NEW MEXICO

 Once we got through the pass and into New Mexico the weather looked a lot better.  The mountains and high elevations got a lot of snow and we were lucky to miss that - mostly

 

We stayed outside of Santa Fe the first night then we moved closer into the city the next day.  We went into old town Santa Fe and walked around enjoying the old buildings and decor.  

 

I love the flat roof buildings and all the adobe.   We went on a tour of the Loretto Chapel .  It was a Roman Catholic church that is now a museum and used for weddings.  It was built  with an upper level, so the story goes, and then no way to access it. the unusual spiral staircase is the subject of legend as to its construction.  The sisters considered it miraculous.  There is an interesting movie about it which I had watched a couple years ago so it was fun to see in person.

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The next stop was the Randal Davey Audubon Center a short drive from Santa Fe.  We walked on  a loop trail around the area.  There were a lot of pines and cedars as we walked up quite a way.

The ground was actually damp because of the snow.  They were super happy to get moisture and didn't really care that it came in the form of "white"

I don't know what these pretty little grass type plants were but they were pretty interesting to me the way they curled up.
Then we walked down to the little center they had and looked around the area where they had bird feeders.  This time of year there aren't a lot of birds but we saw a few different species. We saw juncos, stellars jays, chickadees, pine siskens, spotted towhees, and finches.

 There was also a very nice patio area with an old house and huge beautiful cottonwood trees.  The cottonwood trees have been so beautiful, bright yellow that shine like gold in the sun

There was a pretty flower garden along there too but of course it is mostly past its blooming period.  But look at the pretty things the flowers left behind.

The next morning we headed out to Albuquerque.  We stayed outside the city at the Isleta Rv Resort and it was one of the nicest (and cheapest) places we have ever stayed.  I definitely got my steps in while we were there as I walked around the fishing lakes at least once a day.

Every morning and evening we saw and heard the sand hill cranes flying to and from their overnight home on the Rio Grande River to the feeding fields.  I have never seen that many and was hoping to see them in a field or along the river but no luck.  They winter in this area.

 There were a lot of water birds.  These American wigeon, some coots and herons and of course Canada geese and mallards.  I watched a couple of kingfishers hunting for lunch as well.

There was a train station very close to the resort so we decided to take it into ABQ instead of driving. When we got to the station we met a wonderful couple who gave us pointers on how to get to old town.  So once we got to the station in downtown ABQ we hopped on our very first Uber and headed to old town. Larry if you are reading this - I will clarify its our first Uber ride we had to PAY for.   It was fun to go for delicious Mexican food for  lunch and walk around enjoying the buildings and shops.

 The next day I had a list of things I would like to see.  Don picked the Boca Negra Canyon Trails - Petroglyph National Monument.

It was a long climb up the lava rocks.  See the cars way down there?

the formations of the lava were just as interesting as all of the petroglyphs.

It was fun to look at them and wonder what stories they were trying to tell.  I read that they were in the Rio Grande style of portraying clouds/rain, human and animal figures as well as geometric patterns.there were a ton of little squirrels and chipmunks running from rock to rock.

 there were also some really interesting plants. This one had tons of little pokey green pods.

This is a four-wing salt bush.  I saw these all along the highway and wondered what they were.  Native people ground and cooked the seeds to use as cereal.  The leaves were dried and mixed with other ingredients to make flour. 

The next day we drove to a little town called Truth or Consequences.  We stayed in a rustic but safe and friendly campground.  That night we went to the Riverbend Mineral Spa. All of the rock mineral pools overlook the Rio Grande river.  Across the river all of the trees have been lit up so they reflect in the water.  The trees at the spa were also decorated with pretty colored lights.  The sky was very dark and the stars were amazing.  I could not have imagined such a pretty place.  We had a nice soak after trying numerous pools.  Some were too hot and we finally found one that was just right!  You could stand up in and put your arms out over the rock edge.  It was wonderful.

The next morning we headed out for Las Cruces.  We are still here for another few days.  The first thing we did was go to old town Mesilla and eat at a Mexican restaurant we ate at twice the last time we were here.  The next day we went to a Farm and Ranch Heritage Museum. 

There were tons of hands on exhibits so of course I had to try and milk this cow.   I talked to a couple of ladies who were spinning yarn from the sheep that they have on the farm.  It was interesting to feel the raw unwashed wool and then see how they card it and spin into yarn.  They have all kinds of different sheep and raise all kinds of different breeds of cattle.There was a lot of mooing going on.  There was a saddle maker exhibit and lots of old tractors and cultivating tools that the animals would pull. There was an exhibit of the native American history of agriculture and you could even grind corn the old fashioned way.
They have lots of demonstrations there throughout the year and it would be a great place to visit on a regular basis if you lived nearby.

I was really excited to see these pistachio trees and pick one and peel off its sticky shell.

There was a green house and lots of cool old buildings and bridges and art work.  It was an enjoyable morning.
 We had a lazy day today which was quite enjoyable. We drove around the area and saw pecan orchards and some cotton fields and went for a walk.   Tomorrow - the farmers market!!