My dad braved the long drive out from California to deliver my new car to me in New Mexico. After a tasty Thai dinner in Albuquerque, we drove on past Santa Fe and up the mountain to Bandalier NM where the evening was cool. In the morning we headed for the park headquarters and went on the main loop trail to see remnants of the abundant Ancestral Puebloan dwellings. Although I had been here before, I still enjoyed the stroll. We passed by the large circular complex of low walls and headed up the trail past the base of the cliffs. Many of the cave-like dwellings are carved directly into the cliff faces of soft tuff. There are literally hundreds of these rooms within the valley. In many cases these alcove rooms formed the back rooms of multi-storied pueblos plastered at the base of these cliffs. Further up the cliffs natural weathering creates similar alcoves and caves- it is easy to see where they got their inspiration. We walked out to the base of Alcove House. Even though the ladders up to the ruins were closed, we still enjoyed the walk.
After some mostly aimless driving, we drove to Santa Fe for a nice lunch in an enclosed courtyard. Although a short trip, it was really great to spend father's day with my dad, a first in many years for me. Thanks to him for driving out.
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