Chaco Culture

We left Durango pretty early in the morning in order to have more time in Chaco Culture. Unlike the last time Caroline and John were here, we didn't see any wild horses roaming around as we drove over 16 miles of unpaved road this time. 


None of the ruins have a roof anymore and many walls got (partly) destroyed over time, but it is still impressive how many stones were used to build all of this. I wonder how long it took the people back then to build all this?
A misunderstanding led Caroline and I not only climp up the crack in the sandstone up to the mesa and down but walk to the Pueblo Bonito Overlook where we got this incredible view.
 Caroline currently takes photos of her newest pair of socks that she made for their river guide in Croatia.



Climbing up the crack was not much of a deal but climbing down was pretty scary. We also met some people climbing up halfway and had to get out of their way. This turns out to be a challenge as the crack is so slim that two people standing next to each other is simply impossible.

It looked like it could start to rain every minute and a few little rain showers came down already, we wanted to be past the sand road before it got wet. Just as we left Chaco Culture, an elk roamed on the side of the street.
Again on the lookout for wild horses on the 16 miles of unpaved road we were unlucky another time. The only one we saw was very far away and didn't even flick an ear when John tried to get it to come closer. Not even his offer of carrots, apples and mares (that we didn't have) seemed to convince the wild stallion.
Luckily, we met a chestnut and a bay horse in a paddock by the street to Pueblo Pintado who were willing to come closer for some photos and cuddles.
 Cause who can resist some cuddles and scratches?

As we were coming closer to Pueblo Pintado, we fortunately came across this herd of wild horses. A rather huge herd of almost 20 individuals of all colours you could think of. The curious little bay filly catched not only my attention but also Carolines at first sight.
This grey is the lead stallion of all these horses. I was in awe when he looked at me. Such an impressive horse!

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