Hiking in New Mexico – the Middle of Nowhere #TT #TravelTuesday

These are photos from a recent hike. It isn't any particular hike – in fact, we couldn't find the place we were looking for, so we parked when the rough dirt road we were following ran out, and just walked. This area is just west of San Antonio, New Mexico.

This lizard was proudly perched on a wall of boulders. The rock wall was about three feet high, presumably for drainage control.

An anvil-shaped cloud was growing to the east.

We found a partial geode along with lots of rocks with this swirly white material. I had to message my husband, the geologist, to ask what this was: Hydrothermally deposited quartz – quartz precipitating from a hot fluid, found commonly along faults, commonly the host for gold. But we didn't find any gold.

A red velvet mite. It's hard to tell from this picture, which is zoomed in a lot, but they're tiny – about one quarter the size of a dime. Apparently red velvet mites are found around the world, and some species are MUCH bigger. I've seen them occasionally before, but we saw dozens in one area, so there must of been a recent hatching.

I write novels of adventure and romance involving outdoor adventures and Southwestern landscapes. Whispers in the Dark features archaeology and intrigue among ancient Southwest ruins. In Counterfeits, stolen Rembrandt paintings bring danger to a small New Mexico town. What We Found is a mystery with strong romantic elements about a young woman who finds a murder victim in the woods. The Mad Monk’s Treasure follows the hunt for a long-lost treasure in the New Mexico desert. In The Dead Man’s Treasure, estranged relatives compete to reach a buried treasure by following a series of complex clues. In The Skeleton Canyon Treasure, sparks fly when reader favorites Camie and Tiger help a mysterious man track down his missing uncle. Each of the Southwest Treasure Hunters books stands alone in this series mixing action and adventure with light romance.

Read excerpts at my Amazon page or website. Sign up for Kris Bock newsletter.

New Mexico Aloe and Cactus in Bloom

This has been a good year for a lot of native New Mexico plants. These are agave americana, more commonly known as century plants, a type of aloe.

And here is an ocotillo cactus in Bloom (note the red flowers towards the ends of the stalks) against an afternoon sky.

Kris lives in New Mexico, where she enjoys hiking, rock climbing, and watching the sunset from her patio. Her home office looks out on nature, complete with distracting wildlife such as roadrunners and foxes. Her BFA in photography is used mainly to show Facebook friends how lovely the Southwest is.

Kris Bock writes novels of suspense and romance with outdoor adventures and Southwestern landscapes. The Mad Monk’s Treasure follows the hunt for a long-lost treasure in the New Mexico desert. In The Dead Man’s Treasure, estranged relatives compete to reach a buried treasure by following a series of complex clues. In The Skeleton Canyon Treasure, sparks fly when reader favorites Camie and Tiger help a mysterious man track down his missing uncle. Whispers in the Dark features archaeology and intrigue among ancient Southwest ruins. What We Found is a mystery with strong romantic elements about a young woman who finds a murder victim in the woods. In Counterfeits, stolen Rembrandt paintings bring danger to a small New Mexico town.

Read excerpts at www.krisbock.com or visit her Amazon page. Sign up for the Kris Bock newsletter for announcements of new books, sales, and more.

Hiking the Grand Canyon with Dad – Happy Father's Day #fathers

This is my first Father's Day without my father. One of my favorite ways to remember him is hiking. We hiked a lot together in the last decade, whenever my husband and I visited my parents in Arizona. Dad also took my brother and me on our first trip down the Grand Canyon! Later my husband and I went with my father and his hiking group, hiking rim to rim. Last year, Mom, my brother, my husband and I returned to the Grand Canyon and scattered Dad's ashes. Most of these pictures are from the first Canyon hike my brother and I did with Dad.

 Ready to start the hike!

 My brother and father on the trail.

 Dad leading the way.

Dad and me taking a break.

 We made it to the bottom! 

This is near Phantom Ranch where we stayed two nights.

We're wearing different clothes, so this must be on the hike back up.

 And we made it back up again!

The view from near where we scattered Dad's ashes last autumn.*

[You can get permission to scatter ashes, with certain rules and restrictions.]

Kris lives in New Mexico, where she enjoys hiking, rock climbing, and watching the sunset from her patio. Her home office looks out on nature, complete with distracting wildlife such as roadrunners and foxes. Her BFA in photography is used mainly to show Facebook friends how lovely the Southwest is.

Kris Bock writes novels of suspense and romance with outdoor adventures and Southwestern landscapes. The Mad Monk’s Treasure follows the hunt for a long-lost treasure in the New Mexico desert. Whispers in the Dark features archaeology and intrigue among ancient Southwest ruins. What We Found is a mystery with strong romantic elements about a young woman who finds a murder victim in the woods. In Counterfeits, stolen Rembrandt paintings bring danger to a small New Mexico town. 

Read excerpts at www.krisbock.com or visit her Amazon page. Sign up for the Kris Bock newsletter for announcements of new books, sales, and more.

Amazing New Mexico Skies

I'm sharing some of the photos I've taken recently of the wonderful skies here in New Mexico.

Kris lives in New Mexico, where she enjoys hiking, rock climbing, and watching the sunset from her patio. Her home office looks out on nature, complete with distracting wildlife such as roadrunners and foxes. Her BFA in photography is used mainly to show Facebook friends how lovely the Southwest is.

Kris Bock writes novels of suspense and romance with outdoor adventures and Southwestern landscapes. The Mad Monk’s Treasure follows the hunt for a long-lost treasure in the New Mexico desert. In The Dead Man’s Treasure, estranged relatives compete to reach a buried treasure by following a series of complex clues. In The Skeleton Canyon Treasure, sparks fly when reader favorites Camie and Tiger help a mysterious man track down his missing uncle. Whispers in the Dark features archaeology and intrigue among ancient Southwest ruins. What We Found is a mystery with strong romantic elements about a young woman who finds a murder victim in the woods. In Counterfeits, stolen Rembrandt paintings bring danger to a small New Mexico town.

Read excerpts at www.krisbock.com or visit her Amazon page. Sign up for the Kris Bock newsletter for announcements of new books, sales, and more.

Amazing New Mexico Skies

The skies have been so amazing here in New Mexico that it simply wanted to share some of my recent photos.

Kris Bock lives in New Mexico, where she enjoys hiking, rock climbing, and watching the sunset from her patio. Her home office looks out on nature, complete with distracting wildlife such as roadrunners and foxes. Her BFA in photography is used mainly to show Facebook friends how lovely the Southwest is.

Kris writes novels of suspense and romance with outdoor adventures and Southwestern landscapes. The Mad Monk’s Treasure follows the hunt for a long-lost treasure in the New Mexico desert. In The Dead Man’s Treasure, estranged relatives compete to reach a buried treasure by following a series of complex clues. In The Skeleton Canyon Treasure, sparks fly when reader favorites Camie and Tiger help a mysterious man track down his missing uncle. Whispers in the Dark features archaeology and intrigue among ancient Southwest ruins. What We Found is a mystery with strong romantic elements about a young woman who finds a murder victim in the woods. In Counterfeits, stolen Rembrandt paintings bring danger to a small New Mexico town.

Read excerpts at www.krisbock.com or visit her Amazon page. Sign up for the Kris Bock newsletter for announcements of new books, sales, and more.