The Impromptu Sunday Hike

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I know ... another post without any news of the possible move to 'up top'. We are still in that irritating phase of dragging through the mire of appointments with those who have more influence on our future here than we do on 'our' bought and paid for piece of the dream. To say that this process is frustrating and disheartening is pure understatement so please bear with us. We are hoping for a satisfying conclusion and will pass it along as soon as (and IF) we get some tangible reassurances from those parties. In the meantime, let's blow off some pent-up steam and go for an impromptu Sunday hike.
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Brou and Daisy were keeping up their vigil from the front porch but obviously waiting for some spark of new adventure. I was in that same stage of restlessness after the events of last week. Mark set down his newspaper and we headed down the road in the Dodge, Brou in the bed and Daisy following as usual since she still refuses to jump into the truck for any reason. He dropped us off at our hike site, Daisy caught up and he continued on to the main canyon to pick up his fresh newspapers in the mailbox. The dogs and I headed into our hike zone after he departed but not before some wild attempts by the dogs at following him.

My wild hair objective was to find Mr. Greer again. Well, not exactly Mr. Greer himself (unless this was a burial marker) but the rock carving he left probably a hundred years ago in a most unlikely and secluded cleft in the massive stone boulders that rest tumbled and haphazard at the foot of these mesa walls. That is the most tormenting characteristic of these canyon lands; that you may find a fascinating feature one day and never, ever find it again. It is this tantalizing and maddening aspect which has driven treasure hunters to complete obsession in the past. This will be the second attempt to find Mr. Greer's immortal inscription so let's see what we can find today.
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Even if we don't find Mr. Greer today, the hike through the monster rocks will be worth every single foot fall. It is our own private sculpture park tour, free from any elbowing spectators and the sole featured artists are Mother Nature and Time. How did they ever accomplish these works? So many, all so unique.
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Here is a natural sculpture which I see as the kindly mountain lion and the house cat. You may see something entirely different - what do you see here?
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We continue on, the two dogs frenetically lacing their paths across ours, covering ten paces for every one of ours. I am already tiring from watching their activities rather than from my own by now but they stop long enough to focus on a new find of 'ours'. When viewed dead on, these boulders offer a four foot wide shelter between themselves but this photo was taken as approaching from the side.
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One thing that I have noticed is that you start readily noticing the difference between what is natural and what is an anomaly amid nature's usual themes. There is something odd about the four impressions well above human head height in the rock on the right. They are not the round impressions worn by water and time but more like brutal impacts from human endeavor. The top of the rock on the left would line up perfectly with these divots as though someone had planned to place four pine logs across the opening and notching them in to the rock on the right to support a sheltering roof over the gap. What do you think? Spanish sheep herders, Anasazi, Pueblo, Navajo perhaps? So many questions, so little expertise but the questions are thoroughly titillating and satisfying enough for one day's adventure.

Okay, so we didn't find Mr. Greer this time either but there will be more fine days and excuses down the road to look for him again. Tomorrow ... or maybe the tomorrow after that one, or that one. Mañana ... it's as good as a life can get.
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