Tag Archives: New Mexico

Thru Ellen’s Lens: New Mexico Potpourri

12 Thursday Aug 2021

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Ellen and I have long wanted to spend a month in one setting outside of Washington.

An opportunity to do just that occurred recently (in part because of COVID-19), and we were fortunate to return to a wonderful house 15 minutes outside of Sante Fe in the foothills of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains.

We have been returning to the Sante Fe area ever since our first trip there in the late 1960s, and we continue to be enchanted.

We mixed having visitors join us, including some Peace Corps friends from the mid-sixties, our younger daughter and her family, and several long time friends. We hiked, talked endlessly with our guests, explored previous haunts and new ones, ate well, and had some time to ourselves. (In particular, I enjoyed simply sitting on one of the many porches – Ellen termed it “Richard’s Porch” – admiring the landscape and never tiring of what was before me.)

In Ellen’s words, “what you see in the 10 photos below, and in the attached slide show, represents so much of what we love about New Mexico: the ‘Santa Fe blue’ sky and particularly the clouds; the absolute simplicity of adobe architecture, a landscape which ranges from flat green volcanic fields to rugged and impossible to imagine sandstorm formations; deep gorges and hiking trails forested with aspens. I’ve taken pictures there over the years and am not yet finished with that part of the country.”

To see Ellen’s entire slide show, use this link: New Mexico Potpurri.

For the best viewing, click on the little arrow at the top right of the first page of the link to start the slide show. If the slide show appears to start in the middle, scroll to the top of the page where you’ll see the little arrow in a box. Click on it.

See all the photos in the largest size possible (use a laptop or desktop computer if you have access to either). They are much sharper and the larger format presents them in much more detail than the ones above.

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PS – If you haven’t seen an earlier post of Ellen’s photos from the Bisti Badlands of New Mexico, you’re in for an unusual treat.

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Thru Ellen’s Lens: The Bisti Bandlands

23 Friday Jul 2021

Posted by in Escapes and Pleasures

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On a recent month-long stay just outside of Santa Fe (more on that in a future post), Ellen and I and a longtime friend and colleague were able to spend a long half-day exploring the San Juan Bisti Badlands of New Mexico. 

Ellen had this area on her radar for several years (source: Atlas Obscura) as a place she wanted to see and to photograph. Using her Internet sleuthing skills, she found a Navajo Travel Group (the area borders the Navajo Reservation in northwestern New Mexico) and arranged for a guide who met us early one morning at one of the two entrances to this remarkable 4,000 acres of unusually eroded rocks (called Hoodoos) and undulating mounds in the high desert of the San Juan Basin.

You won’t stumble across the Bisti Badlands (a three and half hour drive from Santa Fe), but when you get there, park your car and walk about a quarter of a mile, you will think you’ve been transported to the moon.  The ground is easy to hike, and strange formations are everywhere. You can see how wind, sun and water have shaped everything you see and wonder at how so much of it remains standing. Put this “moonscape” against a New Mexico blue sky, and you have a natural marvel.

Our guide was wonderful, and he not only guided us through our four-hour walk through a portion of this unusual natural wonder but also shared with us many aspects of his life and his community’s life, including, of course, the terrible toll of Covid-19.

We find natural beauty almost everywhere you cast your eye in New Mexico, but this area is unique in its size, scope, and the variety of its windswept beauty.  We highly recommend it.

Below are a few of Ellen’s favorite photos from this excursion, and if you want to enjoy a few more, see the link at the end of these 10 to access her slide show.

To see Ellen’s entire slide show (39 photos), use this link: Bisti Bandlands Slides.

For the best viewing, click on the little arrow at the top right of the first page of the link to start the slide show. If the slide show appears to start in the middle, scroll to the top of the page where you’ll see the little arrow in a box. Click on it.

See all the photos in the largest size possible (use a laptop or desktop computer if you have access to either). They are much sharper and the larger format presents them in much more detail than the 10 you have seen above. They’re wonderous.

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Santa Fe/Monument Valley: Thru Ellen’s Eye

14 Sunday Jul 2019

Posted by in Escapes and Pleasures

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Hopefully you’ve seen Ellen’s superb photos from our recent trip to the Slot Canyons of Arizona. (If not, stop now and go to that post and those photos. They capture an unusual and not well known site in the US Southwest. Plus, they are some of the best photos she’s ever done of any of our trips)

On that same trip, we spent some time in Monument Valley (on the Arizona/Utah border) and a week in Santa Fe. While this post is also from that same trip, Ellen has a different focus here (so to speak).

Ellen in Monument Valley

In Ellen’s words:

“Though we were “over the moon” about what we experienced at the Slot Canyons on our Spring trip to Arizona, we headed a bit east afterwards to “recover” in the very different, but also spectacularly beautiful Monument Valley area.

“We had been briefly in Monument Valley years ago when we traveled with our children to various national parks in the area, but we both felt that we wanted our feet on the ground, at different times of the day to better capture its majesty.  We rented a small cabin at The View, hired local guide who could take us off the beaten paths at sunrise, and picked up that tripod again, and headed out.

“On our arrival in the late afternoon, we knew we had a treat before us. View after view, as we drove the public road through the national park, was stunning; the sunset was spectacular. Our sunrise/morning guide was very knowledgeable both about the geology and the cultural (movie making) history.  With him, we traveled off-road and captured photos in many places most visitors don’t get to see.  We felt very lucky.  And yes, it was easy to recall those movies that we grew up on featuring the “good guys” and “bad guys” (not saying here which is which) in hot pursuit of one another.  The photos you see here are my forte: landscapes.

“After a couple of days we moved on to Santa Fe, New Mexico, one of our most frequently visited US spots.  (We’ve been in and out of the area since the 1960’s, with visits as often as every four or five years.)  I have taken many a photograph throughout New Mexico – largely landscapes – and on this trip I wanted to do something different. While landscapes capture the broad overview, I wanted to focus on the details of Santa Fe, some of the things I believe make Santa Fe unique and make that destination what it is. So the pictures you will see below and in the slide show (with an exception or two) are just that.  Something different.  I hope you enjoy this more detailed look at our travels.

“As usual, Richard has included below a few photos from both Monument Valley and Santa Fe.  You can click on the link at the end of these nine to see the full slide show.”

To see Ellen’s entire slide show ( photos), use this link: Thru Ellen’s Lens: Santa Fe / Monument Valley.

For the best viewing, click on the little arrow at the top right of the first page of the link to start the slide show. If the slide show appears to start in the middle, scroll to the top of the page where you’ll see the little arrow in a box. Click on it.

See all the photos in the largest size possible (use a laptop or desktop computer if you have access to either). They are much sharper and the larger format blows away the 12 that you have seen above.

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