New Mexico: Hiking Along Rito de los Frijoles in Frijoles Canyon
During the first part of November 2009, Jen and I spent a week in New Mexico hiking in the mountains, canyons and desert. The scenery was stunning; and the variety of ecosystems and terrain was unbelievable. New Mexico is not at all what we expected! And, having spent time in 35-states and several countries, New Mexico is our new favorite place to be.
We stayed in Sante Fe, which is a really neat town with lots to see and do — and GREAT food. Sante Fe is also reasonably close to many of the must-see destinations in North-Central New Mexico. A scenic drive to the Sante Fe National Forest, and hiking in the snowy mountains, started our week of high-altitude fun (Sante Fe is the highest state capitol at about 7,000-feet above sea level). Another scenic drive up the High Road to Taos led us to the Taos Pueblo, the Rio Grande Gorge and many of the other gifts Taos had to offer — including an equally beautiful drive down the Low Road back to Sante Fe.
One of our favorite day-hikes was a day we spent in Frijoles Canyon just outside Los Alamos. We enjoyed it so much, we went back the next day. The drive to and from Los Alamos is another beautiful experience; and Los Alamos is quite a surprise itself. Mountains and canyons, skiing and museums, the Los Alamos National Laboratory and Bandelier National Monument, along with the second largest volcanic caldera — Valles Caldera — teeming with Elk, Mule Deer and other wildlife, make Los Alamos a destination with something for everyone.
Rito de los Frijoles (Little River of the Beans) flows through Frijoles Canyon and into the Rio Grande just outside Los Alamos. Frijoles Canyon features steep cliffs with dozens of ancient cliff dwellings and ceremonial alcoves and kivas. As we hiked back down from a 142′ climb up the side of a cliff to a huge alcove, a pair of Mule Deer approached the trail we were walking on. We stopped to take a picture, and one of them walked right by me — within about three feet of me. The deer went about their business with absolutely no fear of us at all — as if they knew they were perfectly safe.
Hiking in the other direction, the Ritos de los Frijoles drops down into a deep canyon on it’s way to the Rio Grande. We followed it — sometimes crossing over it by stepping on stones or fallen trees and sometimes scaling canyon walls hundreds of feet above the little river. Up and down, we made our way to the first of a set of waterfalls (Upper Falls and Lower Falls) that drop the river down several hundred feet to the Rio Grande.
Along the way, we encountered very little wildlife; but we did meet up with a rather large Tarantula that showed as little fear of us as the Mule Deer had. This heavy, hairy spider simply crawled up some rocks on the left side of the trail we were on, crossed the path, and continued up the rocky slope to our right.
As we got closer to the Rio Grande, we could see it in the bottom of the “vee” made by the sides of the canyon. The water appeared to be green — blending in to the colorful landscape of the canyon. A few switchbacks took us down several hundred feet where we took a rest below the lower falls before retracing our steps back, up and out of the canyon.
The next time I go to New Mexico, I’ll spend more time and do many more things I didn’t do this time; but I’ll definitely go back to Frijoles Canyon — and I’ll spend more time there. Next time, I’ll get there as early in the day as possible and stay as late as I can — spending plenty of time lounging by the Rio Grande and taking more time to sit and relax along the rocky path that follows the Rito de los Frijoles through the canyon.
Jennifer and Pete Koerner in Frijoles Canyon, New Mexico
Thanks For Your Patience! We’ll Be Back Soon!
It’s been a while since I’ve posted anything new here. I apologize; but we’ve been rather busy around here these past few weeks.
It will probably be a couple months before I get back to regular posts on this page; but I would like to encourage you to check back as often as possible for special posts and invitations to free tele-classes and other events.
I’d also like to welcome the thousands of new subscribers that have joined us in the past month! Wow! The past month has been a record for new subscribers! We appreciate your interest and your commitment to Exploring your world, Expanding your mind and awareness, and Evolving into a healthier, happier, more fulfilled person. We also appreciate your interest in what we’re doing here to help people improve their lives, health and relationships.
Stay-tuned; and we’ll be back with you as soon as we can. And you’ll be surprised to read about what we’ve been up to!
