Sometimes I have the stupidest ideas!

And, God love him, Dick is always trying to keep me happy, so he goes along with 'em!  Next time, I've asked him to protect me from my own self!  So, what's this all about, anyway?  Well, you know that on Monday, we visited the Petroglyphs National Monument, with every intention of hiking a bit and seeing petroglyphs.  BUT, we met Star & Rich, and had such a good time sharing stories and experiences, that time just flew by, and before we knew it, it was after 3 pm.  Obviously, there was no time for hiking after that, with the idea that we'd get up early and head back out again in the morning.

We hadn't geocached in New Mexico yet, so we picked out a few that were in the vicinity of the park, and headed out to climb rocks and find caches.  We found the first one, no trouble, and then headed over to Boca Negra Canyon.  This section was the closest to the Visitor's Center, and there were two trails.  We had asked about difficulty, and it was suggested that we choose the one at the 2nd parking lot, as it was not as steep or difficult.  As we drove up, though, the escarpment didn't LOOK all that high, and we could see some cement steps, so, how hard could it be?  Yes, it was steep, but we had Bailey with us, so she could help me up the stairs, right?  We discussed doing the easy one first, and if I still felt ok, we could tackle this one....but then, I thought, we were fresh now, so maybe we should tackle this one first.  

 First, though, it's important to observe the official safety notices.  You'll be glad to note, we stayed on all the designated trails, we didn't disturb or handle the wildlife, and we didn't collect any rocks, plants or animals.

This was the first set of etchings we came upon.  Didn't have a clue what they meant, either.

And, right here is where I caught sight of the steep slope and the valley below.  Yeah, this where I might have had to sit down and collect my thoughts.  You know heights are not my forte.

And this is the view from my resting spot.

As we proceeded up the trail, we came upon lots more carvings.  Here you can see a bird and a box.  What do you think is in the box?  We don't have any idea.

We decided this might be a leaf.

Or maybe a spear?

Don't worry, we were still on the trail.

After quite a while, we made it all the way up to the top, then we had to come back down!  It took a loooong time, and it was NO fun, no fun at ALL.  I know exposure to your phobias is supposed to reduce the phobias, but, let me be the first to say...IT DOESN'T WORK!  If there hadn't been something interesting to see, there is no way I would have traveled to the top of that rock pile.  As it is, I'm not really sure the view was worth it!!

Anyway, now that we were sufficiently tired, and my back was really bothering me, it was time to tackle the "easy" trail.  Yeah, you might detect a bit of sarcasm there.  Maybe, just maybe.  Along the way, we met Antone & Eva, from Austria.  Not Australia, Austria.  No kangaroos in Austria, we were assured.  They've been in the USA for about 14 days, and boy, have they been places!  Best I can recall, they've been to Las Vegas, Moab, San Fransisco, oh gosh, now I'm drawing a blank!  But, they really have been traveling for many miles, and they have many more to go!  Safe travels, new friends!!  Thank you for sharing a few moments with us!

Thankfully, this was the only snake we saw!

 Dick thought this was a peacock, but, I dunno, I don't think they had many peacocks hanging around the mountains back in those days.

Driver made it all the way to the top and took lots of pictures with his new camera.

After we conquered the two petroglyph areas, we rode out to view the 3 volcanoes that created the escarpment oh, so long ago.  There are 5, in total, but only 3 were close enough to view together.

No need to worry, we had no intention of staying past 5 pm!

So, from left to right, we have Vulcan Volcano, Black Volcano & Ja Volcano.  You could walk out a paved path to the one on the right, then over to the middle one, then alllllll the way around the left one, and return back to the pavilion area. All together, the walk would have been around 3.5 miles.  Dick was all for it, but you know who and I were exhausted from the earlier hikes.  You can click on that panoramic to enlarge it, and if I did it right, it MIGHT even be a 360* photo.  Maybe.

While we were off exploring, Bailey was quite content to rest in the shade.  She kept her eyes on us the whole time, but she never moved until we told her it was time to go.  There was no way that poor dog was going down another path, and I sure couldn't leave her there by herself, could I?

John& Lora, Dick and I both hope you enjoy hiking, 'cuz ONE of us wants to hike lots, and TWO of us just don't have it in us.  Y'all can have all the fun, doesn't hurt my feelings a bit!  Honey, please take lots of pictures, our friends will want to see where you went!

Next up, Isleta Pueblo and Old Town Albuquerque.  Till then, y'all be safe!