Canyon de Chelly, Albuquerque, Amarillo

Sunrise start of the day made for some tired travelers. Stopped mid-afternoon at USA RV Park on Route 66 just outside Gallup, NM. Good showers, laundry, Blade Runner 2049. 

Woman in the laundry room told me they had come from Albuquerque and the International Balloon Fiesta. Said it was through the weekend. Whaaaaa? How did we not know? Greg & I immediately added it to our fluid itinerary.

Plan for the next day was Canyon de Chelly & Chaco Canyon--both were places Greg's brother, Johnny, worked as a park ranger back in the day. It's a good thing we're flexible. Travel to de Chelly took longer than we anticipated. Hike down into the canyon to some Anasazi ruins took about thirty minutes. Coming back out--an hour. It was one of our more challenging hikes of the trip. We learned the road in Chaco was impassable, so we drove until dark before boondocking in Bluelake, NM. 

Got up at 6:00 a.m. to arrive in Albuquerque by 8:00 a.m. There were some 600 balloons that were scheduled to float between 7:00 - 9:00 a.m. We checked the back roads to the International Balloon Fiesta Park and found a side street where the locals were lined up. We parked with them then walked a couple of blocks until we were at a field where some of the balloons landed. Beyond cool experience--the colors! The whooshing sound of all the burners inflating! The wonder of an event that brought smiles to faces and greetings from strangers!

Whenever I've read about petroglyphs they've always been on the side of walls in caves. I hadn't done my research so was a bit surprised when we hiked to mounds of boulders on a hill to find petroglyphs 400-700 years old in Petroglyphs National Monument. Honestly, I couldn't help but imagine teenagers climbing the same hills and leaving their mark--something like really old graffiti! 

Greg & Taylor opted to go to a Rattlesnake Museum next. Taylor said he was glad there was glass between them. Yeppers. Old Town Albuquerque then to the Art & History Museum. Favorites were the bronze statues depicting the first immigrants arriving in New Mexico to stake claims. Couple of paintings of interest as well.

Another RV park in the arid southwest before crossing the Texas border. Don't ever recall coming in through the panhandle, but we were delighted to get to see Greg' stepdaughter, Jasmine, and her husband, Chris, in Amarillo. Sad that I forgot to take any pictures but happy for such a good visit.

Boondocked in front of their home then took it on home to Georgetown to visit mom & dad. At 89 we count each one of these visits as a gift. Think this will be the last blogging of the trip--Greg & Taylor will head on east without me. I get to stay a bit with the folks and make myself useful. After a month, 24/7, I believe a break will be welcomed by all!

Couple of pictures added here.