This morning, we left the Walmart of Las Vegas, New Mexico after another great breakfast by Trish:

We drove east, crossing the southern edge of the Rocky Mountains and finding ourselves in the aptly named Great Plains.  If I squint, I’m pretty sure I can see St. Louis.  I exaggerate, but after spending months in the West, this feels very, very flat:

The linear depression in the distance across the photograph is the Santa Fe Trail:

We continued northeast to Fort Union National Monument. The fort was built to subdue Indian tribes and protect travellers on the Santa Fe Trail.  Built in the 1850s, the fort met a sudden demise with the obsolescence of the Santa Fe Trail due to the arrival of railroad service from the East.  Suddenly a fort with nothing to guard, it was abandoned by the Army.

We checked out the visitor center:

A model of the fort, in its day the largest military installation in the West:

The hospital building is adjacent to the visitor center:

Our first stop was the second fort site.  Little more than earthworks, it was designed to repel a Confederate assault.  Southern forces did invade and conquer southern New Mexico, but this site never saw action, as Union forces from here deployed to the southwest where the Confederates were turned back at the Battle of Glorieta Pass.  The contours of the fort are faintly visible:

The third fort was built of adobe, and has fared better than the first two forts:

Officer barracks:

The prison:

Fort Union was the logistical hub for military control of the Southwest.  The fort was both a military post for regional defense and a military depot for distribution of supplies throughout the region:

Some walls require heroic measures to save them from collapse.  After over 125 years, some of the mud walls are starting to fail:

A warehouse in the depot:

The faint trail along the left edge of the photograph is the Santa Fe Trail:

The kids completed their Junior Ranger workbooks and received their badges:

They also completed the workbooks for the Santa Fe National Historic Trail:

Saying goodbye to the fort, we drove west towards Santa Fe.  Trish made a few more owl hats during the drive:

We continued west to overnight at the Walmart of Santa Fe, New Mexico.  See the trip map for today’s drive and our current location.

This morning I was encouraged to model the owl hat that Trish made for B:

Trish made a yummy breakfast:

Another owl hat:

I think it looks better on B:

After homeschool, we drove south and east to Pecos National Historical Park:

We were given an overview of the park:

After watching the park video, we went through the visitor center’s exhibit space:

Out on the trail, we could see the church that was built here by the Spanish.  Like at Salinas Pueblo Missions National Monument, an Indian pueblo stood here for centuries before the Spanish came and built a mission here to “civilize” the natives:

Out on the trail, NPS has built a simulated kiva:

Down we go:

Most of the pueblo remains unexcavated, but this portion has been revealed by archeologists.  This pueblo, built in the 1400s, housed over 2,000 people and was four stories high:

The first church was built here by the Spanish in 1625.  It was destroyed by the Indians in the Pueblo Revolt of 1680.  By the time the Spanish crushed the revolt in the early 1690s, the pueblo had fewer residents, so the second church, completed in 1717, was smaller than the first:

On our way back to the visitor center, we walked over the faint outline of the once well-travelled Santa Fe Trail:

Back at the visitor center, the kids completed their Junior Ranger workbooks and received their badges:

From Pecos, we continued east to overnight at the Walmart of Las Vegas, New Mexico.  See the trip map for today’s drive and our current location.

This morning we drove out to the location of the concrete arrow I spotted from the sky on Day 946.  Unfortunately, when we arrived at the road that would take us to the arrow, there was a sign indicating that the road entered Laguna Pueblo land, and that a permit would be needed to enter.  Disappointed, we returned to the RV.  I love the street sign leading to our host, Paramotor City Glider Shop:

B said goodbye to Cowboy (pictured), and Hobo:

We said goodbye to Michelle.  Thanks for hosting us and fixing my wing!

We drove east for ten miles or so to the next concrete arrow site, LA-A #69.  We parked the RV and walked south between an RV park and a truck repair business:

We skirted the southern edge of the RV park and crossed the fence on the left:

Where the “road” turned, we went straight:

Found it!  This is our fourth concrete arrow site!

The tower supports are still attached to the center of the arrow, with the arrow extending into the distance:

Retracing our steps, we returned to the RV and continued east and north to Petroglyph National Monument:

The kids completed their Junior Ranger workbooks and received their badges and patches:

We hiked one of the many trails that pass by the over 10,000 petroglyphs in the park, most of which were carved between 1300 and 1600:

The Macaw depicted in this petroglyph is not native to the area, but Indians in this area were part of a trade network that extended all the way to South America, so Macaws did find their way here:

After getting gas (only $1.59 for diesel!) and replenishing our meat supply at Trader Joe’s, we drove north towards Santa Fe.  During the drive, Trish made this owl hat for B to match her owl-themed pajamas:

We continued north and east to overnight at the Walmart of Santa Fe.  See the trip map for today’s drive and our current location.