Sites of Ancestral Puebloan Ruins (Anasazi)

Another long pause from posting travel information makes me feel like a poor communicator. Again, limited access to internet but also working with a deadline to be in Las Vegas by the 18th, put bloging on a back burner for awhile. In trying to catch up I realized that we really had packed more adventures into that short time frame than we thought possible.


After leaving Albuquerque, along with Chuck and Julie, we visited several sites containing pueblo ruins. In the past the people who built these south western complexes were called Anasazi. However, within the last decade, the twelve tribes who are descendents of these builders have rejected the Navajo label Anasazi and prefer to be called Ancestral Puebloans. One ranger explained that the Navajo came to this area after the Puebloans abandoned their cities and the Navajo term, Anasazi, means ancient people or ancient enemy. Today’s pueblo dweller descendants now wish to change that label.

Aztec, New Mexico

The first ruins we visited was the Aztec Ruins in Aztec New Mexico. Some of the original Anglo settlers, believing this site was built by the Aztec people from Mexico, miss-named the town and the name stuck even when the true origin of the builders was identified.

Aztec was a large planned city with excellently constructed brick work of over 400 contiguous rooms and a large central Kiva, that has been rebuilt. This city of ruins, although unprotected by overhanging cliffs, retains complete rooms, undisturbed T shaped entry ways, and some perfect 90 degree corners, indicating that there was a master plan for the organization of the entire complex.
The site was first uncovered in 1859 by a geologist named John Newberry. However between then and 1889, looters and settlers seeking building materials, removed countless artifacts, including some human remains.

In 1916 The American Museum of Natural History began sponsoring excavations and in 1988 Aztec became a National Monument. There is another section of ruins, the East ruin, that is only partially excavated.
































Mesa Verde National Park, Colorado


More ruins are viewable at Mesa Verde National Park, Colorado, where the journey begins on a winding mountain road that rises from the desert floor, traveling up over 15 miles, to an elevation of more than 8000 feet at the park entrance.

This mesa resembles a hand with fingers splayed and deep canyons between each finger of land. At one time hundreds of villages and farming areas covered each of these areas. Archeological findings indicate that Mesa Verde was inhabited for at least 700 years before being abandoned as were the many other villages in this four corners area.

The four corners is where Colorado, Utah, New Mexico and Arizona all meet at the same spot. You can actually go to this spot and stand in all four states at once. When viewing the many cliff dwelling sites you pass back and forth between these states often, sometimes it gets very confused as to just which state you are in.


Unlike the Aztec ruins, Mesa Verde’s city complexes, that were built on the mesa top, have not stood the rigors of time and weather. Remains of the dwellings are only low walls and towers outlining past buildings. However, Mesa Verde’s gems are the many superior cliff dwellings that are almost intact and can be visited with a ranger tour guide. As in other ruins, it appears that the majority of residents lived on the mesa tops, where crops of corn and squash were grown. At the Far View Village, on the mesa top, irrigation ditches and farming terraces were spread out for acres around the village.

The origin and reasons the cliff dwellings were constructed has many theories, however, these spaces held a much smaller number of people than the cities above. We were able to tour two of the cliff sites. Balcony House, which is a smaller cliff dwelling but the most challenging to get in and out of. It requires climbing up a 30 foot ladder to enter, and crawling through a 12 foot long, 18 inch wide tunnel to get out. Archeologists believe this site was occupied by two families. It contains two Kivas, which are now thought to be living quarters during cold times. Today’s Hopi Kivas are used for ceremonial purposes, so researchers first assumed the same function for the ancient Kivas. Newer theories, based on recent evidence, point to a more utilitarian use.


The second site we were able to see was Cliff Palace, a much larger complex, although, again, archeologists theorize many of the rooms were used as storage for grain. At Cliff Palace, the masonry shows many different makers. Some of the walls are made with precisely cut and placed bricks, while others, right next to them, are somewhat slap-dash in their construction. To quote the ranger, “looks like everyone did there own thing here”.

Ancestral Puebloans lived in these cliff dwelling for less that 100 years. As in other puebloan sites, it was deserted around 1300. Some theories are that the last quarter of the 1200s saw extensive and prolonged drought and crop failure that may have caused a southern migration. It is also thought that hundreds of years of intensive land use depleted the soil, or maybe there was social or political disturbances that caused communities to dissolve. Good guesses, but it looks like we will never know the real reasons.

