Bears and bats.


When leaving the traditional campgrounds for a quiet solo spot in the woods remeber that you are just that much closer to nature. Including the bears. In the Jemez mountains of New Mexico we arrived late in the day and after hitting a few of the national park campgrounds which were all full, we headed up into the mountain roads in search of a place to pitch the tent. You know how it gest at the end of the day- you are just looking to complete the task. We found a lovely secluded spot off a side road designated for offsite camping...after setting up camp we took a stroll through the woods, and about 200 yards from the tent came across reasonably fresh bear scat. OK. so they were there at some point....not 3 minutes later there came from behind and to the left a moany, growly, sound that sounded a lot like a bear. OK. To shorten the anticipation, we did not encounter one face to face. We were however kept awake all night by the calls of at least two, maybe three bears. As adventurous as I am, I will admit to heart stopping moments, the debate as to whether to cut and run leaving evrything behind until morning continued all night. The stars were beautiful, but the next morning as we broke camp and headed for Abiquiu Lake and a managed campground, I was grateful to have gone without a face to face encounter. We obeyed all the rules- changing clothes before bed, keeping the food in the car, still they were there, vocal and scary.
Arriving on top of a mesa overlooking the entire Abiquiu Lake and much of Ghost Ranch in Abiquiiu New Mexico, my first thought was for toilets and showers. In the extreme heat of the desert (upwards of 100 degrees) , it doesn't take long to feel grimy and gritty. The views are astounding from this campground, our site had a few trees for shade but for the most part an unobstructed view of lavender, rust and butterscotch colored cliffs, mesas and desert. The lake a sparkling blue at our feet..
As we prepared dinner, late in the day as the sun set over our shoulder, there came an unanticiapted encounter. Bats. Slowly fluttering at first, they eventually swooped the table, flying close enough to my face that I could see the gray underbelly of a large bat as it flew in between our dinner plates. There were hundreds that night, diving the tent and the table, close enough to my hair that I feared entanglment. Yuck. The rest of our time there we saw only few each dusk. Perhaps they were brought in by the storm that had swept through earlier that afternoon. I don't know. I was willing to risk the bats for a hot shower however.
I am now back in a cityscape in Pueblo CO. I promise to learn how to download my pictures as there are many. Next stop Aspen.