Hiking the Frijoles Canyon Trail, Bandelier New Mexico

My husband and I recently made a trip to Los Alamos, New Mexico, to visit a friend. While there we hiked Frijoles Canyon Trail. We started at the Ponderosa Campground, which was almost empty even on a Saturday in July. You can do the trail as a 13-mile loop, or hike eight miles one way and end up at the Bandelier National Monument Visitor Center. We made a seven-mile out and back hike.

The 2011 Las Conchas fire destroyed many of the larger trees and allow for subsequent flooding. However, smaller vegetation is coming back with a vengeance, and the lack of trees provides clearer views of the lovely cliff faces. 

The stream is at risk of flooding during heavy summer rains, but during our visit it was easy to cross and pleasant for taking a break to cool the feet.

Wildflowers grew in abundance, and we saw birds, a deer while we were up on the plateau, and a variety of interesting insect life.

This boulder, which must have fallen from the cliffs years (or centuries) previously, appeared to have holes cut into it like a ladder. We were, after all, close to Bandelier, where the Ancestral Pueblo people lived from approximately 1150 CE to 1550 CE.

As we did the hike, it started out fairly flat, then headed down a steep trail to the valley. After hiking along the river for a couple of miles, we turned back and had to do the steep trail again. This hike not only provided great exercise, but also excellent views and a variety of nature!

Kris Bock writes novels of suspense and romance with outdoor adventures and Southwestern landscapes. 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.

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.

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 at Fenton Lake and Valles Caldera New Mexico

My husband and I recently made a trip to Los Alamos to visit a friend. On the way, we stopped at Fenton Lake State Park New Mexico where we were greeted by this golden-mantled ground squirrel.

Fenton Lake is a popular spot for fishing, and it has campsites, though they're pretty close together. If you prefer a more remote experience and don't need amenities, you'll find plenty of backcountry camping nearby. 

Still, we had a lovely three-mile walk around the lake, admiring the many wildflowers.

Fenton Lake is in the northwest part of New Mexico, a few miles north and west of Jemez Springs. From there, we headed more or less eased through Valles Caldera National Preserve. This circular depression, caused by a spectacular volcanic eruption about 1.2 5 million years ago, is America’s newest national preserve. 

Some areas are restricted or require permits, but parts of the preserve are open to hiking, biking, hunting, and fishing. We stopped at a couple of random pull offs alongside the highway. The first trail was temporarily closed (I can't recall if it was fire danger or flooding danger, but both are risks during New Mexico summers.) The second was less of a trail than a few crisscrossing cattle paths, but we had some great views.

Fun trivia – the TV show Longmire is set in Wyoming but it is filmed in New Mexico, mainly in Las Vegas New Mexico and the Jemez Mountains. Sheriff Walt Longmire's cabin is actually an old cabin in Valles Caldera.

Kris Bock writes novels of suspense and romance with outdoor adventures and Southwestern landscapes. 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.

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.

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.

New Mexico's Monsoon Rains

People are often surprised to hear the term "monsoon" associated with New Mexico. But we do have monsoon rains. 

Some definitions of monsoon specifically refer to the seasonal winds of the Indian Ocean and Southern Asia. A more general definition for monsoon is a seasonal shift in wind direction and pressure distribution, which causes a change in precipitation. In other words, the monsoon is not the rain itself, but monsoon patterns can bring rain. (More info here.)

Anyway, in New Mexico, we call the summer rainy season monsoon season. We often get short, very heavy rains in the afternoon or evening. As an example, the following three pictures were taken in a ten-minute timespan. 

It had been raining for perhaps 15 minutes before I took this first picture. The brownish area is muddy water. It rained so hard and fast that the water didn't have time to soak in, so it's flowing off of nearby scrub desert on to the golf course.

 The water is spreading and will soon join the water that is pooling up toward the lower left in the picture.

Now the golf course is half bog and half shallow lake. It won't be much fun for the golfers tomorrow!

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. Fans of Mary Stewart, Barbara Michaels, and Terry Odell will want to check out Kris Bock’s romantic adventures. “Counterfeits is the kind of romantic suspense novel I have enjoyed since I first read Mary Stewart’s Moonspinners.” 5 Stars – Roberta at Sensuous Reviews blog

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.

The Mad Monk's Treasure, “Smart romance with an 'Indiana Jones' feel,” is currently free at all e-book retailers.

A #RomanticSuspense Inspired by a Treasure Hunting Legend

photo by Alan Erickson

I love the Southwest, and I love the romance and mystery behind tales of buried treasure. When researching lost treasures of the American Southwest, I came across the story of the Victorio Peak treasure, which has it all – a heretic Spanish priest, bandits, an Apache raider, and of course lots of gold. The Mad Monk’s Treasure – currently free at all e-book retailers – was inspired by this tale.

Treasure Hunting Law

Many people are fascinated by tales of lost treasures. Some people even devote their lives to tracking down one or more historical mysteries, while others dabble in treasure hunting as a hobby. But who actually owns the treasure if someone does find it?

The Archaeological Resources Protection Act of 1979 states that on public land (BLM lands, national parks, etc.), archaeological finds belong to the government. Qualified archaeologists can put in permits for excavation, and the finds can go to universities or museums, but the objects still belong to the government. On private land, a treasure would typically belong to the finder, if they are excavating with the land owner’s permission. However, state rules vary. Also, “treasure trove,” paper money or objects of gold or silver, must have been lost for at least a few decades, so it is unlikely that the original owner would come to reclaim it.

