Little Switzerland

We finally soaked our bones enough to leave Pagosa Springs and set our sites on Ouray Hot Springs. That seems reasonable, yes?

From Durango to Ouray is the Million Dollar Highway, a twisting scenic elevated route, the same as the narrow guage railway uses, bobbing along the Animas River. After a few hours, a Swiss village appears in the bottom of a valley, and that would be Ouray. What a little piece of paradise. Imagine living in a valley surrounded by tall cliffs on four sides, waterfalls pouring over the edges, and a big old hot swimming pool to dip in year round, particularly when it is snowing. 4 J Campground is right in the middle of it, scenic, clean, walking distance to shopping and eating and the HOT Springs pool. Look how little Teregram looks in this valley!

We dined on pizza at an old hotel restaurant, and in the morning, took in the Box Canyon Falls just above Ouray before our soak in the pool.

More scenery followed, as we made our way west through Norwood to Utah, completing our day in Moab with a sandstorm and a family with a rescue collie befriending our Daisy. A good day.

Feelin' Hot Hot Hot

We completed our Habitat commitment on Friday and drove to Pagosa Springs in search of healing waters for all our ouchies. We found the original Spa Motel and RV Park to our liking. It's right in the middle of town and the Spas, and it's 1950's quaint. Friday night I felt like goldilocks though. The outdoor hot tub was filled with Talk Radio wanna be's discussing whether obama is really a citizen, the cost breakdown of a loaf of bread (this from a Kansas farmer), the price of RE in Sante Fe, and the trials of running a cleaning service. Made my head hurt, says Goldilocks. So I moved to the HOT women's room, where the 108 degree water felt like boiling. In and out of that one really fast. Tried the steam room, where two locals were chatting, one of whom told me I needed to move over, honey. There were resting beds, but the flourescent lights were a turnoff. That left me one choice, the big pool with kids in it. I discovered that when you float, you can't hear a thing, so I floated until the kids went home and there was just me and the new moon shining down on me. Goldilocks was finally happy.

The next morning, after a massage from an Australian who got right into my knots, Daisy and I took a walk round this charming town, down the path by the river where springs bubble up and leave large mineral deposits. Across the river was the Schliterbahn of hot springs, called The Spring. It has 23 pools, grass huts serving drinks with umbrellas, big walls of mineral deposits with water flowing down into the river where rafters float by and surfers try to mount a standing wave.

Then we took in the Fiber Festival, filled with spinning divas who raise llamas, alpacas, highland cattle, sheep, dogs, rabbits and anything furry and then spin the hair. Lots of happy spinners there. One of the events was the sheep to sweater contest. It started at 10 and ended at 3. How could you go from sheep to sweater so fast??? It was a miracle.

We were so mild after our soaking and massaging that we stayed another night, soaked another time or two, and were generally bums. I did walk a lot. In addition to the river walks, the spa backs up to Reunion Hill, which is laced with mountain trails. Daisy and I ventured in a ways to explore, but I avoided all vertical approaches. Seemed smart at 7,000 feet.

I remain grateful for the opportunity to work on the Habitat House. So many wonderful people we met, working on a common cause, to make someone's life a little better. We all got so much more than we gave.

The weather turns

 

Sunshine! Blue Skies! Wow! What a great day!

Today the church group went rafting, blessed with a beautiful day instead of the bitter cold rain. There's a God in heaven.

At the build, we had a wonderful day as well. I learned to stucco, with Tracy and Ray and I doing a patch job on the smooth coat of the house before color coating happens. Evan and Steve did an incredible job in the master bath, and Carl and Derek, Rick's lifelong buddy, put up the rest of the soffit on the porch. As of tonight, we are dried in! Tomorrow is a big day: must finish the beams!

After stucco, we had some product left and like other groups, we made a stepping stone from the leftovers. Do you like my mini airstream? It's the summer of love up here in Taos. Peace!

After we knocked off for the day, all three dogs reached a peaceful state of coexistence on the porch. I made an internet trip to the local library, where I was the only patron, and the library ladies were great company. We shared stories of Alaska trips and blogs and dogs. I'm excited that I have two more blog followers!

Tracy and Evan have a bocci ball set, and we played several rounds. Daisy and Max loved it. It was street bocci ball, so anything goes, including a dog catching your rolling ball or moving it. They had a blast. Carl and I were hopelessly behind and ready to cry uncle when Yvonne stopped by to see the progress on the house.

We had another successful potluck, with Steve's freshly caught trout the perfect appetizer. Just an hour from the stream to my mouth. After dinner there was a hot game of balderdash. The answers were incredibly inventive, but I won! Imagine that! It was 12:30 when we returned to the RV, stars everywhere and a sliver of a quarter moon sparkling. Tomorrow is going to be tough! Not enough shuteye!

