Antelope Canyon and Mesa Verde

These pictures were taken in Antelope Canyon near Page, AZ.  What an interesting place!  I took over 300 pictures!!!  Most didn't turn out, but a few did.

Monument Valley....beautiful HUGE rock structures on the border of Arizona and Utah. 

Cliff Palace, Mesa Verde National Park, Colorado.  What a sight to descend down some stairs, turn around and see this amazing sight!  These were occupied before 1300!  We hiked down and were able to see them up close.  Don and I took two ranger tours--one to Cliff Palace and the other to Balcony House.  The trip to Balcony House involved climbing wooden Indian-like ladders about 30 feet high.  I don't like being on a 6 foot ladder, but I did just fine.  Going out we had more ladders and a tunnel to go through.  Pics below...

Below is another cliff dwelling--Spruce Tree.  It was interesting learning some about the Indians who lived there.  They farmed on top of the mesas.  They didn't use ladders to get down to their cliff dwelling.  They carved small hand and toe holds in the rock and climbed up and down!

 Below the round sunken room is a kiva (the roof made out of mud and wood had caved in).

 Don took this picture of me going down into the kiva (they had reconstructed the roof) where they held their religious ceremonies.


 These two pictures were taken from our campground in Pagosa Springs, CO.  What a beautiful spot!

Tonight we are in Santa Fe...enjoying a hotel room.  Don did find the leak in our air mattress and got it repaired so our last nights in the tent were comfortable!  Tomorrow we will drive to Albuquerque.  We'll visit my brother and all his family and go to the Balloon Fiesta.  We are meeting up with the Bettes there!