Southwest Spring Break Trip 2010 - Friday, March 19

We woke up at 6:15.  During the night I had lain awake marveling at how warm I was, instead of laying awake because I was too cold.  The kids made no fuss at all about getting up so early.  They happily climbed out of their warm sleeping bags and got dressed!  I was very proud of them.  We reached the Great Kiva at 6:45, in the dark.  We had our headlamps and the kids were wrapped up in blankets. 


Great Kiva-Casa Rinconada, Chaco Canyon

The ranger explained that the sun going North to South to the solstice points and at the equinox it is at it's midpoint.  They cannot prove that the windows next to the Great Kiva were situated so that the sun would shine through them on the equinox, but it seems very likely.  He talked about how in our world, we are out of touch with this sort of thing because we have other ways of keeping time.  The ancient peoples needed to find patterns and other means of measuring time. 


Jack Waiting for Sunrise

 It was cloudy and actually one day before the solstice but the sun still rose through the window and it was very cool.

Jack at the Grand Kiva - Casa Rinconada, Chaco Canyon, NM

We finally left and went to take down our campsite.  We needed to be out of the valley (on the bad Chaco road!) and on the freeway by 11 am so I could call the Guthrie.  Our favorite band, Storyhill, is having their CD release show there and tickets went on sale at 11 am.  I got them, 3rd row center!

We headed north to Colorado, stopping at some antique stores on the way.  I was on a quest for antique campfire coffee pots.  So are a lot of other people, apparently...there were hardly any to be found.

Hwy. 550, NM/CO Border

We were watching the weather due to snow moving in to Colorado. 

We stopped at our favorite "bean and hot sauce" place, Adobe Milling in Dove Creek, CO and then we wound our way through a vast, sparsely populated area of SW Colorado.  Snow squalls moved through periodically but nothing accumulated. 

Snow Squall Over the Uncompaghre Plateau

It was beautiful. 



Dolores River Canyon, Western Colorado

 We got a room in Grand Junction with a pool.  It was nice to be warm at night!