There are many more sites and trails available to see at Mesa Verde. However by the time we finished our two tours, it was late in the day, in fact, we were just able to grab a cup of coffee five minutes before the café closed at 5. Another place we have put on our list as a “must return” site. We could not return tomorrow because we had to move on toward Las Vegas by the 15th to meet Linda and John Miles.











The only way in










Part of Balcony House - a cliff duplex















One Kiva, minus the roof








































The only way out
















Cliff Palace from above

Monument Valley and Navajo National Monument

We left the Burwells in Cortez the next morning and traveled on to Monument Valley where John Ford made many of his John Wayne movies. These magnificent red buttes and stark mesas rise up out of the flat landscape into namable shapes, such as left and right mitten. The light in the southwest is entirely different than what we see in the east, but the dawn and sunset illumination is like nothing you see anywhere else. The red cliffs seem to be on fire as the sun sinks lower and lower in the evening sky. By closing your eyes, you can almost see John Wayne and the Calvary galloping at high speed between the buttes, dodging the Indians as they pour down off the mesas.

Look close--can you see the Calvary coming?

Left and Right mitten

We stopped briefly at the Navajo National Monument, which was not far from Monument Valley, and is another site where cliff dwellings are well preserved. Their ranger tours ended in September, so we were only able to view this place from high on the opposite canyon wall. It was a pleasant walk down to the viewing site and with our binoculars we got a decent look into the 450 foot high cave where the135 rooms housed over 100 people at one time.

The canyons at Navajo National Monument

The village built inside the cave shown below housed about 100-125 people.

This cave is 450 feet high, 370 feet wide and 135 feet deep.

Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta

Friday, the adventure really got going. In the morning we picked up a 23 foot class C camper to use over the weekend. Our little truck job has no shower or toilet and although the Fiesta campground has water and electricity, there are no bathrooms at all. The few porta-pottys we did see were about half a mile away, so we decided to live it up for three days.



We took our place at the Balloon Fiesta campground located across the main road from Fiesta Park, around 11:00. I could not believe how many large motor homes were here. The number 1700 was heard somewhere, but it sure seemed like 17,000 to me. We again had a great set up, side by side, with the “patio” between our campers.



Chuck, Bob, and Marlin had signed up for a tour of the Trinity site on Saturday. This is the place where the first atomic bomb was constructed and exploded. They had a talk on Friday night and an all day bus trip on Saturday. At the Friday night lecture, one of the original photographers presented pictures that were taken during 1944 and 1945 when initial preparations were taking place and during the actual bomb blast. This trip was coordinated through the Atomic Museum in Albuquerque and several people who had actually worked on this bomb project were docents on the tour bus. Marlin was amazed that this original atomic bomb was constructed in an old farm house and the parts were transported there in a 1942 Plymouth sedan. This Trinity site is only opened to the public twice a year.






Julie, Glen and I got up at 5 AM with them and went to the park for the Dawn Patrol and the first Mass Ascension of the Fiesta. At this point, I must warn you that my excitement level was at an all time high, so lots of pictures of balloons will follow. This was one of the most thrilling events I have been to in a long time.

At the “Dawn Patrol” nine to twelve balloons inflate, ignite, and take off just before dawn. Their job is to check out the wind patterns but what a rush to watch them for the first time, initiating the process in the dark. Words simply cannot convey the thrill this entire event generates. First of all, there are hundreds, and eventually thousands, of people right there on the grass among the balloons. The entire crowd seemed to be very considerate of the silk pouches laid out on the grass, the support staff tugging on long ropes, and those working at holding down the gondolas after the balloons were inflated. It was great to be in such a calm group of spectators when the excitement level was so high.

The Mass Ascension began with the Green and Turquoise Albuquerque City balloon going up first, trailing a large American flag from the bottom of its basket, while the National Anthem played. Then, wave after wave of balloons took off, all choreographed by the “zebras” who are similar to referees right down to their striped clothing and ear splitting whistle blowing to move the crowds out of the way.

There were a total of 350 balloons on the first day’s Mass Ascension. I would have sworn it was 35,000 but I already mentioned my hyper state. At one point, the three of us were in the middle of a dozen balloons either taking off, inflating with a fan, or firing the propane jets to start their lift off. Over to our left was an entirely black shape just beginning to fill with air. We watched it grow bigger and bigger, but could not determine what it would be. At last it began to tip upright and with a shout someone said “It’s Darth Vader”. It was huge and all black, with the gas jets going off, it sounded just like his breathing. To top this off, the balloon was accompanied by several ground crew, dressed as storm troopers, attempting to keep the spectators at bay.

