Visiting the new Bear's Ears National Monument - Wow! post2

On one of the busiest US Holidays of the year, we see exactly one other family who came to view the ruins next to camp.

One of our favorite camp breakfasts is Rösti. I first had this in a hut in Switzerland while skiing the Haute Route. The hash-browns come dehydrated so they're really lightweight and compact. Rehydrate them with boiled water, fry them up slowly with lots of butter and olive oil. Patience, patience. They get wonderfully crispy if you can just bring yourself to cook them a little longer...then add shredded cheese (Ementhaler and/or Gruyere are favorites), melt. Finish it off with eggs over the top, poached (by putting a lid on) or stir in. YUM!

 

breakfast is served

 Leisurely, leisurely we got ready to explore around camp...ruins to see, a viewpoint to explore.

off to see the ruins

the desert was blooming

3 structures. two tucked under, one (of many) up on the point (right skyline below tree)

we were told the one on the right is nicknamed "Boulder Tower"

that section of Comb Ridge back there is a presence

I'm a sucker for lichen patterns

the view was spectacular. 180˚ required 17 photos. 

I love cactus flowers. they're incredibly soft delicate and come from a plant that's so hardy and harsh

spotted what looked like a granary across the valley - a stone's throw from camp

I'm thinking it's a tarantula burrow...

back to camp, lunch and reading PeterPan

we pitched the sunshade

 After lunch we took another walk; this time South along the rim

the Mormon Tea was blooming too (aka Ephedra)

yup, it was a granary!

jasper

O's a pretty good walker but...

so colorful

here's one of the things we just love about this area. we had just spent the morning walking over to the viewpoint in this picture (top skyline). we spotted a granary from there, across the canyon. now, from the granary, we see that we were right over at least five more structures. we LOVE the sense of discovery this place gives

desert in bloom...

jackrabbit!

back at camp, it's tree-play time until day's end, things little boys do

A tour of the American Southwest 5

Holbrook is a dinosaur-happy place.

But I digress.

It was a cold morning as we checked out of the hotel. Petrified Forest National Park was our day's destination so we headed up I-40 to the visitor center. Big strategic mistake. We should have taken Hwy 180 SE to the southern entrance and worked our way north. That way we would have had time to see the whole thing without doubling back. Oh well, next time...

We came for the petrified logs but what impressed us the most, in the end was the petroglyphs. Not because of the paltry number we were able to sorta see from afar – because of the ones you're not allowed to visit but can see in the book Tapamveni. HOLY CRUD there are a lot of petroglyphs there. This was a major Native American settlement and cultural hub!

see that big block in the lower middle? that's the photo below

just one of the massive petroglyph panels you can't actually walk up to (or even get close)

Down into the badlands...

Petrified logs are much harder than the clay they're in, so they often end up on the very top of ridges...and then they roll down into the gullies.

We had to hurry back so's to not get caught by a closed highway. Snow was falling back home again.