Today I headed out to
Cerrillos Hills Historic Park even though the wind was blowing and it was pretty chilly. I needed to replace a box that had gone missing and I need to find a new home for another one that I had to remove from its old hiding place.
I knew I would get the one box replaced but I wasn't sure if I would find a spot for the other box - but I had it with me just in case. I arrived at the parking area and found that I was the only one around. My first task was to replace my missing box -
Felis concolor. I wanted it in the same area because I really love the views and the peaceful quality of that spot. It is off on a little side trail that doesn't get much traffic and you can sit on a rock ledge and just enjoy the box, the views and the quiet. So I made my way up the Mountain Lion Trail (now renamed the Jane Calvin Sanchez Trail) to the old hiding spot of the box. I looked around and eventually found a new spot for the box. It is very close to the old spot but in a much better spot - I hope it doesn't go missing again.
After the box was hidden I took some pictures and then returned to the main trail. I continued along the trail to a spot with a bench and I just sat and enjoyed the views. I didn't stay long because the wind started blowing harder and it got colder. So I returned to the parking lot. But instead of leaving I walked up to the
Analemma to read about it and take some more pictures. At this time I noticed a trail just past the sculpture. This trail is pretty new, I don't remember seeing it when I first planted my box. So I made my way up the Village View Trail. The trail is very easy and not very long and it ends at an overlook with a bench and a sign that talks about
Cerrillos, The Early Years. From this overlook you can see the village of
Cerrillos and the
Broken Saddle Riding Co. This seemed like a good spot for
Los Vaqueros.
In case you hadn't heard I had to remove this box from Albuquerque because it violated their
Open Space Rules. So I needed to find this cowboy a new home. What better place for a cowboy than somewhere with a view of horses. So I walked around, sat on a few different benches and eventually found a new hiding spot. I think he will be happy here.
After sitting and looking at the views for a while I decided I needed to head back home. I walked back to the car and I felt very good about the hiding spots. Now that both these boxes have new homes they would like to receive visitors. Make sure you look up the new clues before heading out and I am looking forward to people finding them.
It is amazing the beauty you can see from atop this mesa. And you get a bird's eye view of Chimney Rock. This first box - Chimney Rock - was special since it was the first box I planted. I was very happy with my carving (it was my second carving - the first being my signature stamp) and the logbook. We hiked the trail up to the top and walked aroung the mesa looking for a spot to hide the box. We found what we thought would be a good spot and placed the box and covered it with rocks. After hiding the box we made our way down to the parking area and headed home. I wondered if the box was hidden well enough and if it would last and when it would be found. A few people found it - only one person logged in a find, another person sent me an email but never logged it and a third person told me in person that they found it. So as far as I know those were the only three finders. I hadn't heard anything about the box in a while so one day I decided to drive out to Ghost Ranch and check on it. I was disappointed to find that the box was gone. 
Unfortunately, my inexperience in hiding boxes was evident - the spot I picked was not very good. So then and there I decided that since it was my first box I wanted to replace it. I walked around the mesa scoping out possible new hiding spots and thinking about how I could hide it better. After an hour up there I decided it was time to head home. I should have worked on the new box immediately but I guess I needed to do other things and before I knew it time got away from me and it wasn't until today that I was able to get back out there and rehide it. I worked on the stamp about a week ago and finished the journal two days ago. Thomas and I had plans to go today but then we ended up getting some snow and we almost cancelled the trip.
But when we woke up this morning it was clear and beautiful and we felt that it would be okay to hike. We had a very nice drive out to Abiquiu and when we arrived at Ghost Ranch we checked in and headed for the trail. We took our time and enjoyed the hike up, we stopped often to take pictures and check out the views. We arrived at the top and we immediately checked out rocks and bushes for a good spot. We wanted to stay close to the trail but also wanted some place safe. This time I think we did a much better job hiding the box and I feel it will last longer. After getting the box hidden we walked around the mesa and took more pictures before heading back to the car. To complete the day we stopped in at the Abiquiu Inn for some dinner before heading home. I am glad we didn't postpone the trip - it was a beautiful day and we had a great time. I have updated the clues and the box is waiting to be found.