In the meantime, check out www.PonderCentral.com and www.Heavenletters.org for regular doses of wisdom, inspiration and enlightenment. Also, be sure to visit our friends at www.EvolutionEzine.com for more enlightening and uplifting insights and information.
Explore Expand Evolve January 2009 Newsletter
To view the January 2009 Explore Expand Evolve Newsletter, simply click, “Read More.”
WILDCAT SPIRIT! Come To The Parade — Support The Camden County Wildcats!
Saturday, January 10, 2009, the City of Kingsland, Georgia will be sponsoring a “Wildcat Parade of Pride” to congratulate the 2008 Georgia AAAAA State Champions — The Camden County High School Wildcats! The Parade starts at 10:00 AM; and Jennifer and I will be set-up to paint “Wildcat Faces” at 9:00 AM in the Ameris parking lot at the corner of Lee Street & Williams Street, to help the City of Kingsland, and the Camden Wildcats Booster Club, raise money to pay for the Wildcat’s State Championship Rings. Come out and show your Wildcat Pride — and support your team!
If you’d like to make a donation to help the Wildcat Booster Club pay for the Team’s Championship Rings, just e-mail us,the City of Kingsland, Camden County High School, or the Camden County Wildcats Booster Club.
Here’s a picture of the ring the 2003 Camden County Wildcats received after winning the Georgia AAAAA State Championship; this is the equivalent of a Super Bowl Ring for High School Football:
GO WILDCATS!!!
Georgia High School Football AAAAA State Champions — The Camden County Wildcats
The only thing missing in Camden County’s Chris Gilman Stadium Thursday night, December 18, was an opposing team and referees, as the 2008 Camden County Wildcats took the field one last time in front of packed-out home stands — all there to celebrate the newly-crowned Georgia AAAAA State Champs! A banner hung in the North end zone — suspended between the outstretched ladders of two Kingsland Fire Dept. ladder trucks — declaring the power and prowess of our mighty Cats; as the Jumbo-tron in the South end zone replayed highlights from the Wildcat’s Undefeated 15-0 season. The scoreboard was set just as the scoreboard in the Georgia Dome was as the last second ticked off the clock in the Championship Game; and the fans were every bit as loud and excited as they were during those tense seconds in Atlanta. It was quite an evening; and a well deserved celebration for these fine young men who worked so hard to achieve the ultimate in high school football — and brought Camden County its 2nd State Title in 5-years! Local officials honored Coach Jeff Herron, who has brought Camden 8-straight Region Titles in addition to two State Titles since coming to Camden in 2000, and the entire Wildcat team and family — who, as usual, showed-up in force to honor and support their warriors!
These Wildcats started their season in the Georgia Dome (a 13-hour round-trip on a bus); and they finished in the Dome — as the Home team, even though the Visiting team only had to drive about 25-minutes to the game! In addition to those two 13-hour bus rides, the Cats third game of the regular season was in Birmingham, Al — an 18-hour round-trip on buses — and their semi-final game against Newnan was in Newnan as the result of a coin-toss between the only two remaining undefeated teams in the state. We lost the toss and had another 14-hour round-trip on buses! Of their remaining 11-games — including 8-regular season games and 3-playoff games — the Cats had two other 4+-hour bus rides to Savannah; but due to their Region 3 Championship and undefeated season, they had home field advantage for the first three playoff games. But those four wins — after a total of almost 60-hours on buses — were truly impressive because they were all against AAAAA powerhouses — including the Hoover team that lost the Alabama State Title by a field goal, an unbeaten Newnan team who had the number-one defense in the State, the season-opener in the Dome against a powerful Norcross team, and the Title game against a Peachtree Ridge team who had won their last 12-games and had the Cats down by 7-points at halftime! Truly an impressive season — and an impressive group of young men!
For those interested in the stories, photos, and videos from the Wildcat’s Championship Game, I have included a number of links here — all the links I could find last night — to any site with photos or videos or stories about the AAAAA Championship. If you know of any others, please leave them in the comment section so we can make them available also. Go Cats!!!
