We began Thursday morning with coffee for me and Cappuccino for Kay; but we both opted out of a full breakfast since we were traveling. We drove south and between Ouray and Silverton, we came upon 4 moose browsing nonchalantly beside the highway. We were on the wrong side of the highway, but a short drive and turn-around allowed Kay to snap several photos, and I was able to take a few, shooting through her open window.

Continuing South on the Million Dollar Highway, we drove past Silverton, and then Purgatory Ski Resort to Durango. Plans were to stop and tour Durango, but like other towns in the San Juan Mountains, it was commercialized and crowded. At that point we opted to continue south, bypassing Farmington, New Mexico, headed to the Bisti/De-Na-Zin Wilderness, a rolling landscape of badlands which offers some of the most unusual scenery found in the Four Corners Region. (I had planned to travel to this area in the fall, but since we were so close, we opted to tour the area on our way home.)

Time and natural elements have etched a fantasy world of strange rock formations made of interbedded sandstone, shale, mudstone, coal, and silt. The weathering of the sandstone forms hoodoos—weathered rock in the form of pinnacles, spires, cap rocks, and other unusual forms. Fossils occur in this sedimentary landform, as well occasional petrified tree elements.

Regretfully, I chose the De-Na-Zin Wilderness Trail to hike rather than more scenic and well-known trails in the wilderness area, such as the Ah-shi-sle-pah Trail. The 2.8-mile out-and-back De-Na-Zin Wilderness Trail near Nageezi, New Mexico, mostly follows dry river beds through a series of rock formations and petrified wood. The first mile of the trail is relatively unremarkable, but as the trail continued, we entered a section with incredible formations and a significant amount of petrified wood.

And the flowers, particularly the Indian Paintbrush, were spectacular. We found the trail to be difficult to navigate at times, but thank goodness for downloading the trail map for assistance. We thought we had enough water, but the route is exposed to the sun with no shade. We hiked almost 4 miles in 100° weather, we ran out of water about a quarter mile from the trail head, and there was one point where Kay didn’t think she could make it out. But we did! 

The detour to the Bisti/De-Na-Zin Wilderness Area cost us about 4 hours time on the journey home. Was it worth it—not sure we’ll ever know! We overnighted in Tucumcari, New Mexico, stopping just before dark.

On Friday, we continued traveling west on Interstate 40 through Amarillo, Texas, and Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, arriving home about 5 PM. After unloading, the new Hyundai, dusty from all the gravel roads we drove, was washed and then cleaned inside. We were glad to be home.