The official report said there were 98 special shape balloons for this years fiesta. You will see a few in the pictures. My favorites were, of course, Darth Vader and also Lilly Bee and Joey Little Bee who inflated and flew together. Some of the other fun shapes were Nellie B the pink elephant, Gus T Guppie a fish, Ham-let a pink pig, Enchanted Duckie who looked like Tweedy Bird, Smokey The Bear, a huge pink and black haunted house and a lot more creative characters.

The thrills continued for almost two hours. Just when you thought they were finished, another wave would begin to inflate and rise up behind you. About 9:00 you could feel the wind begin to pick up and shortly thereafter some of the flyers, that had begun to blow up there balloons, let them fall back to the ground to wait for calmer skies.

The weather went down hill for the rest of the day and the Twilight Twinkle Glow was cancelled for Saturday night. We went back to the field around 7pm for a fantastic fire works show and hoped the wind would blow itself out overnight so that Sunday’s planned events would still take place.

Sunday did dawn calm and clear, so off all six of us went again a 5:30 am to see the Dawn Patrol and Mass Ascension. There was no less excitement the second time around, but the wind was stronger today, so after take off, the balloons flew very low and dispersed at a much quicker rate than the day before. This made it seem like there were fewer take offs, but in reality, their were just as many as on Saturday and just as much oohing and aahing.

Sunday night was a go for the Balloon Glow. This is where the balloons stay tethered to the ground, but blow up and light the gas jets after dark. They are squeezed together touching side by side in about 15 or 20 rows, each row having at least 12 to 15 balloons, firing their propane burners off and on at random times. Then, when you least expect it, they all fire simultaneously, lighting up the whole field. The colors you see in the day are wonderful but this night show, with all the balloons so closely packed together, made me jump up and down with excitement. The glow lasts for about an hour and a half and shortly after it ends, the fireworks show begins. This was another outstanding spectacle in the sky, which we topped of with brownies and ice cream at the Burwell trailer. Julie is always prepared with scrumptious deserts.

The balloon fiesta continues for another seven days, however, our stay was complete on Monday morning. We expected to simply pack up and depart but when I woke up about 6 o’clock, it was just getting light and I saw a balloon passing over the campground. The dawn patrol was on the job checking the winds and weather. By the time I knocked next door so they could see the balloons, more were in the skies. Today was a “Balloon Fiesta Hold Um” Race, where the pilots receive some playing cards and have to drop two markers onto giant cards that are placed on the ground, choosing the right cards to make their best hands. This is pretty tricky when the temperatures are low and the wind is blowing.

As we watched, we saw some of the flying balloons head for an empty field within our sight, drop down low and toss out a marker. One or two of them actually touched down, we could tell by the swaying gondola as they gained height. It was a new treat to have this different view as the waves of balloons came toward us and then passed over our heads. I even climbed up on Chuck’s trailer roof for an unobstructed view and more pictures.

After this unexpected bit of excitement, we had to say good by to the Baldwins who were meeting old college friends at a near by motel. It had been a very fast five days filled with some fun memories. We left at the same time and drove across the city to turn in our temporary home and reconnect with our pop up before heading north to Mesa Verde National Park and a new adventure.

Later in the day we heard that one of the balloons had experienced a tragic accident where one woman lost her life. When we read the details we assumed we had seen this balloon as it passed over us earlier in the morning.






Dawn Patrol

Da Da Da Da Da Da Da

Joey Little Bee and Lillie Bee

Glen and me on the mid way with some new TALL friends

Filling a balloon with cold air at the beginning of inflation.

Balloon Glow

All Glow (almost)

Monday Morning from our camper

New Mexico

Dropping down out of Carson National Forest we drove into Taos, New Mexico. It was still early in the day so when the visitors center mentioned a special celebration and artists show out at the Taos Pueblo, we went to take a look. The Taos Pueblo has been, and still is, inhabited by Native Americans for over 1000 years. Pueblo is a Spanish word meaning village or village dweller. Residents there maintain historic and religious traditions, yet at the same time they participate in main-stream culture, particularly the arts.



The events today were the culmination of their religious celebration for St Geronimo, the patron saint of the Taos Pueblo. On this special day the community asked that no cameras, cell phones, or animals be brought into the Pueblo.


