23 June 2008
CHACO CANYON: Primal Fire (Part I)
Posted by Robin Easton under: Hobnobbin' with Robin .
NOTE: Dear Friends, I’ve decided to share my Chaco Canyon trip in a four or five part series. I will share the things that pierced my heart and left lifelong memories. For various reasons I’ve not had the opportunity to go on vacation for three years so every experience on this trip was excruciatingly sweet.
We arrived late afternoon at Chaco Canyon, tired, hot and dusty. We’d driven almost five hours and then another hour on the washboard road into Chaco Culture National Historical Park. The camp ground runs on a first-come, first-served basis and was full, but a kind couple with three small children gave us their spot and teamed up with their friends. At one point their children started crying really loudly. We were both so exhausted from the long drive and months of intense work that we initially thought we’d never get any sleep. But we let that go and got our tent out of the car.
The wind was blowing up a wild huff. Setting up the tent was like trying to catch feathers in a storm. but we finally accomplished it. For the first time in my life I camped using an air mattress. I’ve always slept on the ground, rocks and all. I must confess, the matteress was bliss. I’ve only used a bed (hard futon) for the last ten years. Before that I slept on the floor everywhere I went, a carry over from rainforest life. I was later glad we had the mattress. The days were brutally hot but the nights dipped down into the thirties. It kept us off the cold ground.
We had just finished blowing up the mattress when we heard one of the kids start wailing again, really loud. Other campers looked on with “Oh no, not again” faces. I saw the parents struggling to keep their kids quiet and under control and I thought of my own parents. When I was very little they got rid of our TV and took all six of their children canoing, camping and hiking for years. With four boys and two girls, we were a rowdy bunch. Someone was always crying or squabbling and yet they STILL took us into nature during my entire youth.
I looked at those two tired parents and my heart swelled with respect and love for them. I didn’t care if their kids cried all night. It was vitally important they take their children into nature. We later thanked them for giving their kids such a precious gift. We all talked about how so many children are abandoned to the TV.
Next we went for a sunset walk. While I stood and focused my camera on the setting sun, I felt my sweetheart’s hand gently slip into mine. He didn’t know I photographed his love instead of the sunset.
Farther down the dirt road, whichwound past the camp ground, we stood in awe of the famous Fajada Butte, which towers 377 feet above the canyon floor on the Chacra Mesa. It is home to the ancient Sun Dagger. The Butte is now closed to the public so as not to cause further damage, but you can go to this LINK to read more about the magical SUN DAGGER which was found atop Fajada Butte.
I remember the campfire we had the first evening we arrived. We gazed into the fire forever, until our tired bodies and souls relaxed. We were happy and at peace with each other and the world. Life is too short for anything other than peace and love. I toasted the first marshmallow I’ve eaten since I was a teenager. I always disliked marshmallows and rarely eat sugar, but heaven laid down in my mouth when I ate that marshmallow…all warm and slightly burned. 
I won’t ever forget it. Or my sweethearts face lost in dreams, connected to primal fire. I thought about how we are a culture that sits so often by the cold glow of TV, listening to other people’s fantasies rather than sitting by the warmth of a living fire sharing the stories of our lives.
Thank you my friends for your kindness and comments. So many times you make my days more joyous, warm and happy.
Love,
Robin
PS NEXT WEEK: Come with me to see “CHACO CANYON: Doorways into the Past”. We will look at some windows, doorways and walls created by ancient architectural artists.
I will also be doing a MOON post sometime before the end of June. It is part of Graham Ettridge’s “June Moon Photo-challenge.” You can read about it here: PHOTO-CHALLENGE
This Site: © Robin Easton
Website: http://www.nakedineden.com
Blog: http://nakedineden.com/nakedinedenblog/
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DEDICATED TO:
JACK PAYNE- CON MAN’S BLOG: http://www.legalthriller.blogspot.com I’ve dedicated this post to Jack because he is a very considerate and kind person. He also has a mind that’s sharp as a tack. His stunning wit comes out in his blog posts and book writing. If you’ve not yet read Jack’s book, Six Hours Past Thursdays, you can read more about it at Amazon.com. It is “un-put-down-able”. I also dedicated this post to Jack because he has spent a lot of time over the years at Chaco Canyon, New Mexico. His memories of it run deep and unforgettable. I have only been to Chaco twice but after this second visit I truly understand Jack’s deep sentiments about this magical place. Thank you Jack for your friendship and wise counsel.
