Taos, The Gorge, and Earthship Landing Zone

Today, May 30, 2008, was the best day of the vacation thus far. It was Leslie's birthday, too, and befitting for her, as the trip to the Taos Pueblo was a highlight. We got up and ate a none-too-satisfying breakfast at the Econolodge and set out for Taos, about 30 miles north of Santa Fe. We arrived about 12:30 and set out on foot for a tour of the village. We took lots of photos there, but cannot post up any of them now. The link with photos will have to do for now. We walked around there for about 2 hours, stopping into the little shops inside the houses. We bought Indian fry bread for a snack and bread baked in an outdoor oven, plus one or two little items of jewelry. The Taos artisans, who made all the products themselves, were very nice people. We just didn't want to leave the pueblo on a bright day, with deep blue sky all around and the mountains in the near-distance.

But we left and went back to Taos, where we toured the galleries & shops and ate Leslie's birthday lunch at Ogelvie's, overlooking the plaza, the town square, which is a park with band pagoda. We split a 1/2 pound buffalo cheeseburger there. While we were walking from shop to shop we got a call from Hannah. But because it was Digital Roam, which I had never used before, by the time I figured out how to answer, Hannah had to leave a voice message wishing her mom a happy birthday. They were at O'Hare waiting for a delayed flight to Nashville. Sorry we couldn't take the call, Hannah!

When we left Taos we decided to take the highway north out of the town, toward the Rio Grande Gorge bridge. It was yet another highlight. What a zen experience it was. We parked on the near side of the bridge and walked to the west side, pausing at several places to take pictures. The bridge is on US 64, which runs through Arkansas, so I stood in the middle of the road and took a picture of Taos and the mountains in the distance. I felt connected with Searcy and Augusta, Arkansas. Until we post up our own photos, these two from someone's photo site will have to do: river & bridge. Since we were there near the end of the day, half the gorge is in shadow, so the pics may not be as good as the ones I found on line. Another experience occurred while there: Kelly called to wish her mother a happy birthday, so Leslie talked with her for quite a while as she stood and viewed the gorge, the bridge, and the mountains in the distance. By this time I knew how to accept a digital roaming call, so that's why we were able to talk to Kelly, Hannah.

After we left the bridge, I decided we would continue north on 64 till we linked up with US 285 back to Santa Fe and on to Albuquerque. The sun was sinking lower now, but there was still enough light of day left. On the way back, another serendipity, as we stumbled across the community of Earthship Landing Zone, off to the right of the highway. (The picture at the header of Sangres.com is of Taos Pueblo, by the way.) Unbelievable! A small community spread out on the plain, of houses built of any and all sustainable materials, in strange shapes and sizes. There was even a visitors' center, but it was closed. We didn't feel free to drive the dirt roads into the community, but we did take pictures from the road. Perhaps the link provides better pictures than we will ever have. I discovered there is a real estate site for buying the land and the houses.

Since we drove away from Santa Fe, it took us about 2 hours to make it back to Albuquerque, getting back about 10:20. All in all, it was a fabulous day, one we will never forget. It started with ancient Indian pueblos and ended with futuristic dwellings!