Hundreds of artists were set up in the plaza showing hand made jewelry, pottery, rugs, weaving, and baked goods, to name a few. We wandered through many of the booths and talked with some of the artisans about their work. The maker of intricately designed pottery told me that the paint on her pots was made from spinach, boiled to a thick paste, dried on corn husks, then mixed with water and used to paint the historically authentic geometric designs. When asked if the perfectly spaced configurations were sketched in at first, she said, no, she just used her hand to judge where each line should be placed.


Part of today’s celebration was to include an appearance of the sacred clowns and a traditional pole climb, where several men attempt to climb an 80 foot smooth pole to retrieve gifts that had been tied to the top before dawn. At about 1:00 the clowns, painted from head to foot with black and white horizontal stripes, appeared on the highest pueblo roof top. They danced and hollered for awhile, then made their way down three more roof levels to the ground. We assumed this would be the start of the pole climb, but the clowns then began making their way through the rows of artists tents, playing pranks on anyone of their choosing. We waited and watched for the next hour but when we realized the pole climb would not begin until the clowns had roamed through all the tents, we reluctantly had to move on since we had 50 miles to go before meeting up with Chuck and Julie.


The Burwells were camped in a town called Las Vegas, NM. Residents claim they were the first Las Vegas, however, it bears no resemblance to the Nevada one. This is a small berg on the high desert about 50 miles south east of Santa Fe. It was pretty exciting to drive into the campground and see Julie waving at us from the back of her camper. Even though we have met some very interesting people over the last two months, there is nothing like seeing someone from home after all this time away. We had a great reunion, lots of talking and trading stories.


Later in the evening, Heather, a woman who worked at the campsite, came by to visit. She had been born in Lewiston, ME, by Canadian parents, and even though she had lived in Oklahoma for 25 years, she was sure we were related somehow or knew some of her relatives in Bar Harbor. She called her mother and asked about her Maine relatives. None of the names were familiar to us but her enthusiasm was contagious and we had a few laughs with her anyway. Campers love to make connections, no mater how implausible.


We stayed in Las Vegas only one night, then moved to Santa Fe. It is hard to believe, but here it is October 1 already. It seems like such a short time ago that it was February and we were making reservations for this years balloon fiesta in Albuquerque.


The first day together we took Chuck and Julie to the Georgia O’Keefe art museum, browsed the shops in Old Santa Fe, and had lunch in an outdoor café.



Both Santa Fe and Albuquerque have managed to preserve their oldest areas and town squares, which now these spaces are a center for tourist shops, art galleries, and high end stores carrying quality pieces of work. Window shopping there is like spending the day at a museum.


On Wednesday we headed for Bandelier National Monument where some ancient pueblo ruins are located. This pueblo was estimated to have around 700 inhabitants while it was occupied sometime around 1200 AD.



There were two separate dwelling areas. One was a large circular configuration on the flat ground near the stream.









The second section was built high into the cliffs that were made of tuff, a rock created from volcanic ash.



About a million years ago there were two violent volcanic eruptions which left over 1000 feet of ash that eventually turned into stone. The rock is soft enough to scrape with primitive tools, so there are many caves hollowed into the cliff face, in front of which the people built two or three stories of adobe brick and log houses. We speculated that this housing arrangement was not much different than today, where the rich people live high up and the poor folks live down on the fields where the work is!



That afternoon, Bob and Glen Baldwin flew in from Maryland and arrived at our campsite. More familiar faces with past experiences that we share. Julie had set out a rug, table and chairs between their trailer and the next camper so it was just like home with our own patio. We ate out there and visited until late in the evening, catching up with their doings and news about the Baldwin boys and grandchildren.

Canyonlands National Park

Canyonlands National Park is not as touted as Arches National Park, but we both decided it had much more to offer. Part of the issue may be that Canyonlands must be seen at three different locations which are many miles apart. One section, called “Island in the Sky”, overlooks the Colorado River on the East and the Green River on the west, from a height of 2000 feet. Even this Mesa is divided into three parts.

Another piece is 20 miles south of Moab, then 48 miles on an access road called “The Needles” which is at a lower elevation, where you look up at tall narrow fingers of rock formations. The last area is in the western section, called “The Maze“. The Maze can only be approached via 50 miles of 4 wheel drive only roads. This most remote portion of the park is full of unmarked twisting trails through endless rock canyons and spires. No support or services offered here, this is for the extreme adventure lovers in the population. From the looks of Moab, this town is an where the young and active congregate before jumping off into an excursion on bikes, jeeps, 4 wheelers, kayaks, or river rafts.