Habitat gets better

 

The weather sucks, the people rock!

It keeps on raining, which means no outdoor work, like pouring patios and color coating the house. That's okay, plenty to do indoors.

But the mud is incessant. I saw Rick using Mudlucks, grocery bags tied over his boots, and have adapted them as my own. It works, even if it is a pain, and certainly better than cleaning shoes for an hour. It's a red goo everywhere, slick and sticky. A few steps and you are an inch taller from the mud stuck under your shoes, and few feet further you could play center for the Rockets.

Enough about the rain, which is unseasonal and COLD. It does produce amazing rainbows.

The people are great. We are joined this week by the college youth group from Northpark Presbyterian in Dallas. What a delightful enthusiastic group. They've rocked the ceiling in two days, dug in the mud to frame the patio, and brought our energy level up. Christie, who just finished at Schreiner, is on her 9th Habitat Build, doing a yearly build since 9th grade. Very impressive group. They alternate years between Mississippi and Taos.

Carl has two buddies working on the porch beams, which are an engineering project that changes daily. One of the best additions is that with a large group, Rick gives his safety meetings, about how to have a limb buddy who will find your finger if you cut it off and take it to the ER for you, how to avoid heat stroke (it's in the 30's at night!).

We've also added RV'rs Tracy and Evan from California, on sabbatical, planning to build a house in Puerto Vallerto (pardon the spelling, I've only got a U.S. atlas this trip). They have the tiniest airstream possible and a big lab named Max, who makes it a full house.

Tuesday night we had a group potluck, yum! with brats, salad, corn on the cob, pasta salad and chocolate cake. We sat around Evan's portable table inside the habitat house well into the night, okay, till like 8 pm, when it got too cold for wine to warm us anymore. And Tuesday I finished my Watercolor of the Habitat House. Just a little stucco house in the valley with a million dollar view.

This week for the homeowner dinner, we went to the Taos Mountain Retreat where the church group is staying, and they shared incredible hot hot water showers with 4 of us who don't use our RV showers. Yvonne came without the girls, because it would have been a 50 mile round trip to go get them. As was true last week, I was impressed with her ethics and character and what a lovely person she is.

She shared with us that last week Friday, the day we came in the bank and she looked so tired, her car engine had blown. She's now driving her daughter's old clunker that was only meant to go 5 miles to school and back and trying to figure out how she can afford a car payment and house payment too. But she says God never gives her more problems than she can handle, so they will figure it out somehow. It makes me want to buy her a car.

Wonderful Taos Ski Valley

 

Visit Daisy's Blog to see details of this beautiful day!

Dude!

Today I went to Red River to check out the rally. Wall to wall hogs, a mile thru the center of this little ski village nestled in a valley along the Red River. Even in the rain there was a party going on.

I kept driving the Enchanted Circle to Angel Fire, where I photo'd the furry gentleman on the Harley pictured below.

 

Back in Taos, the sun came out for a glorious afternoon. The artists booths in Kit Carson Park provided a fun diversion before I settled in on the Old Town square to pretend I was a watercolor artist. Hard to work on wet paper in this climate. It dried in a snap.

Ray Gonzales came along for the ride today, and he bought me a Flat Tire on the square before we headed back to Questa. I picked up Carl and Daisy and we headed to Red River again. The crowd was bigger and more colorful. Hope you enjoy some of the photos in the album. Don't worry, they are G rated. Too much rain to show off tatoos.

O Jo wonderful

 

We were off duty from Habitat for the long weekend, so we settled into our little Questa Lodge RV Park with a laundry, showers, satellite so Carl can watch the Indi 500 and sometimes, but not reliably, internet.

Friday evening we picked up a rental car from Enterprise, and Saturday took a trip to Ojo Caliente to soak our bones for three hours. I've got iron for my blood and arthritic symptoms, soda for my digestion and skin ailments, arsenic for my arthritis, and steam for my sinuses. I think the soda pool is my favorite. I'm very bouyant in it and I can actually go to sleep while floating. It was not a good day for mudding, as the sun was out only a few minutes and it was quite chilly, so my skin tone will have to wait for another day.

On the way to Ojo we crossed the Rio Grande Gorge Bridge and bought some home made lollipops from an earth mother of 5 boys who really wanted us to buy $30 fairies. On the return, I took off cross country on a local road. When we got to the Rio Grande this time, it turned to single lane dirt steep grade switchbacks till we reached the river crossing. That is one deep gorge. I was really glad not to be driving the RV, as I have done one of those roads in it and it was not easy. Did I mention it was also raining and the road was muddy slippy? No guardrails. Quite the excitement.

The motorcycles are everywhere, even in the rain, all congregating in Red River for the annual Memorial Day Rally. One of their activities is to ride the Enchanted Circle over and over. Can't see their tattoo's with all the rain gear and leathers.