Off the Interstate and Seeing More Friends

The morning after my stay in Green River, Utah I took time to visit Arches National Park where I again did some hiking. Although there was construction going on I was still able to see a lot. 

When I left Colorado and headed home the plan was to stop and visit friends Ken and Kristi Menuier in Tijeras, New Mexico. They weren't going to be home until evening so I was able to make multiple stops and side trips on the way. I stopped at the Ludlow Massacre site near Trinidad, Colorado. I had intended to do that for years and just blew through on I 25. It is a memorial to a terrible incident in our history. 

When I got south of Raton in New Mexico I decided to visit my grandfather Anstey's grave in Roy, New Mexico. It was farther from the interstate than I expected. When I got to Roy I stopped for directions to the cemetery and was able to take a picture of the old movie theater that my uncle Jimmy "Elmo" used to own. 

When I arrived at the cemetery it was a typical old town cemetery with no place to ask for help locating a burial site. I drove up and down roads, including some that were very overgrown but couldn't find the site I was looking for so I decided to call my sister Donna who had visited there once many years ago to see if she remembered how to find it. She didn't but while I was almost ready to hang up and give up I looked to the left and I was parked maybe fifteen feet from Grandpa Anstey's marker. It was surreal. 

I took a different route back to the interstate and drove through a beautiful canyon. 

Next I stopped at the Fort Union National Monument another place I have passed to many times to count in my travels up and down I 25. They were closing the gates in 30 minutes so I didn't walk around as much as I would have but I was really impressed with what I did see. 

I spent two nights in Tijeras with Ken and Kristi and had the chance to catch up with them and with Kristi's mom Jody who I met when coaching Kristi in Ruidoso years ago. The second day my sister Donna called and asked if I could find my Uncle Jimmy's burial site and with information that she had from his obituary I was able to find it. It was actually not overly far from where I was. Imagine my surprise when I saw that his name was misspelled on his marker. 

When I left I was close to the Sandia Tram so I decided to take the tram to the top of Sadia Peak. It was a beautiful ride even though it was partly cloudy.

I spent the rest of the afternoon sitting in their beautifully landscaped peaceful backyard reading and watching hummingbirds and butterflies enjoy the flowers. The next day I was heading to Arizona.