We drove to the Island in the Sky and nailed down a campsite at Dead Horse campground. The Dead Horse finger is actually a State Park, on the east side of the bird foot shaped Mesa. Dead Horse got its name from a legend about cowboys driving wild horses out onto the very end of this toe, closing the entrance with brush, and culling the best of the stock out for sale. One time, the story goes, the culls were left out there by mistake and perished from lack of water. Picture the narrow entrance to one of these “toes” shut tight and all around the edge is a 2000 foot rock strewn drop to the river below.

The pictures do not even come close to capturing the color, depth or beauty of these canyons. It did not help that we were touring in the middle of the day when the sun is too bright for any kind of decent photography. That did not stop us from taking photos, even though we knew they would be sub par. In the afternoon, realizing the poor and repetitious quality in the pictures, we left the camera in the car to go for a short hike. Naturally, this offered us some unique rock formations on a picturesque trail in the fading light of late afternoon!

Mesa arch appeared after a short walk on a trail through some neat Juniper and Pinyon Pine trees. Looking through Mesa arch, you are able to see “The Washer Woman” arch. In one stop you can see Canyonland’s only two arches. Can you pick out the “washer woman” in the picture? She is pretty big and the arch is the space between her arms and her washboard.

The next day we took the three mile Murphy’s Point hike that ventured out across some flat desert land that was once a ranch. An old rutted road, a wooden coral and a rotting shed are all that remain of the ranch. This left us wondering what ever happened to Murphy when Canyonlands became a park in 1964. The view from the point overlooked the Green River at the bottom of layers of sheer red cliffs and spires. Just to the south of Island in the Sky, the Colorado and the Green rivers converge. This is a great spot for roiling rapids that rafters love, but it is not visible from the Mesa.

One of the fascinating features you see below, from any vantage point, is the White Rim Road. Half way to the river, probably 1000 or more feet down from the Mesa, is a geological layer of white sandstone that is harder than the rock above or below it. Because this white sandstone erodes much slower, it has created a wide plateau. On this level there is a road, if you can call it that, that circles the entire Island in the Sky mesa. The road can be seen from most all viewpoints on the high ground. The river is still 1000 feet below that plateau, so adventurers traveling this road stop at overlooks to gaze down on more crumbling rock canyons between them and the river. Vehicles, 4 wheel drives of course, crawl along like ants, at about 10 miles per hour. The road is 100 miles long and it takes two to three days to complete the trip.

We watched a group of bicycle riders through our binoculars as they paused for lunch near their support truck. That seemed like a fun trip, since the truck was hauling all the heavy stuff. However, watching the riders leave their lunch stop and bounce over the rocky rutted road I began to think a double pair of padded bicycle shorts would be necessary by the end of the day.

More time was called for to enjoy this park but we were meeting the Burwells down in New Mexico, so we took off and headed that way. Saturday night we spent in Carson National Forrest at 9,954 feet after driving through snow and a very strong head wind. This is a beautiful forrest that reminded us of home.




Fisher tower. You may have seen this on TV with a car on top














The Colorado looks like a flowing river of melted milk chocolate.












Dead Horse State Park adjacent to Canyonlands on the same mesa













It is 2000 feet down to the river








Shafer Trail leading down into the canyon and connecting to the White Rim road.












The Colorado River below.













Mesa Arch with the La Sal mountains













Can you see the Washer Woman Arch?












Mesa Arch with Washer Woman Arch in the background













The White Rim plateau. The road can be seen on the right side of the picture

Dinosaur National Park

Moving south, we drove through Flaming Gorge National Monument, stopping at a few overlooks for pictures of the red canyons and reservoir, but continuing along toward Dinosaur National Park, which is located on the border between Utah and Colorado. The Utah section is where the large deposits of dinosaur bones were found in an eroded sandstone deposit on the banks of the Green River. The Carnegie Museum in Pennsylvania has 12 complete dinosaur skeletons taken from this location. After excavating thousands of bones from this cliff, it was decided to leave the remainder in place in order that they could be viewed and studied as they were found.

A visitors building was built utilizing the rock face, where millions of these bones still remain, as the back wall of the structure. Visitors were able to watch paleontologists while they worked at revealing additional skeleton pieces cemented in the sandstone rock. Unfortunately, last year the foundations in this unique building began to crumble and it was closed in the interest of safety. Estimates for reopening were given as 3 to 5 years.

