Sunday, July 8th, 2012
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Introducing Annika the nun!
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We woke up to a cool but pretty morning. It was chilly so I dug out all the fleece, sweatshirts and jackets....all the time wondering about the wisdom of going rafting in such chilly weather. Just when everyone was up and about, it started raining. Lets just say, it is not so fun packing up a tent in the rain. We ate a quick breakfast and headed off to the Durango Rafting Co. The owner was very nice and had spray jackets for us all to wear. The less wet clothes, the better! But by this time, the rain had stopped and it was actually very pleasant. Our guide, Steve, was very nice and we set off in the Animas River. Due to the lack of rain, the river was pretty low and a lot like the Yellow Breeches in most spots. But it was a fun way to see the town and scenery. Our guide was great as he created more excitement for the kids. In an area where the water was deep, he said the kids could get in the water. He challenged them to stand on the front of the raft and he would see if he could knock them in. Jonathan and Chris were up for that! As they stood on the front of the raft, Steve started spinning the raft and as he jerked it to a stop....they went flying. The water was very chilly but they loved being in the river. As Jonathan said, "Once his body went numb, he didn't feel anything." Steve also let all the boys try out being the steersman in the back of the raft. They all did remarkably well in the rapids although it was much different than kayaking. We rafted for about 2 hours and had a lot of fun. Sometime, maybe we can come back and raft the Grand Canyon! Are you up for that Boppa??? :)
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| ready to hit the river! |
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| in the Balcony House |
After our rafting expedition, we had pizza and salad bar for lunch. It was very yummy! Then we headed to Mesa Verde which was about an hour away. Supposedly, the first cliff dwellings of the Anasazi people were discovered by some ranchers who were looking for stray cows in 1888. That would be an exciting find! We first went to the Visitor's Center to get our tickets for a tour through the Balcony House. We had seen pictures from some friends, the Brosius, who had gone through earlier....and the pictures alone made my palms sweat. So....I was excited but also nervous as there is a 32 foot ladder going straight up, cliffs that drop off 600ish feet, tunnels that were big enough for Hammy to crawl through and many uneven steps and extra ladders to climb up. But here we go. As we reached the spot we needed to meet up with the ranger, there were some storm clouds and lightening. Yikes, that is all I need is lightening striking while I am trying to climb a huge ladder :) We waited a little longer and then started the tour! WOW! The view is incredible. Pictures do not even start to show you how amazing the view is. The Balcony House is not able to be viewed from any spot on top of the canyon which is why you need to do the tour to be able to see it. The alcove is 39 feet long and 20 feet high. They think that it was constructed between 1180 and 1270. We started down the trail, which was nice at this point, and the Ranger told us what they knew about the people who lived there. It is hard to imagine that anyone could grow crops in this type of climate. It is very hot in the summer, little water, very cold in the winter and bad soil. I would love to have seen what it looked like when it was being inhabited- but I am not the first one. The biggest challenge came with the 32 foot ladder going straight up.
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| Jonathan going through the tunnel in Balcony House |
This was definitely a challenge for my fear of heights and then add that I was responsible for Annika who was right in front of me. The rungs were not normal sized rungs but made out of big pieces of logs. So, I thought it was hard to get as firm of a grasp on them as I would like. I was concerned with Annika's little hands as she could barely get a grip on them. But all the kids scampered (safely) up the ladder and appeared to love it. I was glad to be at the top and what an amazing view. There were rooms, balconies, cooking areas....incredible. We got a lot of amazing pictures and it was fun to imagine what life was like for the people who live there. As we left the dwellings, we had to crawl through a very small tunnel. They think this is where they entered the dwellings, up some more ladders and walk up some uneven stairs carved into the cliff wall to get back to the top of the Mesa. I was breathing pretty hard by the end, mostly from nervous energy praying that my family would all make it safely to the top.
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| We were down in a kiva at the Spruce House cliff dwelling |
We then headed to another dwelling that was a self-guided tour- the Spruce Tree House. It was a fun trail to the dwellings and I said that I would like to live here in the forest, rather than inside of a cliff. It was a beautiful canyon with forests all around. This dwelling is the third largest of the dwellings in the park with 114 rooms and 8 kivas (ceremonial chambers). We were able to go down into a kiva at this spot.
Our last stop was to get pictures of the Cliff Palace, which is one of the most popular picture spots in the Mesa Verde. We did not do this tour but enjoyed getting pictures of these amazing dwellings. As we looked around the canyon, we could see other dwellings, many have not been explored as it is very difficult to get to them. What an amazing place to visit. This is one of the places that I was most looking forward to and am so glad that we were able to do the Balcony House tour, even though I knew that it would be very challenging for me.
