Bajada Bill celebrates the view at Kitchen Mesa at Ghost Ranch in Abiquiu. He is holding a magic walking stick made by our late friend Fred Bixby.
Greetings from Bajada Bill and Cactus Kate, where we’re camped in a neighborly campground–the Taos RV Park-– along Hwy 68 in Taos NM. The past week took us from the ancestral home of the Anasazi people at Mesa Verde National Park, to the Abiquiu Lake Campground, run by two of the nicest and conscientious campground hosts–Cyndy and Al, to Ghost Ranch, a ‘ring of fire’ eclipse, Coyote Cafe and the Capitol Building in Santa Fe, the truly inspiring Nest Americana Art Gallery in Abiquiu, and the Abiquiu hoodoos. Rather than go on with a whole lot of words this time, this story will be mainly photos. Most photos taken by Kate Poss, unless otherwise noted.
Mesa Verde National Park
Knife Edge Mesa at Mesa Verde National Park. The park’s original road once passed this way, but the mountain continually eroded it, requiring construction of another route.Mancos friend Gordy Blair and Bill went up hiking at the Jersey Jim Fire Lookout to walk among the golden aspen. He refers to the color of the skies here as ‘High Country Blue.’ Photo by Gordy BlairFriend Gordy Blair took this photo of aspen gold in the mountains in southwestern Colorado near Mesa Verde National ParkFrom a photo in 2022–Molas Pass at 10,970 feet with Bill, Kate and their friend Gordy BlairBeatrix and Marion at Mesa Verde and the view of the piñon and juniper dotted mesa behind our campsite #381.
Abiquiu Lake Campground with awesome hosts Cyndy and Al Warnier. Cyndy is an “on the Road Chaplain.”
Cyndy, one of our favorite campground hosts ever at Abiquiu Lake State Park. Here she is seen greeting us from the entrance booth to the campground.Bill Poss took this photo of Kate walking in a red sand wash behind the Abiquiu Elementary SchoolBill and Kate pose for a selfie that Bill took at the Plaza Blanca formation behind the Abiquiu Elementary SchoolBill stands below ‘hoodoo’ forms in the white sandstone at Plaza Blanca behind the Abiquiu Elementary SchoolWe met Anne Galer, a former foreign service career agent and current restorer of historic adobe buildings, at our Abiquiu Lake campsite. We will see her again in AlbuquerqueWe so enjoyed talking with this genuinely interesting woman Diana Kelleher and her dog Peanut from Corrales NM. Diana was up visiting Abiquiu and we got to chatting at the Fire ‘N Ice Food Stand, which by the way, has awesome tacos.
Santa Fe visit
Mark Miller was the original founder of this iconic Santa Fe eatery. It has since been sold and the excellent recipes Mark Miller created are still used at this popular restaurant.Delicious chicken green chili enchiladas at Coyote Cafe in Santa FeLying on the floor of the New Mexico state Capitol building in Santa Fe is this view of its dome‘Hoshonzeh,’ by Douglas Johnson, 1992, is an example of many of the quality pieces housed in the New Mexico Capitol Building’s Art Collection
Ghost Ranch
It’s a good hike to the back country of Kitchen Mesa at Ghost Ranch. Selfie by Bill’s long armCoelophysis-pronounced see-low-fie-sis -were dinosaurs that lived more than 200 million years ago. Their skeletons were discovered at Ghost Ranch in Abiquiu. Photo at Palentology museum at Ghost Ranch in AbiquiuTheresa Trujillo, jewelry artist at Ghost Ranch since the 1980sBill reads some Tony Hillerman while enjoying the view at Ghost Ranch in Abiquiu
Ring of fire annular eclipse Oct. 14, 2023–
The Wilkinson Public Library in Telluride provided us with these eclipse glasses which we wore for the 2023 annular ‘ring of fire’ solar eclipse Oct. 14. We saw the event from our picnic table at our campground at Abiquiu Lake. Photo by Bill Poss
Our Albuquerque friend Claudia Mitchell wrote this for her homeowner newsletter: “Amateur astronomer, Paul Connor, of Denver, has set up his solar telescope on a motor-driven tracking mount to view the “Ring of Fire” solar eclipse on October 14.Paul was accompanied by his wife, Heather; and his in-laws, Fraser and Cathy Goff.The Goff’s are semi-retired geologists living in Los Alamos who lead field trips throughout the state to geologic sites of note.The group had set up multiple telescopes at their friend Jim Stimack’s Sandia Heights residence to photograph the event. The family shares an intense interest in photo-astronomy often traveling together to view and photograph astronomical phenomena including eclipses and comets.”
Denver amateur astronomer Paul Connor visited Albuquerque where our friends Claudia Mitchell and Girard Del Monte live. Claudia took this photo of Paul and his photography used to capture the Oct. 14 annular ‘ring of fire’ eclipseAmateur astronomer, Paul Connor, of Denver, has set up his solar telescope on a motor-driven tracking mount to view the “Ring of Fire” solar eclipse on October 14. Photo shared by Claudia Mitchell in Albuquerque. Note the full circle here, which was about 95% where we were in Abiquiu
Our Abiquiu Lake campground neighbors Gerald and Lora Bromley from Kansas shared these photos:
Campground neighbor Gerald Bromley took this photo of Oct. 14’s annular eclipse. ” If anyone is curious, they were taken on our old Canon T3i, with home made filter using a pair of the solar glasses, and using the video settings,” Gerald said.Our neighbor at Abiquiu Lake, Gerald Bromley took this photo of Oct. 14’s annular eclipse ‘ring of fire.’ ” If anyone is curious, they were taken on our old Canon T3i, with home made filter using a pair of the solar glasses, and using the video settings,” Gerald said. Note the circle is not 100% complete as it is in the Albuquerque photo. Abiquiu’s eclipse was not a total ring of fire
And a young man who works with his family at the Fire ‘N Ice takeout stand in Abiquiu–with delicous smoked brisket and pulled pork dishes–shared this:
Luke Gillette, a friendly young man who works at the Fire ‘N Ice food stand in Abiquiu, took this photo with solar eclipse glasses held over his cellphone
Rio Chama River, which flows through Abiquiu
Abiquiu Lake, were we camped discharges water through a dam which flows into the Rio Chama River. Abiquiu Lake provides drinking water for the city of Albuquerque
2 Comments
High country blue, aspen gold, ring of fire and green chili enchiladas—What fun!
Look forward to sharing adventures with the pair of you in 2024!