Wildcats Photos and Videos:
http://sgasports.net/new/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=862&Itemid=578
http://projects.ajc.com/gallery/view/sports/high-school/peachtree-ridge-camden/
http://www.camdencountyfootball.com/
http://www.gpb.org/football/watch
http://ngaphotos.com/Sports/Camden%20County%20vs%20Peachtree%20Ridge%20State%205A%20Final/index.html
Wildcats News Stories:
http://www.ajc.com/uga/content/sports/highschool/stories/2008/12/13/camden_peachtree_ridge.html
http://www.ajc.com/highschool/content/printedition/2008/12/14/hsaaaaa.html?cxntlid=inform_artr
http://www.tribune-georgian.com/articles/2008/12/17/sports/1sports12.17.txt
http://www.tribune-georgian.com/articles/2008/12/17/sports/2sports12.12.txt
http://jacksonville.com/news/georgia/2008-12-15/hard_work_pays_off_for_camdens_champions
http://jacksonville.com/news/georgia/2008-12-14/wildcats_complete_unbeaten_season
http://jacksonville.com/news/georgia/2008-12-14/wildcat_supporters_see_a_field_of_dreams
http://savannahnow.com/node/635986
2008 Camden County High School Wildcats (15-0)
Sat 08/23/08 vs. Norcross High School W 21 - 6 (Atlanta, GA)
Fri 09/05/08 vs. Columbia High School W 31 - 0 (Columbia County, Florida)
Fri 09/12/08 @ Hoover High School W 44 - 16 (Birmingham, Alabama)
Fri 09/26/08 @ Windsor Forest High School W 69 – 7 (Savannah, GA)
Fri 10/03/08 vs. A E Beach High School W 50 - 13 (Savannah, GA)
Fri 10/10/08 vs. Groves High School W 42 - 21 (Savannah, GA)
Fri 10/17/08 vs. Sol C Johnson High School W 78 - 6 (Savannah, GA)
Fri 10/24/08 vs. Jenkins High School W 70 - 0 (Savannah, GA)
Fri 10/31/08 vs. Savannah High School W 63 - 8 (Savannah, GA)
Fri 11/07/08 @ Bradwell Institute W 31 - 0 (Hinesville, GA)
Fri 11/14/08 vs. Creekside High School W 49 - 0 (Atlanta, GA)
Fri 11/21/08 vs. Northside High School- Warner W 28 - 20 (Warner-Robbins, GA)
Fri 11/28/08 vs. Woodstock High School W 18 - 17 (Woodstock, GA — 40-minutes North of Atlanta)
Fri 12/05/08 @ Newnan High School W 27 - 7 (Newnan, GA — 30-minutes South of Atlanta)
*Sat 12/13/08 vs. Peachtree Ridge High School W 21-14 — State AAAAA Championship Game (Georgia Dome, Atlanta, GA)
Jake after the Wildcats won the State Championship Game!
The AAAAA State Championship Ring (2003)
Also check-out: http://www.exploreexpandevolve.com/general-mind-meat/go-camden-wildcats/ and: http://www.exploreexpandevolve.com/general-mind-meat/saturday-night-lights-congratulations-jake-camden-wildcats/ for a couple more pictures of Jake.
Congratulations Camden County Wildcats — AAAAA State Champions!
They did it! The Camden County Wildcats brought home the Georgia AAAAA State Championship trophy Saturday night in the Georgia Dome in Atlanta! What an exciting game between two awesome teams — The Undefeated Camden Wildcats and the Peachtree Ridge Lions! It was a classic championship match-up; and it could have gone either way! It was a nail-biting, cliff-hanger of a game; and the Cats kept battling until the very end! The Lions were driving with a chance to tie the game — or win — with a minute and a half left in the game, until Ty Booth intercepted the ball allowing the Wildcats to run out the clock and bring home the trophy! I actually coached Ty, his brother Jeremiah (a Junior starting Nose Tackle), Jake, and Joel Ruiz (who is likely to be the Cat’s starting Quarterback next season) with LaShun Booth — Ty’s dad who was the head coach — when they played little league football together about six or seven-years ago. Ty, like his older brother “LB,” will be graduating from Camden and surely going to college on a full-ride scholarship; but “Miah,” Joel, and Jake will be returning next year to try for a matching State Title. I couldn’t be more proud of all of these kids — and all of the CCHS Wildcats! And Jenn and I will be returning next year — in full war-paint — to sacrifice our voices again as we cheer on the Mighty, Mighty Wildcats!