This Site: © Robin Easton
Website: http://www.nakedineden.com
Blog: http://nakedineden.com/nakedinedenblog/
31 Comments so far...
Albert Says:
23 June 2008 at 7:02 pm.
I’m glad that you were able to get your pictures up. Your writing really makes me feel like I was there. I can’t wait for part 2!
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Argos Says:
23 June 2008 at 8:30 pm.
Hi Robin! it sounds like you’re having a really nice experience with this trip. So much air and open space, I suppose its the first time you visit that place. Ohh boy, how I would like to travel a bit…
and a very important ingredient for a good travel is of course, company.
Someday, someday 
Take care!
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Alexander M Zoltai Says:
23 June 2008 at 8:45 pm.
Added Jack’s blog to my RSS Reader; thanks!
Just sittin’ at my campfire waitin’ for the next post in your series…
~ Alex
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Jack Payne Says:
23 June 2008 at 9:52 pm.
A page right out of the past, Robin. You know of my love for Chaco Canyon, so this wondrous piece, with equally wondrous photos, along with your kind words about me, “made my day.”
Thanks ever so much for the touch of nostalgia, and your all-around thoughtfulness.
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lavinka Says:
24 June 2008 at 3:20 am.
Hi!
At you on the blog like usually many adventures. I am waiting impatiently for next stories. The spent childhood in nature is always unforgettable. Even if parents because of that are going grey (hair). Every year I ride with the grandmother or with the mum to Masuria (it is green lungs of Poland). We lived in wooden houses without water and the toilet, in the centre of pine forest. In the morning we walked to search for mushrooms, at the noon to swim in the lake, and with evening we ate fish caught at night by anglers – amateurs. So there was my childhood. I am longing for that wooden house…
Recently much I am going by bike and I am discovering the nature anew with my friends. And the one is hiding a lot of surprises. Recently we discovered a very old Jewish cemetery in the forest. It is far from cities and the village, it is hard to find its way to it. And it is very beautiful! If you want to see it – I am inviting to visit my turist blog lavinka.bloog.pl
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miriam Says:
24 June 2008 at 7:54 am.
felt like i was on the trip with you—yummy marshmallow
glad nature is kind to you
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timethief Says:
24 June 2008 at 7:55 am.
Thanks for sharing your adventure in this wonderful canyon. I’d love to experience it myself one day too. Your recollections are so vivid and your way with words is so compelling. I can hear the road calling my itchy feet. LOL
&hearts you
TT
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Tulip Says:
24 June 2008 at 9:33 am.
Hi Robin,
I’m really enjoying your trip to Chaco Canyon, I almost made it there back in 1986.
Me, a significant ex other and 3 kids aged 3, 5 & 9 had been travelling the States in our Kombi for several months. Chaco Canyon was the next big highlight on the agenda of our USA experience.
There had been a lot of rain in the preceding days and that wash board road you talked about had turned to mud and slush (I figured it was clay). It was so slippery the Kombi was sliding around all over the road, we persevered for many KMs but in the end I got so scared and jumpy I made hubby do a U’y and get the hell out of there. And this is Tulip …a girl who grew up in the bush on dirt roads!
So your photo of the wash board road made me smile … very different with that lovely blue sky and the dry, dusty road. We didn’t stop to take any pics, I figured if we stopped we’d get stuck in that mud and become fossil’s for future generations of tourists.
Looking forward to more of what I missed.
Tulip X
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Sandpiper Says:
24 June 2008 at 6:32 pm.
This was wonderful, Robin! You do write so beautifully and you transported me there. I love the pictures, too – especially the shadows. Very cool! I’m looking forward to more!!
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Kinsey Barnard Says:
24 June 2008 at 8:15 pm.
Hi Robin:
Just got back from a junket to Waterton, Alberta. Your Chaco stories bring back many memories for me as well. Wonderful images too!
