Natural bridges and Mesa Verde

Had a bit of lens flair which I really

tried to get rid of but....

there's only so much room on the little platform

so.....

its still cool to see - natural bridges. 

 This was just a weird shaped dome....

This one is tough to see even in real life.

And this was just gorgeous with the

 different colors.

 Mesa Verde (green table)

and up high on this mountain with its

death defying dropoffs are the most amazing cliff dwellings.

At one point there were 5 different dwellings in a row

so it was a big colony.

This one is the cliff palace.

The Train ride to the Canyon

Of course we had to get the requisite hokey vacation photos 

out of the way...

 We sat in the dome and it was an amazing view 

my nose was totally glued to the window.

The photos that I took didn't work out - even though the train

was going 40mph there was a lot of blur.

 The train depot at the canyon.

 The historical El Tovar - where we honeymooned

17 years ago...

 The Hopihouse.

 And the south rim.

It never fails to take your breath away no matter

how many times you see it.

 Getting the passport stamped.

 Made a cheeky friend.

 Flirting with the edge.

 Another cheeky friend. 

This guy was doing some sort of crazy bird

dance with alot of huffing and puffing.

I managed to catch him when he took a breath.

 And the ride home.

Doesn't the weather look fun?

It was cold. 

The train ride is fun, lots of goofy jokes, music

and a train robbery.

It really was a lovely, laid back ride with great scenery.

On the way back I caught sight of 4 deer and a mess of prairie dogs.

Of which I have no pictorial proof.

I was too busy looking. 

LOL.

Ghost Town, Jerome & Tuzigoot

Headed down the road to check out

the local ghost town.

Had a saw mill, junk yard and didn't see a ghost.

 Copper mines are everywhere and this one

was a ghost town too.

 Main Street in Jerome. 

This is a blast furnace more or less.

 Isn't he cute.....

And enjoyed an ice cream......

 There is a business in there - glassblowing.

But how cool seriously.

They said one day it just fell down.

 Tuzigoot is a National Monument.

This pueblo is a couple of stories and was built in the 12th century.

 This is a bird's eye view of all the rooms in the 

 pueblo - this is the back side and.....

 These rooms run down the front side.

Because the pueblo wasn't preserved for years

the roof and some of the structure collapsed over the years.

It's a really cool place to visit and you can roam through one room

to walk up to the big square on the top.

Beautiful Chapel of the Holy Cross

Built on the top of this gorgeous red mountain.

It was an inspiration of a local rancher and sculpture

who began in 1932 to build it

and completed it in 1956.

 Of course it's surrounded by beautiful mountains.

 Does that not look like an eagle...

 It was never not having someone in the way...

 I got the background and wow!!!

 It's quite tiny inside maybe 75 people can sit

and has an active congregation.

 Check out the gorgeous mansion you can see from the chapel.

Beautiful foliage in the crevice of the rocks and

there are coins that were tossed

everywhere along the cliffs of the rocks.

Beautiful.