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Bisti Badlands

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https://farmingtonnm.org/listings/bisti-de-na-zin-wilderness/ The Bisti/De-Na-/Zin Wilderness Area is one of the most difficult places to find!  Actually with the help of Google Maps we drove on dirt roads that bordered the area for longer than I care to admit.  The wire fences and gates protected fields of natural sagebrush and were definite barriers.  Hiking in would have been the only way to  enter from the dirt road.  And the lay of the land was flat with fields of sagebrush.  Where were those interesting formations we saw in the book?  After returning to the highway and going back the way we came, we turned at this sign!  It too led down a long bumpy dirt road and ended with parking spaces.  By this time it was hot but we decided to take water and hike in a little ways. We weren't  the only ones in the area! I am continually amazed and intrigued with the beauty I see in arid deserts. It is such a surprise to go from flat sagebrush into areas of unusual formatio

To the Great Sand Dune National Park!

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https://www.nps.gov/grsa/index.htm  The tallest sand dunes in the U. S. are found here.  A dramatic picture presented itself as we drove into the National Park.  The sand dunes were made even more impressive with the beautiful mountains in the background.  Picking the best time of day for taking photos became a great game.  Late afternoon proved to be the best time. There are 6 endemic species of insects found here.  Nowhere else on earth can you find the Great Sand Dunes Tiger Beetle.  Many animals (birds, amphibians and mammals) are also found here.  In fact over 200 species of birds use this area as their habitat. Black-billed Magpie Sangre de Christo Mountains in background The dune field and much of the mountains are designated as wilderness I love capturing sand dunes in pictures.  The forms and edges, the lights and darks are ever changing. The Medano Creek - fun to wade across and play in the sand.

The Road Trip Continues -Canyon de Chelly

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It was a warm (well hot!) windy afternoon and we both wanted to visit at least part of Canyon de Chelly.  Having visited this site many years ago, it was such fun to see it again.  Next time I really want to take the jeep tour to the bottom!  https://www.nps.gov/cach/index.htm The cholla (one of my favorite desert plants) were blooming.  I think they have some of the prettiest blooms and some of the most dangerous stickers!   It's so easy to step on a piece that has come off the mother plant and so difficult to pull out the stickers.   Beautiful Cholla Standing in the hot wind thinking about the early inhabitants caused me to compare their lives with ours today.  The scenery is beautiful and harsh  and peaceful.  Wonderful to see but I don't want to work that hard.  At the bottom of the canyon the trees were green and you can see where the people lived 5000 years ago.  Navajos live there today and I could see their trucks and homes from the rim. Cliff Dw