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miriam Says:
24 June 2008 at 8:28 pm.
robin—thanks for your comments—it is too unreal that you have the identical teas in your cupboard. i was cleaning out my tea basket and have come across alfalfa and chamomile that have been there forever—i need to create a new concoction to use them up. is there an email address i can use to chat with you rather than this box? i’ll still leave comments on your site !!!
thanks,
miriam
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soulMerlin Says:
24 June 2008 at 10:07 pm.
It’s the start of a lovely series…you make me smile because I also sleep on a hard futon and usually can’t get to sleep on a soft matress. You are right about kids…sometimes on matinees, I get a bit fed-up with kids chatting and screaming during the show….but then I think of how much they are getting from the performance and so I relax and accept it.
hope you’re well
xhenry
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Pretty Me Says:
24 June 2008 at 11:20 pm.
Hi Robin! Wow! Great post! What an interesting entry you have here. I do enjoy reading your sharings and your images are so nice! Btw, thank you so much for visiting to my site and for the pieces of advice you left there. You really inspired me and pushed me up to keep on moving and to choose what is best for me. Also, thank you for including me on your prayers. I do really need that! Have a blessed day! =)
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David Says:
25 June 2008 at 3:35 am.
Next time I am in a restaurant or theater and a child starts to cry I am going to remember this post and think positive thoughts. Send them to the child and relax!
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brainteaser Says:
25 June 2008 at 6:26 am.
I was there!
Not physically.
But reading your post, it was like I was there too.
On the other tent. 
Me and my darling. Having a bonfire. Talking about us. Our love.
See, how powerful your writing is? It made me think it was me and my beau who were there.
Thanks for sharing, Robin! Love you!
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brainteaser Says:
25 June 2008 at 6:28 am.
PS: Love your shadow pic. Have something like that, too. Me and my then one-year-old nephew.
Ah, the memories!
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Nards Says:
25 June 2008 at 7:47 am.
Oh Robin! I just love these photos! You can just feel the warmth radiating out of them. What a wonderful life you lead – Thanks for sharing – Nards
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Graham Says:
25 June 2008 at 3:10 pm.
I love camping so much… I was lucky enough to be born into a family that were keen campers and spent the first 13 years of my life staying in a tent when on vacation. When looking at your final photograph I can almost feel the crackling, spitting and dancing of the flames. There is something so magical about being sat in the middle of the wilderness, late in the evening, in front of a camp fire. And I am soooooooo jealous that you had marshmallows! I don’t like them usually, but love them when they have gone all gooey after being toasted over a naked flame. Mmmmm a little piece of heaven!!!!
Part one of your trip was devine. Your wonderful way of writing allowed me to share in the wonderful joys of your journey, as though I was there too. From enduring the screaming children to admiring the sunset. Thank you for such a lovely gift. I truly look forward to your next episode.
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Ophelia Rising Says:
25 June 2008 at 4:45 pm.
How beautiful! I am right there with you. I feel the wind, the sunshine, taste the marshmallow.
I agree about the kids – we’ve been wanting to take ours out for a hike and a camp for some time now, and I think this summer will be time. Our youngest is two, but I remember going camping when I was just a wee one, so I think she’ll be fine. Actually, I think they’ll really enjoy it immensely, being the kind of outdoors-loving children they are.
I love how you’ve reminded me what a gift everything is, every thing, every minute.
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Dr. Rob Says:
25 June 2008 at 8:47 pm.
Pure gold: “The wind was blowing up a wild huff. Setting up the tent was like trying to catch feathers in a storm.”
Pure good: “I looked at those two tired parents and my heart swelled with respect and love for them. I didn’t care if their kids cried all night.”
You’re awesome
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Robert Says:
26 June 2008 at 3:32 am.
-”Other campers looked on with “Oh no, not again” faces”-
I must admit that sometimes I also look with this sort of face, forgetting how it is to camp with little kids (mine are teenagers already)… Thanks for reminding me. I vow to, from now on when I see this sort of scene in a camp, to:
- give some empathy to parents
- see if I can do anything to help these kids feel better, perhaps play with them or something
Well, perhaps not everytime, but at least once in a while.
One step at a time…
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phoenix Says:
26 June 2008 at 5:53 pm.
This was a really nice post, and awesome photos.. you mentioned hiking on my blog, and I after reading this I think I want to go hike this weekend, take my camera and go hike… and it’s so true what you said about TV, instead of watching other people’s fantasies, why not go out and live your own fantasy!!