Of course, not everyone follows the law. I did some volunteer training with the BLM for people interested in monitoring archaeological sites. We were warned to never approach strangers digging in the desert, as they might be illegal treasure hunters and might be violent. Life can be just as exciting as fiction!

Inspired by Legend

“Smart romance with an 'Indiana Jones' feel.”

In writing fiction, I took liberties with the Victorio Peak Treasure, which is still considered an unsolved mystery. According to the stories, the most likely location for the treasure is now within the restricted area of the White Sands Missile Range. I moved the treasure to public land, so my characters could actually find it. Not that the adventure is easy!

In The Mad Monk’s Treasure, quiet history professor Erin uncovers a clue to a lost treasure cave, but minutes after her discovery, a hit and run driver leaves her for dead. Is Drew, the handsome helicopter pilot who found her bleeding in a ditch, really a hero, or one of the enemy?

Erin won’t give up an important historical find without a fight. She and her best friend Camie head into the New Mexico wilderness to track the treasure. The wilderness holds its own dangers, from wild animals to even wilder weather. The pair races to find the treasure as sinister men hunt them. Just how far will Erin go to find the treasure and discover what she’s really made of?

“The story has it all—action, romance, danger, intrigue, lost treasure, not to mention a sizzling relationship....”

The Mad Monk’s Treasure is the first of the Southwest Treasure Hunters novels. The Dead Man’s Treasure is book 2 and The Skeleton Canyon Treasure is book 3. Each novel stands alone and is complete, with no cliffhangers. This series mixes action and adventure with light romance. 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. 

Kris Bock writes novels of suspense and romance with outdoor adventures and Southwestern landscapes. 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.

Fans of Mary Stewart, Barbara Michaels, and Terry Odell will want to check out Kris Bock’s romantic adventures. “Counterfeits is the kind of romantic suspense novel I have enjoyed since I first read Mary Stewart’s Moonspinners.” 5 Stars – Roberta at Sensuous Reviews blog. In Counterfeits, stolen Rembrandt paintings bring danger to a small New Mexico town. 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. 

Hummingbird Encounter at Bosque del Apache

I had a wonderful experience recently visiting the Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge for a hummingbird tagging event. An expert was therefore two hours, catching and tagging hummingbirds so they can track them and learn more about them. With only three or four of us watching at one time, we really got up close and personal! They'll be doing another event in about a month, to see what new species of hummingbirds have arrived.

 A net is set up over a feeder. 

When the hummingbird comes to drink…

 The tagger releases a string that drops the net 

and catches the bird, or in this case two of them.

She retrieves the hummingbird and bags it.

 A tiny metal ring gets clipped around the bird's tiny ankle.

They weigh the bird, measure various body parts, and record what they find. I didn't get a picture, but she used a straw to blow on the hummingbirds' bellies. This blew the downy feathers out of the way, exposing the belly, which does not grow feathers. They recorded whether or not the birds had noticeable fat. None of these did, which means they are not getting ready to migrate.

After letting the bird take a long drink of nectar, she passed the bird to me so I could release her. The hummingbird sat on my palm for almost a minute! Then she flew off too fast to see.

Bosque del Apache - U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

Friends of the Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge

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.

The Mad Monk's Treasure is currently 

free at all e-book retailers.

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.

Fans of Mary Stewart, Barbara Michaels, and Terry Odell will want to check out Kris Bock’s romantic adventures. “Counterfeits is the kind of romantic suspense novel I have enjoyed since I first read Mary Stewart’s Moonspinners.” 5 Stars – Roberta at Sensuous Reviews blog

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.

Petroglyphs and Bedrock Mortar – Hiking in New Mexico #MountainMonday #TT

One thing I love about living in New Mexico is that you can hike nearly anywhere. In other places, you may be restricted to an official marked hike. Either you're not allowed to hike elsewhere, because most places are private property, or it's impossible to hike elsewhere because of thick vegetation. While there are many excellent New Mexico hikes to be found in guidebooks, adventurous types can also find hidden gems. These pictures are from a loop west of Socorro, in central New Mexico, which features petroglyphs as well as more recent signs of human occupation such as a crumbling cattle trough and a rusty windmill.

I love the handprints of different sizes going up the wall. We like to imagine a family making these. These appear to be pictographs. A pictograph is simply a picture or symbol. The term can be used in many fields, including mathematics. But in archaeology, pictograph refers to a symbol painted on a rock. On the other hand, petroglyphs are symbols created by scratching or carving into the rock. Both are protected by state and federal laws.

 Here's another handprint, but this one is done as an outline.

Can you spot symbols in here? Slightly left of center, in the lower half, the red paint seems to surround something like a castle. Toward the upper right is what looks (to modern sensibilities) like a hash tag. It looks rather like the Zia Sun symbol as well.

The holes on top of this boulder do not appear entirely natural. They are too rounded and smooth, suggesting this may have been a bedrock mortar used to grind grain.

I should note that I am not an archaeologist, and these are simply our interpretations of what we found.

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.

The Mad Monk's Treasure, “Smart romance with an 'Indiana Jones' feel,” is currently free at all e-book retailers.

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

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.