Vasquez Rocks
![[photograph]](http://www.wdlabs.com/gnr/public/vasquez/?image=Slide06.jpg)
Photos from when Tyler and I visited Vasquez Rocks near Los Angeles. If it looks like every planet that Kirk and crew ever beamed down to, that is because it is.
(more)![[photograph]](http://www.wdlabs.com/gnr/public/vasquez/?image=Slide07.jpg)
![[photograph]](http://www.wdlabs.com/gnr/public/vasquez/?image=Slide08.jpg)
![[photograph]](http://www.wdlabs.com/gnr/public/vasquez/?image=Slide13.jpg)
![[photograph]](http://www.wdlabs.com/gnr/public/vasquez/?image=Slide14.jpg)
![[photograph]](http://www.wdlabs.com/gnr/public/vasquez/?image=Slide17.jpg)
| Please leave a comment here: | |
Photos from when Tyler and I visited Vasquez Rocks near Los Angeles. If it looks like every planet that Kirk and crew ever beamed down to, that is because it is.
(more)| Please leave a comment here: | |
First place I took my intrepid party to was Pecos. It isn’t really a full fledged hike, but a nice meander through the ruins. There is a lot of history wrapped up in the place and you get to see the early blending and confrontation of Spanish and native cultures. There are mountains around that always look to me as though they had a giant bear claw scratches in them. It was here that the party noticed that there are a lot of juniper trees in New Mexico, and I learned the Russian word for that tree.
(more...)
The next hiking day we were in Los Alamos (Lost Almost) and we went hiking around the ruins of Tsankawi. e later said that one theory about what happened to the Chacoen culture (the ruins of which we saw in Chaco Canyon) was that they dispersed to places like this.
There was almost half a day left after that so we went out to the end of Horse Mesa to look at the view. Actually I said “edge” when describing the place and e’s ears perked up.
e rightly insisted that we get up early for our next hike, which was the Bandelier Falls trail. I forgot to bring my GPS, so I can’t show you the route we took, but to describe it, I would say that it was a breathtaking trek through the end of Frijoles Canyon that dumped us onto one side of the Rio Grande. There wasn’t much shade, but we managed to find ourselves a little rabbit hole to have lunch in.
I used to drive past the Valle Grande all the time, but it was always private land when I lived in New Mexico. Now it is a park with some odd legal traits, but they let people come in and go hiking now. I got to see the caldera from the inside for the first time ever, but apparently you have to book in advance to do any of the hikes inside the caldera. Instead we opted to take the Coyote trail which affords some nice views of the remains of one really big volcano.
The last big hike we did was in Chaco Canyon. I picked the South Mesa Loop trail, because the last time I had been to Chaco I had done the trail on the north side of the canyon. There are ruins all over the place in every direction and all over the place.
Our last day in New Mexico found us in Albuquerque which is best known for being that place that Bugs Bunny took a wrong turn at. We took the tram up to the top of Sandia peek, where we did a little hike out to a little stone hut. I learned the Russian word for pine cone.
I have been wanting to go to Vasquez Rocks for a while now. For those that don’t know, many a TV series and movie has been filmed here, the best known example is arguably the episode where Kirk fought the Gorn in “Arena”. The rocks featured in the background of this episode (and many others) are appropriately named “the famous rocks”.
P.S. I am back in Australia now.
| Please leave a comment here: | |
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO that, as Pluto passes overhead through New Mexico's excellent night skies, it be declared a planet and that March 13, 2007 be declared "Pluto Planet Day" at the legislature.
—New Mexico State Legislature
In August I am going to be in the only state in the Union where Pluto is (as it should be) recognized as full fledged planet.
I don’t usually get misty-eyed when reading legislation, but I did when I read “New Mexico’s excellent night skies.” The night sky in New Mexico is pretty, and NM is definitely the Land of Enchantment.
Some of you already know this, but for those that don’t, I will be in the USA for most of August to visit good friends, go hiking, and to eat some mighty fine New Mexican cuisine. Here are the approximate dates:
| Location | Arrive | Depart | Activities |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hiking, hanging out in the city, bar fights[2], museums, movies, enchilada night, breakneck ridge, awesome friends | |||
| hiking, heat, enchiladas, breakfast burritos, posole, chilies rellenos, green chili and of course green chili cheeseburgers | |||
| Jack in the Box, Vasquez Rocks[4], Castlevania, Wii, sushi, petquakerstalking, and more! |
If you think you might coincide, let me know. You too can be part of the action. And knowing is half the battle.
| Please leave a comment here: | |