Last Thursday when we moved from the Gunnison, CO area to our present rv park 7 miles north of Durango (see Scenic All The Way blog), we rode west on US 160 through Pagosa Springs and past Chimney Rock National Monument, promising ourselves that we would be back to visit both of these places before we left Durango. After riding through Pagosa Springs, we decided that we could cross that off our list, but Chimney Rock stayed on our wish list. Today was the day that we made that visit. From Durango on US 550 we went south to pick up US160 east to the Monument.
The road wasn’t particularly interesting or picturesque, but it was pleasant enough as we rode along in the cool, clear, sunny morning.
Our first view of the Rock.
To access the Monument we had to turn south on CO151, where more of the mesa formation came into view. Note how far apart the chimney and the larger rock are.
We left Durango at 8:30 am to beat the heat and afternoon storms, arriving at 9:50.
The parking lot is very small at the visitors center where we had to check in and decide what kind of tour we wanted.
The visitors center and gift shop is small and rustic.
We decided to take the guided tour from the upper parking lot to the Great House. Our National Parks pass got us into the park, and 1/2 off tour prices. Before we left, everyone was checked to make sure they had sturdy footwear and water. We were well prepared with water, sunscreen, hiking boots, and long sleeves/pants, hats and sunglasses to protect us from the hot sun. I stamped my National Parks Passport and we were ready.
There were six adults on our tour. Two cars drove to the upper parking lot, but since the road was gravel, we opted to take the shuttle.
In the second parking lot we were introduced to our guide, encouraged to drink a lot of water on the trail, then we started up.
We stopped several times during our two hour tour to view Pueblo sites and to rest and catch our breaths. At each stop our guide talked about the people who lived here, although why and how they lived here are pretty much a mystery since they left no personal items and had no written language. Still, the style of building and bits of wood do give some clues. The pueblos are not dug into the ground. Two stone walls are constructed on level ground then backfilled with dirt. Roofs are constructed on a ledge several feet from the wall top. Tree trunks are interwoven closely together in several layers then the whole structure is covered in wet clay so that it is smooth and waterproof. A hole is left in the center of the roof for ladder access.
Time to go further up.
We get our first view of the chimney, its companion rock, and the big building site on top.
Finally we reached the top. Here the two rock towers look very close together. This is as close as we can get. Where those signs are there was a fire tower for many years. Finally it was removed because it obstructed the lunar view between the rocks.
Years of study by various people/groups have led to this hypothesis.
Looking in the opposite direction we could see a few of the 60 rooms in this site, as well as the great kiva with its ceiling support ledge. It has been surmised that the people who lived here came from the Chaco canyon area in New Mexico, about halfway between Farmington and Albuquerque. It is also surmised that the communities between here and the Chaco area (about a week’s travel by foot) kept in touch with signal fires on the tops of the high peaks along the way.
After our tour we started back down the trail,
carefully and slowly, considering the fast way down.
Back in the van we enjoyed our ride back to the bike.
Our beautiful morning weather had given way to the threatening clouds of afternoon storms. We enjoyed our ride back along US 160. As the road curved this way and that, it veered away from and back to the clouds several times.
In Bayfield, the sky was clear. We decided to take a chance and stopped at Brenda’s Old West Cafe to enjoy some “good home cookin'” for lunch. I was very pleasantly surprised to fine some first-rate pot roast—fork tender, juicy, and very flavorful.
That stop proved to be our undoing. As we arrived back in Durango and started our ride to the rv park, we were caught in this afternoon storm. Duane stopped to put on his rain suit, but I felt protected in my water-resistant jacket and leather chaps. Unfortunately, this storm poured rain on us. We arrived home dry in some places and soaked in others.
We were cold and wet, but we laughed about it too. For a week we’d been dodging the afternoon monsoon rains, but we finally got caught!
Nothing planned for tomorrow.
Louise and Duane
PS. The Durango and Silverton train that we rode on Wednesday (see Can’t Be Beat, Part 2) announced that their tracks will be closed until mid August because of the Wednesday mud slide between Durango and the rr yard at Rockwood. Train riders will be bussed between those points and ride the train between Rockwood and Silverton and back.
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