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The trail started beneath the electrical tower on the other side of the parking lot. Kyna paused to study the map posted on the signboard and Cyrus read over her shoulder. |
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"People have actually been in New Mexico over ten thousand years?" he asked. |
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"That's what it says," Kyna replied. |
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"I went to Detroit one time. It felt like I was there that long." |
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"The Anasazi, or Ancient Ones, got here about nine hundred A.D. and flourished until sometime in the thirteen hundreds when their descendants were thought to inhabit land along the Rio Grande. They were basket weavers and pottery makers, magnificent craftsmen." |
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"And they make all that silver and turquoise stuff you like?" |
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"This stuff?" Kyna held up her wrists, showing off two Navaho bracelets. "These are Navaho." |
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"Probably made in Taiwan," Cyrus mumbled. "What happened to the Anasazi?" |
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"Depends on who you ask. Some say a drought did 'em in. Others say more aggressive tribesmaybe the Apaches. They left behind burial mounds, beaucoup cliff and cave dwellings and thousands of unanswered questions." |
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Cyrus was still peering at the map on the board. "How long is this trail?" |
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"About twelve miles, round-trip. The first six or so are all downhill. Which makes the trip back something of a challenge." |
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Cyrus traced the red line that denoted the trail on the clear plastic overlay. |
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"It follows the crest to this point." Kyna pointed to the tiny knob on the map that represented Sandia Peak. "From there you can see both Albuquerque and Santa Fe. Then it goes down this way and winds up at that restaurant we passed on the way up. We can have lunch there and then hike back." |
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The well-worn path started between a pair of tall fir trees and vanished down into a grove of aspens and poplars. Most |
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