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| The Cliff Palace |
On a different note, we had prayed that this summer we might be a blessing to people that we meet this summer. We were not sure in what ways this could happen. Well, we have had some opportunities to reach out to people. At one point, we saw a car broken down and it looked like a mom with a bunch of kids. We went back to see if we could help. There was a tow-truck on the way so they did not need help with the car...but it was getting into the evening so we left them with some food that we had just bought at the store. They seemed very appreciative of it! While we were at Mesa Verde, we were getting ready to leave the park. A young man had asked if they (there was a girl with him) could hitch a ride down to the campground (25 miles down). Dave had originally said no as we only had one seat and the car was packed full. After watching them ask a couple more people and being turned down, we offered them a ride but told them it would be squishy. They were very glad to get a ride and did not mind the lack of space. They are over from France and hitchhiking around the county. I cannot IMAGINE traveling that way. We enjoyed talking to them and hearing their accent. Just as they were telling us that they had been told they were not allowed to hitchhike in the park, we actually got pulled over by a Park Ranger. We were nervous as we were all crammed in like sardines. As it turned out, our license plate was partially covered by our pack in the back. He was very nice, we did not even get a warning and we all sighed a big sigh. The couple made it to the campground and were extremely appreciative of not having to walk 25 miles that night. I so want our kids and our family to be blessings to people. I have to admit that as a mom, it is a little scary that we might put our kids in an "unsafe" situation. But I want to trust God and I want our kids to see what it is like to go out of our comfort zone. I want them to see that most of the world does not live like we do in our safe little town of Dillsburg. Please pray with us that we will make use of opportunities to see God working and help us to be wise but not fearful. And no....this does not mean we are picking up EVERY hitchhiker! :
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| The Barretts at Four Corners |
Well, our original plan had been to camp at Mesa Verde but we were now heading toward the Grand Canyon to get that in tomorrow. We drove about an hour to Four Corners. We got there 20 minutes before it closed with which was good as they closed 10 min. early. We got some fun pictures and it is so cool to stand in one place and be in 4 states. We were now entering the Navajo reservation. It was amazing to see the scenery as it is beautiful and we got some wonderful pictures of the sunset but it is also so harsh, barren and vast. It is so sad to see the land that the Native Americans were given. What were they suppose to do with this?? Nothing grows here, it is incredibly hot with little rain. Desolate...without life was what I kept thinking. Well, we were not sure where we were going to stay tonight. We had planned to stay in Tuba City (since Tubas play prominently in our family :) we thought we might find a place and not have to go all the way to the Grand Canyon. We stopped in Kayenta to get some food and as the kids jumped out of the car, they were quickly approached by an older Native American man who was blind in one eye and very disheveled in his appearance. He was talking to them but not making much sense. I quickly got out and the man said that he was hungry. I told him we would be willing to buy him some food. As we walked into the McDonalds (it is 9:30pm and very busy) and it was like the Red Sea parting for us. I kept asking what he would like to eat and he just walked back and forth in front of the counter pointing to the menu asking what they had. After a couple of min. of us getting no where, I ordered some food for him and he went to sit down. After I brought him his food, he then started asking for money which I firmly said no to. It was so sad to see a person in that condition and we prayed for him as we sat there. It made for some interesting conversations about how people make choices but there are also generations of lives that just continue in destructive patterns. We also talked about the ways that Native Americas have suffered and struggled after the way they were treated. While we were here, Dave was checking out hotels. It was about the same price if we went all the way to Grand Canyon and we were not sure if it would be safe to stay on the reservation. We were sticking out like a sore thumb. So....we made a decision to make it a long night and get all the way there. On our way out to the car, we were again approached by some men for money. Later, when we stopped in Tuba City to get gas, we were not even out of the car and someone came over to ask for money. I felt such a spirit of desperation and oppression here. It was so very sad and I just kept praying for the people there. I am thankful that God knows and loves each and everyone here.
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| a beautiful sunset over the Navajo reservation |
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| The Arizona landscape. |
Well, we continued the long drive to the Grand Canyon. At one point, we panicked as we had to drive through the National Park and we were concerned that it would be closed, but we were thankfully able to get through. It was a little weird to be in the middle of no where and not another car in sight. At one point, I swear a jackalope ran in front of the car, I think I saw a weasel waving to me and we definitely saw a bunny! It was time for us to get some sleep. Interesting tidbit: We were still on Mountain time but apparently the National Park does not do Daylight Savings time. So, while we arrived at 1am, it was only midnight here and it was so nice in the morning to have an extra hour to sleep.
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| A reminder of God's promises! |
Well, it was a very full day. The kids are dong amazing with the crazy schedule. We have a couple of VERY busy days and we are thankful for your prayers for safety as we are driving and exploring.
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