The Chaco Canyon Observatory

Another belated Chaco Canyon post.

Oct. 2019

About 20 years ago an amature astronomer  was looking for a dark sky location to build a small personal observatory.   Sometime during the search (I don't remember the details) the superintendent of Chaco Culture National Historic Park offered him the park as an officially designated and protected dark sky location to build his observatory.   He would have free access to his equipment whenever he wanted and in the mean time the park staff could use it to show visitors the wonders of the night sky, just like the ancient Chacoan did.  A win, win for everyone.

From April throught October there are night sky programs.  Guests can view celestial objects on as many as 4 telescopes.

Looking for Venus low on the horizon. 

Dusk is a good time to view the large planets like Jupiter and Saturn.

A quick snapshot of Jupiter and 4 of it's moons.

As the sky darkens and the Milky Way comes into clear view, deep sky objects like galaxy's, binary stars an globular clusters become the targets of the telescopes.

Another instrument in their arsenal is a Hydrogen Alpha Solar Telescope.  Unlike a nuteral density solar filter (like a welders mask) this filter eliminates all wavelengths of light other than a specific frequency produced by excited hydrogen atoms in the atmosphere just above the sun's surface.  While you can see Sun Spots with the Hydrogen alpha filter it's best for seeing Prominence's.

I saw the Solar scope in action back in April.  This time I asked if they'd show me how to set it up and I'd bring it out for the guests to see the sun on the mornings of the night sky programs.

The first time I setup the Solar scope,  it was just an orange disk, no Sun Spots and no visible Prominence's.  About a week later you could see a little Prominence.  I told the visitors to "... look for a little hairy thing on the edge of the disk".

Still running from the cold.

Nov. 7, 2019

After leaving Roswell NM and another 20° morning, we had to drive to Van Horn TX, along I-10 to get out of the freezing temps.  

On the way we stopped at Guadeloupe Mountains National Park. 

It would have been nice to stay a while and explore this section of the park, but our goal was above freezing temps and for that we had to go further south! 

The RV park in Van Horn let us wash our rig, something we hadn't done since leaving the Oregon coast over 2 months ago.  I'm sure the Prowler was a few pounds lighter after scrubbing off all the road grime and Chaco Canyon dust.  

There's a quaint little restaurant called Mom's Place right across the street from the RV park in Van Horn.

Sitting by this window I could use the Wi-Fi coming from the Prowler.

A nice clean rig along I-10 heading east toward Austin TX.

The next stop was the little town called Junction TX.  They have a nice city park where you can dry camp up to 3 nights for free.  Only  staying 1 night,  we found a nice level spot and didn't even unhook.  Alot nicer setting than Walmart. 

Junction TX city park

As dusk approached, an oak grove in the park lit up with Christmas cheer.

The next morning we headed toward Emma Long City Park in Austin TX.  We were here to visit Wil and Kevin, friends we met in Oregon.

Campsite 14 at Emma Long City Park.

Not a free park but it offers a beautiful quite setting on a lake just 6 miles from the hubbub of Austin.

Today we're in a little RV park a mile outside Henderson TX. 

You may have noticed the easterly direction of our travles.  

We're heading to Virginia to spend Thanksgiving with family then back to Florida, for the first time in 3 years, to visit friends an family.

More to come from our travels east.

Running from the COOOOOLD!

Oct. 30, 2019

Last month we were running from the snow. Now we're running from the COLD.

Yes, those are icicles hanging from the grill!

The forecast for tonight was near ZERO with a windchill of -4 or colder!  We were scheduled to stay in Chaco Canyon through Oct. 31, but with the campground nearly empty, and the unseasonably frigid forecast, we asked to leave 2 days early.  The Prowler had done well, withstanding temps as low as 14° F with the heated and enclosed  under belly.  But, there are limits, and we didn't want to find out where they are.

