We had a busy weekend last weekend! We took Juniper for her first trip to Durango to pick up a few things, and decided to have lunch outside at Ska. It’s been since the end of October since we’ve eaten out (occasional, take-out aside) and well over a year since we’ve been able to visit Ska, which is normally one of our regular watering holes. It was fun to share it with the pup who did a great job hanging out in the beer garden.
Chimney Rock National Monument
Saturday, we celebrated Spring with a walk and picnic at Chimney Rock. We did about a two mile walk up and back the main road. The monument is closed this time of year, but accessible via foot traffic or horseback. It was the busiest day we’ve ever visited in the off-season. Everybody had the same idea for such a beautiful morning.
I also tried to squeeze in an impromptu photoshoot at the new visitor center that’s under construction of my completed Chimney Rock Scarf, inspired by the landscape. You’ll notice the little fuzzy-one photobombing me (above).
Getting our steps in! We even walked another three-quarters of a mile on Sunday around the Riverwalk downtown. Hope everyone else is enjoying the return of Spring and staying safe when you go out.
In my last camping post, I signed off with the intention of being Alaska bound this summer. That dream did not become reality this year. It is interesting to observe the twists and turns, the changes that life has laid before us as an alternative.
We knew it would be a monumental undertaking to be able to leave our normal routines and lives for a couple of months, and our desire to make that journey still burns. What really slowed us down was the repair work our Volkswagen needed. Hubby got the new engine going last October for his birthday trip to the Gila. When we got home, he decided to tear into the body work. After four months of winter shop hours, it was Spring and time to get out and enjoy the outdoors; yet the bus was only half finished by then. That’s when we realized we should shift our priorities and find another ‘vehicle’ to enjoy the gorgeous Summer the San Juans had in store.
July 2019 Latir Lakes, Costilla ParkJuly 2019 Latir Creek, Costilla Park
Hubby started researching options and as soon as he settled on a Casita, the best one showed up on craigslist for the right price and only an hour away in Durango. The original owners had bought it in 2012, and at ninety-one he was ready to let it go. We’ve gotten 5 trips in so far this year, with the longest being two weeks for my birthday. There are at least four more tentatively planned for this season.
June 2019 Palisade, Middle ForkJuly 2019 N. Beach CG on the Taylor RiverJuly 2019 N. Beach CG on the Taylor RiverColumbines outside Crested Butte
Recently, we were asked if we were going to give up our VW camping? No way. There are so many places the truck and trailer can’t go, more primitive camping options and it gets much better gas mileage. In our minds, the Casita has already paid for itself. Not only as a camper that we’ve enjoyed this Summer, but also as another small house when our septic was having problems in the main house or it was too hot to sleep in the loft. It’s always good to have options.
We intend to return to Silver City and hopefully visit our friends again in Bisbee this Fall. It will be with the Casita, while the bus waits patiently for the wheel of the year to turn inward again.
Today, the 416 fire north of Durango has doubled in size to 16,000 acres.
It’s that time of year again. Fire season has come early to Pagosa country this year. I started to write this as Archuleta County enacted Stage 1 Fire Restrictions and campgrounds opened at the beginning of May—the earliest we can remember for restrictions. Usually primitive campers, we camped for the first time in a local paid campground so meals could be cooked over a small campfire or in the dutch oven.
We often snowshoe through William’s Creek campground in the winter when no one is there or have parked and sled the dogs on the road, back in the good old days. Seeing it without the snow, I was impressed by the size of the campground and the number of sites with primo creek access. This early in the season, we had our pick.
Williams Creek Campground snowshoeing January 25, 2015 and camping May 5, 2018
Stage 2 restrictions were in place by the end of Memorial day weekend. Along the lines of more earliest-year-ever, we headed to our favorite spot up Mosca for the long weekend. This road isn’t often open/passable this time of year. We had to dig out the propane Coleman stove and change our meal plan as there were no fires allowed in primitive camping under Stage 1. Even at the end of the road, a PFPD patrol passed us, a welcome site.
Preferring to cook over our Trangia, which is not permitted now under the Stage 2 restrictions, we’re looking at adding a new stove option, as we love the convenience of cooking over denatured. The difference in a new stove, would be one with a valve that would meet with the more strict restrictions. Something we may have to consider as we think about a long-haul summer trip to Alaska. What if you’re passing thru an area with Stage 2 restrictions, and ya gotta cook ramen for the night? Doubt it’s a necessity. I’d eat a sandwich; but what if you’re in it for the long haul?
For now, we just aren’t camping. We stay home and daydream about camping by writing this blog…I digress.
Now they’re talking Stage 3, closure. This is unprecedented for the Pagosa Ranger District.
Durango 416 Fire approx. 4–5 hours after ignition. June 1, 2018 driving east on 160 leaving Durango (left), from our front porch (right).
We’re no strangers to fire in the landscape. Our first full summer here was 2002, when the Missionary Ridge fire rained needle ash on us, and the Million Reservoir fire forever changed the landscape. We wondered what we had traded the tornadoes of Arkansas for.
In 2012, the Little Sand Fire left an amazing scar that we wonder at every time we drive up Mosca. The West Fork Complex dominated the skyline in 2013 and terrified me the most.