I too went on holiday earlier this year, first time in a few years, and it felt so good to go out in nature, I went water rafting (a first for me) and next time I go I want to go mountain climbing/abseiling…
Thanks for a nice post, very inspiring writing you have going on here!
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Marc Says:
26 June 2008 at 9:53 pm.
Hi Robin:
Your comments about the saturation of TV really struck a chord with me. I grew up watching tv, and in certain respects it was more of a “parent” to me than my own workaholic parents. We cut off the TV in our home about three years ago (though I must confess to a certain movie addiction), and since then the kids have blossomed. Like you, we haven’t had the opportunity to go on a vacation in years, but the time spent as a family is just as precious. Watching the kids blossom, and develop interests better suited to their own personalities, rather than mass media programming has been a huge joy for Dawne and I.
Looking forward to the rest of your adventures in this beautiful place
Cheers, Marc
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PetMono Says:
27 June 2008 at 7:38 am.
hey robin, chaco canyon! i visited the area for five summers. i designed a logo for the center of american archeology and they paid me with free summer camps for my kids. my kids hated it at the time = they toiled all day in the sun/heat searching for artifacts. when they found some they could not keep them!
i also collected indian pottery throughout new mexico and arizona. chaco is beautiful to the eye and rich in american indian heritage.
thanks for the post and sharing with us your great POV!
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Greg Says:
27 June 2008 at 9:55 am.
I do still like my television in small doses, but especially this time of year, I rarely turn it on.
This was a lovely post, Robin (no dog’s brekkie here!) and so cool to be brought along on your fantastic vacation! I love the way you see the world and describe it to us. So nice of that family to offer you their site…and so cool that they are taking their kids out into the real world to see some of it…Fajada Butte looks SO cool.
Can’t wait to see more!
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JOURNEYTIME Says:
29 June 2008 at 11:03 am.
robin,
great intro to a magikal place—
thanks
derick
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Bird Says:
3 July 2008 at 2:12 am.
I love the shadow picture! This lovely post is making me feel full of anticipation, I’m looking forward to seeing all your pictures and reading your account. Although the hills and mountains of the UK can give you a sense of wilderness and are truly dangerous, my mouth waters at the thought of being in such a truly VAST landscape. I’ve only ever had that in India. The landscape you are showing me here is the America I’ve always wanted to visit. And giving children a place in nature? Absolutely vital, I’d say.
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Bird Says:
3 July 2008 at 2:17 am.
Whoops… I think I just lost a long and heartfelt comment about loving your shadow picture, how important it is to give children a place in nature and how my mouth waters at the prospect of such huge landscapes… but this simple summing up seems to have got the flavour across so I’m not too sad
Looking forward to what comes next!
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Whiteotter Says:
3 July 2008 at 6:26 am.
Robin, Thank you for such a beautiful post. I am a bit behind, as I missed this one until your part II came up.. I was ????? But I found it! It is so wonderful that you could have the understanding and compassion for these parents with the little kids. Proves once again that you are truely a giving and loving person, and not so wrapped up in yourself. I thank you for that. There are just so many self obsorbed people out there that will never truely understand the beauty in life. Have a beautiful day Robin… I am off to read part II
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the fearless blog Says:
8 July 2008 at 6:45 am.
My family and I have traveled up and down the east coast and as far west as the Mississippi, but I long to travel farther west and see all of these amazing sites you write about and photograph. There is something magical in these “red places” as I call them…the desert, the mountains, valleys and canyons. Just looking at your photographs I can feel my body gently floating and in my stomach I feel the butterflies. Thank you so much for sharing these moments and inspiring my mind and heart to wonder there if only in my imagination. Perhaps some day, I too will walk these ancient “red places” that have stared up at the stars and moon for millions of years.
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Robb Says:
16 August 2008 at 8:57 pm.
Kia ora Robin,
I am looking forward to reading and viewing the next installments. I love it, and as a parent appreciate your thoughts on children in the wilderness. I love marshmellows over the fire, and mine would be burnt black, yum! I never used a thermarest till I started experiencing a few cold and damp New Zealand nights in a tent, and quickly appreciated being off the ground just a wee bit. have a great day Robin.
Rangimarie,
Robb
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