We had a great, but tiring time today. We drove to the Gila (Hee-lah) Cliff Dwellings National Monument. With only 175 miles to travel northwest from Alamogordo, we decided to take the scenic route through the mountains. It was extremely scenic as well as somewhat harrowing with hairpin turns and climbing up to 9000 feet. I must have driven 75 miles of windy roads, up and down various altitudes. We did arrive safely at the dwellings. We were told at the visitors center that we would have to walk 3.5 miles to get to the cliff dwellings and back. Seems a bridge was washed out in January and the NM DOT hadn't repaired it yet. Since we had driven all that distance, off we went. At one point we had to hike up 200 feet to reach the elevated cliff dwellings. The elevation at the top was 7500 feet. We both realized that hiking and breathing at that height was a chore.
Picture #1 is the cliff dwellings taken from the path we had to walk. (Click on the picture to enlarge it. Notice some other visitors at one of the cave entrances.) Picture #2 is when we're at the dwellings (picture taken by a park volunteer). Picture #3 is of the vast scenery while traveling the mountainous road.
Note: You can click on any picture to enlarge it. Click twice and it will fill your screen.
No comments:
Post a Comment