Welcome to the Mountains!

After a disappointing one-night stay in Clayton, New Mexico, we were back on the road the next morning. We always love to get those first views of the mountain silhouettes through the windshield. Add the puffy clouds, and it was a pretty drive across northeastern New Mexico.

Denisa wished she had kept a running total of the number of pronghorn antelope that we saw grazing in the pastures beside the road. Their tan bodies blend well with the dry pastureland, but their white rumps make them easier to spot. Known for their speed, this pair of pronghorns ran beside us and almost kept up with our 60 mph speed limit.

After driving through the small town of Cimarron, New Mexico, we got our first look at the canyon just beyond. That's when we learned that a fire in 2018 decimated this section of the canyon.

It's a winding drive through Cimarron Canyon until we got to the most photographed spot . . .

the vertical wall of granite rock known as "The Palisades."

Then our drive climbed out of the canyon and into the mountains. When we popped over the hill to see Eagle's Nest Lake, we knew we weren't far from our destination.

We've decided to spend a month near the little mountain town of Angel Fire, New Mexico. At 8,400 feet in elevation, we're hoping to find cool weather. But it sealed the deal to come here when the owner at Monte Verde RV Park assured us that we could do a different hike for 30 days. Denisa's Mother is traveling with us this week, but she was ready for a nap. So we took off on our first of those thirty hikes.

The village of Angel Fire has a greenway, with a number of trails that start right behind the village grocery store. We started on the Deer Trail, which was perfect to help us start to acclimatize to our new elevation.

We were welcomed by the wild purple irises . . .

and the first mountain deer of our stay.

We're meeting our sons and their families in the mountains next month. A new toddler backpack has been purchased for our two-year-old granddaughter to ride in during hikes. All the men are supposed to be conditioning by carrying a thirty-pound pack, in order to spread the chore of carrying her on hikes. We are proud to say that Mark is practicing with a 30-PLUS pound load on this trail.

We added a steeper and longer section to make this a 4-mile hike.  From our vantage point we could look down on the village of Angel Fire and the ski runs on the mountain-side.

When we headed back to the motor home for games and snacks with Denisa's Mother, Denisa got her first sighting of a male mountain blue bird. She has been trying to get a picture of one of these beautifully-colored birds for a very long time.

This one seems to live in the field next to the campground, and we're hoping to see him many times this month. At last, we have found the bluebird of happiness right here in our new mountain home! It was a great welcome to the mountains!