So, we only got to see a few bones displayed at the temporary visitors center. However, there was a great campground right on the Green River that we stayed at for three days. We had a huge site so we took the opportunity to set up our new screen tent, then just lazed around and enjoyed it.

One hike we took paralleled the Green River with views of an eroded rock mound called Split Mountain on the opposite river bank. The path ended at a large deserted campground with a boat landing that was currently in use. Walking through this “ghost town” facility was eerie. Two sites closest to the boat landing were still open for large groups, most likely held for Green River rafting excursions. The ranger we asked about the closure did not have any explanation. Maybe he was new in the area.

Down a long dirt road, in the adjoining BLM (Bureau of Land Management) land, was the remains of a homesteader’s ranch. This had belonged to a woman named Josie, who came here in her 40’s, built a small log cabin, raised her food and some stock, using water from a local spring. At one point she was involved in a dispute over the water, with the final ruling declaring that if her spring water entered the stream claimed by the other defendant, that water would also belong to the person with stream water rights. This did not stop Josie. She made multiple ponds, and even flooded her fields to contain ALL her spring water. Tough folks here in the west where water is the most valuable commodity.

We hated to leave this tranquil spot, however, we needed to heard toward New Mexico and still wanted to stop at Canyonlands National Park, so we headed out on Monday, 9/24





Flaming Gorge reservoir











Our new screen tent at Green River campground, Dinosaur National Park
















Finally, Marlin's back side instead of mine.













The Green River with Split Mountain in the background

Mountain Man Museum, Pine Dale, WY

We had seen a notation on the road map for the Mountain Man Museum in Pinedale, Wyoming, so we headed that way, camping at Freemont Lake for the night. This period of history, from about 1820 through about1845, has always been of interest for Marlin. He has read about all the heroes and legends from that era, so we were hoping this would be an interesting stop and we were not disappointed.

Local town folk from as far back as 1935 have been collecting period artifacts and information about the fur trading years. It has been an ongoing project within the community to collect, store and exhibit these materials. Pinedale is located on the Green River, where six out of the sixteen “Rendezvous” took place.

Rendezvous was the time and place, once a year, where the fur trappers came out of the mountains to met with buyers and vendors, to sell there beaver pelts and re-supply themselves for the next year of trapping. Before the creation of rendezvous by William Ashley, the major fur companies built trading posts, or houses, that Indians and trappers traveled to in order to sell their winters work.

In 1825, Ashley, after several setbacks in the fur business, set out, with wagon loads of goods to exchange supplies for beaver pelts, on Henry’s folk in the Green River. What started as a one day experiment in 1825, with about 120 participants, evolved into a month long event, that, at times, included as many as 3000 trappers, fur buyers, vendors, and Indians. Word of mouth carried the location of the yearly event as it moved from place to place. However, with the decline in the demand for beaver pelts, which coincided with the change in fashion from beaver, to silk top hats, the last rendezvous was held in 1840.

One of the things I enjoyed here was the biographical sketches on some of the well known people in the fur trade such as Kit Carson, Jedediah Smith, John Colter, and William Sublette, to name only a few. Most of the stories almost sound fictitious, they are so full of extreme endurance and bravery. The biographical sketches added background into the lives of these hero’s in addition to the better known legends that you hear about them.

Some exhibits had handouts that elaborated on information that pertained to an artifact. For example, near a case enclosing original native beaded clothing was a paper detailing the creation of glass beads in Europe and how they spread all the way to the American West. Another handout retold the story of how the wife of a fur trader, who was murdered by Indians, escaped and successfully traveled from southwest Idaho to the Columbia River with her children ages 2 and 4. This saga occurred over the winter of 1814, and when the snow got too deep to travel, she built a shelter from a buffalo robe and three deer skins, killed their two horses for food, and continued on foot when the snow melted.

We spent most of the morning going through the museum and talking with the woman who was the current director. She provided us with lots of local background about the museum and the town in general. The staff was getting ready to change the exhibits with replacements from their two auxiliary buildings full of artifacts. They would love to have more space but believe fund raising for an additional building has reached max from their small population.

The Green River area where 6 of the 16 Rendezvous took place

The North fork of the Oregon Trail. Looks like you could follow the tracks today all the way to Oregon. This was just past Pine Dale, WY in Sand Springs. This north fork was established to cut off five days of travel and eliminate a ferry crossing where price gouging was common.