NEW Mexico?? But it's full of OLD Mexicans! (Title courtesy of Jared...clearly!)

After about an hour of navigating the dark, curvy roads of the mountains east of Santa Fe, we pulled off into a rest area, a term here that means a gravel semi-circle to the right of the highway. We prepared the car for the anticipated snow and were lulled to sleep by the engines of semi trucks rumbling by. We awakened to find ourselves surrounded with mesas backed by snow-covered mountains. Moreover, it had snowed east and west of us, but somehow our little alcove remained untouched.

In Santa Fe, every building is a pueblo. To us, this was the most notable aspect of this town. We must have passed hundreds of these structures, yet every time we saw a familiar logo affixed to the front of a pueblo our reaction was the same: Really? In a Pueblo?!

(Nothing says "time for a siesta" like a pancake house in a pueblo!)

Some pueblos downtown:

This is the state capital. You can’t tell from the picture, but yep, it’s a pueblo.

To recap: Santa Fe=Pueblos. So, with help from the Santa Fe Visitor’s Center (yes, a pueblo), we devised a route that would take us north to the Bandolier National Monument, through the Jemez (HAY-muss) Mountains and then back south towards Albuquerque.

The most trafficked hike through Bandolier National Monument takes you past mountain walls with holes where ancient peoples, appropriately-named “cliff-dwellers” made their homes. You were able to climb relatively short ladders (8-12’) and enter these caves to check it out for yourself.

About three-quarters the way through the hike we took an off-shoot trail and continued a half mile more to the mother of all cliff-side abodes. A 140 foot vertical climb up a series of four ladders allows you to walk inside of a large cave that was used as a banquet hall with a ceremonial basement called a keva.

Jared getting his “Indiana Jones” on:

Another twenty or so miles through the Jemez brought us to our next stop: a small, gravel pull-off marked the starting point of a half-mile trek to Spencer Springs. After our disappointment at Hot Springs, we were psyched to learn of this spot. The first part of the hike brought us down to a river crossing, and then we climbed up to a series of rock pools overlooking the snowy peaks. The water was a warm 95 degrees; we doffed our clothes, jumped into our suits and marveled at the sunset.

The random dude pictured above is Dave from Cody, WY. He told us about a bunch of different springs in the Southwest we hope to visit. He also recommended Las Olas for dinner in Jemez Springs. The entire town, which was little more than several homes along the side of the road, must have been gathered at this Mexican restaurant/liquor store/bar with local, live music. The food, our first Mexican faire of the trip, was simply incredible…the locally grown* Chili Rellenos were the star of the “Macho Plate.” Without question, this day was our favorite of the trip so far.

On our way out, the singer of the band stopped us on the front porch and asked us to stay so he could play us a song. I requested “Moving Right Along” by Kermit and Fozzie, and we got through a verse together. Once Jared’s accent became apparent, the guy got excited because Massachusetts was the last state he needed for a license plate bingo game he was playing with his wife. Jared misunderstood and advised him to just take the front plate off of the next MA car he sees: “No one uses that one anyway.” I suppose you can take the boy out of Lynn…

The next day we visited the Petroglyph National Monument in Albuquerque. This monument featured several trails through mesas where ancient, native peoples carved images into the rocks. The images aren’t like hieroglyphics where the symbols stand for particular words; petroglyphs might represent something religious or familial, and most if not all the meanings remain a mystery.  I'm also fairly certain that these carvings were the inspiration for modern children's animated television.

We did some shopping in Old Town, a touristy, pueblo-filled area of the city.

Finally, we checked into a hotel, only our second of the trip. (We’re proud of that fact.) We each took a nearly thirty minute shower, watched TV and enjoyed a do-nothing afternoon and evening. Our next stop is Arizona; we're moving right along.

*I contend that we have no idea whether or not they were locally grown. Jared says that’s like eating an apple pie in the middle of an orchard and questioning the origin of the fruit.