15 SEP 2010

We left Carlsbad, NM this morning with a goal to get to Santa Fe. We were not sure exactly where we would stay and considered tenting since the elevation at Santa Fe is about 8,000 feet and this is October, so considered tenting as an option. But at the same time we checked out hotel deals and found that we could get a room with breakfast in Santa Fe for 41.00 per night. We decided to drive over and see what to do when we got there.

As we drove we really realized that the country side is much like Saskatchewan or Manitoba. At one town, we think it was Artesia, NM, we noticed a really good cowboy statue and had to grab a picture of it. I was driving and fortunately there was a stop light right in front of the statue, so I grabbed it while waiting.

Then we considered stopping in Roswell where there is a museum for UFO sightings. However there was alot of road construction happening in front so we decided it was not that important. So travel on we did. The next stop of interest was Cline’s Corners. This is a gas station, cafe, truck stop and tourist store on the corner of the old Hwy 66 and Hwy 285 (which we were on). Apparently this is the 3rd location for this gentleman’s business since he has had to move it each time the freeway changed locations and that has been 3 times. He has been persistent for sure and his business seems to be thriving.

The country side started to show signs of foothills and other than the red soil, seemed to have more definition and hills. Lots of flat land but at least the flat land is framed with hills in the distance and some dips and rises on the flats around.

Santa Fe is very beautiful city with the adobe houses lining the hills. The soft edges of the houses and flat roofs complete with the earth tone colors really causes the urban area to blend in with the hills around. I found the hills familiar because they remind me of Kamloops. The major difference is that Santa Fe is at 7000 feet and Kamloops is at 1200 feet approx. The difference is altitude is compensated by the latitude.

We learned the KOA campsite is about 23 miles outside of town so choose to check into a hotel. Now if I had booked this hotel online I could get it for 41 per night. However at the front desk we are quoted 58 so I said I would just go out to the parking lot and use my blackberry to book online. Of course, I pointed out, the company taking the booking would take their commission and so the hotel would get less than 41... but if they would let us have it at that rate without the internet they could keep the commission. The logic kind of worked, they brought the price down to 45 per night, so we decided to accept that rate.

We had decided that we wanted to see some Cliff Dwellings, and Wes discovered a hike in town similar to the Kenna Cartwright. So we set plans into place to do the Cliff Dwellings in the morning and the hike later in the afternoon to avoid the heat...that was the plan. To help with the plans we scouted out the trailhead for the Atalaya Lookout Trail.

This was located beside the St. John’s College which was founded in 1696 as a preparatory school, King William's School; the school received a collegiate charter in 1784, making it one of the oldest institutions of higher learning in the United States. This is just a side note.

What we learned is that at 7:15 almost on the dot the daylight changes to nightfall – no dusk involved. Light to dark but at least I was able to take some very nice sunset shots. We headed downtown to explore and find dinner. We found a bar that had a disco night so we stopped in for a check it out. We had a chance to meet and talk to some local guys and enjoy a drink. However, we did not stay for the disco music because we wanted to get an early start in the morning.