Red Canyon, Manzano Mountains

Opal Lake, Pagosa Springs, CO

Left on Blanco Basin Road from US Hwy 84 south of Pagosa Springs for 10 miles, then Castle Creek Road for another 3.5 mi to the trailhead. This hike is a short 1.2 miles to the lake.

The trail was steep at the start and lined with Aspen and then opens into a meadow that leads to the lake.

Flower and butterflies everywhere.

Mineral deposits give the lake its milky color. A great mid summer hike. Absolutely perfect.... except for the mosquitoes.

Chimney Rock Archaeological and Historic Site, continued

The ancestral Puebloan people built there homes next to the twin pinnacles of Chimney Rock. They started building in the 900's AD and left by the mid 1200. Why they left the valley and their farms to built high up on the mesa is unknown. Chimney Rock is believed to be an outlier community connected with Chaco Canyon.

Below, grinding corn into maize.

Chimney Rock, Colorado

Chimney Rock is an ancient Native American site like Mesa Verde, Bandelier and Chaco Canyon. As we pulled up to the registration cabin, we were greeted by very busy and hungry hummingbirds.

Abi can you tell how many hummingbirds are in each picture?