Santa Fe, New Mexico

Sunday, Sep. 18, 2011  Today I wanted to hike the Dale Ball Trails on the outskirts of Santa Fe.  A bit of trivia for my granddaughter, Maddie.  Santa Fe is the 2nd oldest city in the USA.  Native pueblo people first settled here in the year 1050 and the spanish established a city here in 1607 which was 13 years before the pilgrims founded the Plymouth Colony.
It was such a beautiful day that I drove the 20 miles on the backroads through the foothills of the Sangre de Cristo mountains.  I parked near the Audobon Center, Put on my hiking boots and pack and up the trail I went.

It's not long before I come to my first obstacle.  That bolder is taller than me.

Looking up you can see how blue the sky was that day.

After reaching the highest point on this hike I find this group of wildflowers growing around a dead tree.

I have now hiked 2 miles to an elevation of 8,577 feet above sea level.  The views are spectacular in all directions.  Looking south I can see Santa Fe.

Looking to the north I can see the mountain peaks of the Pecos Wilderness.

I look around and find a pile of rocks to sit on and take a break while I eat some snacks and enjoy the view.

As I continue hiking you can see how narrow the trail gets.

In some places the trail seems to disappear.

And at this point the trail looks as if it falls right off the cliff.

Along the way I see lots of cool wildflowers.

And this globe mallow.

And this prickly pear cactus.

So that brings me back to my truck after hiking 7 miles.  It was very scenic with some good bird watching too.  I saw Stellars Jays, Mountain Chickadees and a Hairy Woodpecker.