy looking at the pictures…ha!

Hope this finds you well. Still wish you could join us on our journey.

Love ‘n’ hugs,

RJ and Gail

A = Rockport, TX
B = Kerrville, TX
C = Stockton, TX
D = Carlsbad, NM
E = Santa Fe, NM
F = Holbrook/Sun Valley, AZ