Westfork Complex pictured from June 19–Jul 3, 2013
Literally watching from our front door in 2015, we observed aircraft dropping retardant and smoke jumpers being dropped on what I think was dubbed the Little Devil Fire.
Little Devil August 2015
We were detoured on our trip of the National Parks when a fire closed the highway in Yellowstone in 2016 and were on our way to Durango the morning #416 began nine days ago.
Driving through the Berry Fire burn scar about 2 weeks after it closed the highway between Teton and Yellowstone.
West Fork Complex burn scar above Big Meadows Reservoir July 2015
It’s heartbreaking to see your favorite places first die off in painful ways, slowly or suddenly as beetles and drought do their work. It is scary when those place dissolve to ash. Yet we’ve seen them afterwards, skeletal remains standing where they flourish on the edges as things start over again. Usually these are the best places for wildflowers and berries, which means wildlife.
Lest you think it’s all arts and crafts these days, I dedicated a good part of my Spring and Fall of 2017 teaching Environmental Education to Kindergartners-Fourth Graders.
Not so many years ago when I worked for the Southwest Land Alliance, I met and worked with Mrs. Hershey, the landowner and amazing conservationist who granted an easement on her property and fostered this Audubon program. In a small town, the connections were deeper than that; and over time and space, became more distant than ever.
In too short a time, I’d forgotten about the educational program that was being developed at the same time I helped conserve other properties, nearby. I had a zen moment [they call it a flashback] of the ED of the Land Trust hiking along with me on those very trails, and saying that someday, maybe I’d be back to share my knowledge of the San Juans with its Youth.
Over a decade later, I did volunteer and become an Environmental Educator; and it reconnected me with my Community in a way that I think I’ve needed for a long time. Unfortunately, I returned too late to rekindle a relationship with Mrs. Hershey who has passed on; but her memory and vision are alive and well on the Ranch.
I’d like to remind everyone that there are MANY worthy causes in YOUR community in need of your talents.
Since I’m not on Instagram—that’s another story for another time—I thought I’d share this pic I snapped recently of my desk and art projects in progress.
The problem for me with personal projects like these is motivation. A spark of creativity may flare up for a week or so; but if the work is not completed by the time the fire dies down, the project goes back on the shelf until the passion burns again. Sometimes they are never completed at all. On occasion, it might even be torn apart and sacrificed as a component for the next greatest thing.
Along these lines of art for art’s sake and feeding creativity, I participated in a pottery workshop with Gregory Wood at Chimney Rock National Monument last August. I stumbled across info about the workshop on Chimney Rock’s website and thought it would be a good motivator to visit this culturally rich landmark that is only about 10 miles from my home. I am so glad that I did.
If you have any interest in Ancient Puebloan (Anasazi) culture or pottery, you must attend one of Greg’s workshops. There is so much to learn! He can be found on the web here at http://ancientarts.org/
Our workshop at Chimney Rock was only three days long, but for over 20 years, Greg has offered week-long or longer courses at various sites, where each step and component of the process can be explored in further detail. Even though it felt a little rushed, the three day workshop worked well for my schedule. Here’s a brief summary of some of the things we learned and did:
Day 1 – After general introductions (I met a lot of very interesting and friendly people from a lot of different places), we jumped into talking about and grinding clay. Constructing our pottery took most of the rest of the day. We finished by painting a slip of creamy clay wash over the outside of our vessels, and burnished (polished) them with a smooth stone.
Day 2 – The next day started with a discussion of traditional designs, making paintbrushes and applying a sticky paint made from the bee plant. We excavated the kiln and screened the dirt for the leftover charcoal. Decorating our vessels filled the rest of the day, and we even took a field trip to paint next to the Great Kiva.
Day 3 – The last day, I finally had time to take some photos. As the students arrived, they placed their pieces next to the fire to pre-heat. It was quite the gathering, and quite the fire! There were long periods of waiting during the firing process, and most of us took a guided tour during the afternoon. When we returned, it was time to unearth our work. There were a few vessels that had popped when placed into the fire, but everyone’s were still intact. The final products were beautiful.
What else did I take away from this experience besides a new coffee mug?
Another creative love of mine is food, and I’ve been working with sourdough for the last year or so. Because of my interest in bread making, I bought a book about building an earth oven that has sat on my shelf for a few years. Adobe is another similar, but unfired, medium that I have thought about using as a decorative element in my garden. The knowledge I gained at this workshop gave me the confidence to move forward with these other ideas. I’ve started investigating the clay around my property and with the warmer weather, will start harvesting, preparing and playing in the mud.
Pueblo Del Arroyo, Chaco Canyon, NM
I am also intrigued by the culture of the Native Americans who have and still do call this area home. We have a wide array of tribes in the area including various Pueblo, Navajo, Ute, and Apache Nations. There are also a lot more National Monuments, Parks and places to visit nearby. For one of our next trips, I wanted to visit Chaco Canyon, which we did in November. I’ll share more about that trip soon.
The more I learn about history, the more I realize who came before me. How different were they from me? How much the same? The more knowledge I gain, the more I worry over how much we have lost. Participating in this workshop was just one way for me to connect with one of these ancient arts.