We were 13° with a wind chill of zero while hooking up this morning... BURRRRRR! Didn't get above freezing till after 1pm while heading south.  The destination was Roswell, NM where the low is going to be a balmy 20° tonight.

Still to come, the last post from Kalowna BC and "Hiking the Pueblo Alto Loop" and "Hiking to Penasco Blanco" from Chaco Canyon.

Hiking the Pueblo Alto loop

Nov. 17, 2019

Here's a belated post from Chaco Canyon.

Oct. 17, 2019

Last April we hiked to Pueblo Alto out and back (3.2 mi.), skipping the loop trail that adds 2.1 mi. Today we hiked the entire loop.

Here's the pictures...

A different angle of the Jackson Stairway.

Looking at...

... the climb down.

Overlooking Chetro Ketl

Notice the tour group around the great kiva.

A little fall color.

Chetro Ketl from a different angle.

Overlooking Pueblo Bonito, built between 850 and 1200 AD. The largest building in North America Until 1877.

The Pueblo Alto trail is entirely on the north mesa.  To get up to and down from the mesa requires a mostly hand over foot climb on the cliff face, a trail once used by the ancient Chacon's.

Climbing down from the north mesa.

Snow in Chaco Canyon

Oct. 28, 2019

This morning we woke up to a winter wonderland amidst the yellow cliffs of Chaco Canyon.  The weather has been unseasonably cold with several mornings in the mid to high teens.  This was the first perception.   One of the Rangers said last year they didn't get their first freeze until November!

By the time we headed out to see the canyon with a dusting of snow, it was already starting to melt.

The 10:00 tour was Una Vida, a site near the visitors center so we tagged along.  With the temp about 27 degrees and a STIFF breeze, the 5 participants got the abriveated tour and no one complained. The Ranger, a local Navajo, did an excellent job given the conditions.

The question often comes up, why did they leave?  The modern scienists might point to a decades long drought.  Another story tells of a time that had run it's course with the knowledgeable elite abusing their power and upsetting the balance, causing a drought and the people dispersing to the regions they inhabit today.

The pictures at Una Vida turned out to be the best we could get with the snow rapidly melting in spite of the frigid temperature.

Time to go home for some hot chocolate! 

Great Sand Dunes NP

Oct. 4, 2019

After a very forgettable stop in a campground northwest of Denver and a thankfully eventless passage though the Denver megatropolis that is most of eastern Colorado along I-25, we stopped at Haggard's RV  campground west of Pueblo CO for a few days R&R.

 

A former KOA,  Haggard's is family run with friendly people, a reasonably priced laundry an even a propane filling station.  To top it off it's part of Pasport America so the first 2 nights were 1/2 price.

A nearby fire didn't effect us but made for some colorful sunsets. 

While planning our route south we noticed Great Sand Dunes National Park, a park that wasn't even on our radar.  In October all the campsites in Pinon Flats  campground are first come, first serve which we like.  However, the timing wasn't great, we'd be arriving Friday afternoon. 

Our reasarch told us it's an older campground with a limited number of campsites we'd fit into.  Driving through the first loop, it wasn't looking good. On the way out of the loop we saw site 32 with a great view and we just might fit.  It took several tries  but we shoehorned our way in.

Some afternoon views from the visitors center. 

Mount Herald shrouded in the afternoon rain clouds.

Wider views of the dunes along side of the Sanger De Cristo Mountains.

Late afternoon from the campsite.

Oct. 5, 2019

Hiking the Dune Overlook trail.

The 8500 ft elevation made the climb to the overlook a challenge for both of us.  Aspin grove in the background in full fall colors. 

Later that day, we went for a walk on the dunes.

We were wondering what made these trails on the Dunes... worms, snakes?

A little while later we got the answer.  This little guy was trying as best he could to climb up the face of the dune.  Sorry, I don't know what beetle this is... or if it really is a bettle.

Eventually he gave up and headed down the dune.

Ever feel like someone's following you!

Heading back to the camper.

Coming next, Return to Chaco Canyon.