Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument
Sunset Crater Volcano was born in a series of eruptions sometime between 1040 and 1100. Powerful explosions profoundly affected the lives of local people and forever changed the landscape and ecology of the area. Lava flows and cinders still look as fresh and rugged as the day they formed. But among dramatic geologic features, you'll find trees, wildflowers, and signs of wildlife – life returns.
Bonito Lava Flow
Bonito Lava Flow
Littlebear and Daddy hiking up a 45 degree trail to the top of the lava flow....A.K.A The Hike of Death. (laugh)
Kate and the Apache Plume...what a cool plant! The seedpods were as soft as dandelion fluff
Stop Two on our daytrip. We went from the lushness of the mountains to the nothingness of the desert in about an hour! Amazing.
Acting cool...*snort* I have sooo much blackmail material for this kid.
Less than 800 years ago, Wupatki Pueblo was the largest pueblo around. It flourished for a time as a meeting place of different cultures. Yet this was one of the warmest and driest places on the Colorado Plateau, offering little obvious food, water, or comfort. How and why did people live here? The builders of Wupatki and nearby pueblos have moved on, but their legacy remains.
I'm always on the lookout for a cool rock!
A blowhole is a small opening in the ground where air gets drawn in or expelled. Air flows from high pressure to low pressure, therefore at night and early morning the overlying air is more dense causing air to enter the blowholes (cracks in the earth). As the overlying air warms the densities equalize causing the air to stop flowing. Once the overlying air warms enough to become less dense than the air in the blowhole the air will be expelled out of the blowhole. Weather systems also effect the movement of air in and out of the blowhole.
When we were here, it was blowing AC cool air on us! We could have stayed here for hours!!
Right up the road from our capsite. This is the Observatory where they found Pluto...or whatever the hell they're calling it nowadays.
Well, that's all my vacation pictures. I have many more, but they're redundant.
Again, I'm sorry for taking so long to get them blogged. Now that the inital shock has worn off about the Italy move, I'm spinning around in "OHMYGAWDWHEREDOISTART???" mode. Plus it's as hot as Hades and we've been having HUMIDITY! At the end of the day, I'm exhausted.
I also became frustrated with Littlebear spending the entire summer plugged into the X-box. Papabear and I had plans to just pass him back and forth during the summer. That plan was NOT working out. So I enrolled him in the YMCA's Day Camp. From 7:30-4pm he's at the Y. I guess they swim all morning and devote the afternoon to crafts and group games. He seems happy with it. And I love the way he's tuckered out at the end of the day. I actually pay them 20 dollars more than I make...but at least I'll be able to keep my sanity job till school starts up again. LOL I"m the only person that actually pays to work at the library!!!
Anyway, I love you all....take care.
Love, Ang
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