2015-13 Navajo Lake to Durango Colorado

2015-13

Navajo Lake New Mexico:  continued
Durango Colorado

Campground:  Navajo Lake St Pk:  see previous report

La Plata County Fairgrounds

Campground:  La Palata County Fairgrounds, Durango Co.  $16.50 elect/water, no dump station.  Only 6 Rv sites available.  Nice river walk from fairgrounds to downtown Durango.  Strong Verizon cell phone signal and about 6 over-the-air tv stations.


After visiting Chaco Canyon, I could have visited a number of other pueblo/Great House sites that are also in the area.  Salmon Ruins and Aztec being the two that are close by.  Even though I’ve been to both of them in the past, I did return to Aztec Ruins again.  It is considered an outlying settlement of Chaco Canyon and many of the techniques in design and building of the two Great Houses can be attributed to the same Chaco Canyon influences.

a Kiva that has been completed reconstructed
using much of the original stonework

unusual design with 12 outer rooms overlooking the Kiva interior

The most unusual aspect of the two Great Houses (only one has been partially excavated) is it’s large Kiva.  Around the exterior, are a dozen rooms with high windows which look down into the main Kiva.  The Kiva has been completely reconstructed giving we explorers a unique perspective into these structures.  Descending into the Kiva, there is a hushed silence only broken by the occasional recorded Indian chants that would have been herd during a ceremony in this large circular structure.  Light streams through the dozen high window openings.  If you go, take the time to sit and absorb the spiritual essence of the place.

a number of the rooms still have their original
ceilings of wood and reed, approx 1,000 yrs old
and were found completely intact

Kindle Info:  If you have a Kindle reader here is little tip that might help you.  I own two Kindles and have finally filled both with over 100 books each.  How to delete those books I’ve already read.  I discovered if you hold down your finger on the book you’d like to delete for a few seconds, a menu will come up with “delete” as an option.  I was able to remove many books I’ve already read.  Of course the books remain in my “cloud” acct for my Kindles so if I ever want to retrieve them, I can.

Health on the road.  Walking has become my go-to exercise recently, even if it’s just around the campground where I’m staying.  A month or so back when we had some bad weather, I even went to a local Mall and walked around it for a mile or two.  I’m able to pick up any meds using Walgreens Drugstore and even get all of my yearly shots through them, like the flu shot.  Since I’ve been on a low-carb diet for the past 5 months I’ve even lost 16+ lbs.  Enough that I went out today and bought a couple new pairs of jeans  dropping a couple of inches around the waist.  Now that’s a nice feeling.

Distance Traveled:  52 miles.

Downtown Durango, looking at one of the newest
building, helping to keep this town vibrant

Definitely back road route from Navajo Lake to Durango Colorado.  I stopped in Ignacio a Ute Indian Reservation town and the Sky Ute Casino.  It was a nice stop along the way for a quick breakfast and throwing away a few dollars on the slot machines.  The casino and hotel are nicely arranged, spacious and even includes a bowling alley.  Then to complete the 30 minute drive into Durango.

Durango is of course the home of the Durango/Silverton railroad which is a spectacular train ride from Durango to the old silver mining town of Silverton.  Being right in town, I’ll have a better chance of checking out the local fare and seeing what it might be like to live in this part of Colorado.

the Durango and Silverton Railroad

After setting up at one of the fairgrounds 6 campsites, there started a pretty good storm.  Heavy rain, hail, thunder and lightning and the loud sound of fire trucks and emergency vehicle sirens as they raced to the aid of  vehicle accidents and such.  A pretty exciting way to start my stay in Durango.  Hail loudly pinging on the roof and slide outs of the camper added to the noise level.

The next day, expected to be mostly sunny for the day, I decided to walk the paved biking/walking path into town.  It runs along the Animas River and railroad tracks where I was able to see one of the Durango/Silverton trains heading out for the days journey to Silverton.  What a pleasant way to get in my walking exercise.  The trail into town is two miles each way, so I was able to get in my recommended amount of walking for the day.  Many of the shops were just beginning to open up as I arrived in town and of course I headed right to the first coffee shop I could find.  I was pleasantly surprised to see many of the patrons talking to each other rather than having their faces buried in their smart phones and lap tops.  Of course there was some of that but no where near to what I‘ve seen in some coffee shops.  I chatted with a woman from Arizona who was visiting her daughter and son who live in Durango and told her a bit about my Rv lifestyle.

a side stream going into the Animus River

paved bike/walking path near Durango Library

Animus River and rail tracks

almost at flood stage

the old and the new, Durango

a few historic buildings

always enjoy stopping at a local coffee shop

in front of the local News paper office

a small park and new apartments on the edge of Durango

they tell me Durango is an expensive place to live

Well, that’s about it for this week.

Have a great day and hope the sun shines on you this coming week.

more photos on Picasa