The Wildcat’s head coach, Jeff Herron, and his entire staff, deserve a lot of credit for an undefeated season at the highest level of high school football (AAAAA) — against some amazing teams, including Northside Warner-Robbins, the Newnan Cougars (the #1 defense in the state), and a Woodstock team who came closer to beating Camden than anyone else (1-point!). Coach Herron has a record at Camden County of 108-10, with 8-consecutive region titles — and Two State Championships in the past 5-years! This is truly an amazing feat in Georgia High School Football!
The Peachtree Ridge Lions, from Gwinnett County just outside of Atlanta, also deserve congratulations on an amazing season and an amazing performance in the Championship Game — which they very well could have won. The Lions were leading at halftime; and they traded scores with Camden in the third quarter before Camden finally went up by a single touchdown before both defenses put the brakes on both offenses! What a battle! Two-years ago, Peachtree Ridge shared the State Title with Roswell after the game ended in a tie — the teams were named co-champions and both schools received trophies, and all the players received Championship Rings. That game forced a change in the overtime rules for the Championship game. This season, Peachtree Ridge started the season with two tough losses — one against Lowndes County (who was number-one in the state until they got knocked out of the playoffs in the third round by the Grayson team Peachtree Ridge beat in the fourth-round). Since that second loss, Peachtree Ridge went undefeated — winning 12-straight before being handed a tough loss in the championship game with Camden. Congratulations, Lions, on a remarkable season and an awesome game!
I also want to congratulate and commend the parents and fans (including the student body) for showing up in full-force — even in Atlanta (6-hours away), Newnan (6-hours away), and Birmingham, AL (8-hours away)! We packed the stands at every home and away game; and we kept the volume, intensity, and excitement at a fevered pitch all season long. There were many away games where the game ended with twice as many Camden fans in the stadium as there were home fans! That’s one of the big secrets to the Cat’s success — the 12th-man.
And now… Whew!!! We get a break from a very intense 4-months of football, practice, games, weight-training, camps, road trips, and 6 AM practices! We get a chance to get our voices back; and we get a chance to have holidays without football practice (Yup, the Cats practiced on Thanksgiving Day)! Congrats, Cats! We’ll see you all next year!
I will post some pictures and video when it becomes available to me; but until then, I believe the video from the championship games will be archived at www.GPB.org/football.
Go Camden Wildcats! Win State!
Friday morning at 9:30 A.M., Jake and his team — the Undefeated Camden Wildcats — will be boarding their team buses and departing for Atlanta (6-hours away) where they will be playing Peachtree Ridge High School (12-2) for the AAAAA State Championship Saturday at 8:00 P.M. The game will be broadcast live on Georgia Public Television, and on the Internet at: www.GPB.org. The entire community is both proud of, and excited for, this amazingly talented group of young men — and their outstanding coaching staff, headed by Coach Jeff Herron. Jennifer and I will both be at the Dome with our game faces on!
The Wildcats finished the regular season with a perfect 10-0 record and the Region 3-AAAAA Title, and have maintained their perfect record through 4-rounds of State AAAAA Playoffs — overcoming a powerful team from Warner Robbins, and surviving and even tougher Woodstock team, before defeating the Newnan Cougars, and the top-ranked defense in the state, to win the Semi-finals and advance to the State Championship game in the Georgia Dome (Home of the Atlanta Falcons). Their opponent in the title game — the Peachtree Ridge Lions — also beat some strong teams to advance to the Championship; but, until they face the Mighty Wildcats, they have no idea what’s in store for them!
Currently, the Camden County Wildcats are the #1 Team in the State of Georgia; and ESPN has them ranked #5 in the Nation! Congratulations, Wildcats; and Good Luck in the Dome!
Take a look at Camden’s impressive 2008 season:
2008 Camden County High School Wildcats (14-0)
Sat 08/23/08 vs. Norcross High School W 21 - 6 (Atlanta, GA)
Fri 09/05/08 vs. Columbia High School W 31 - 0 (Columbia County, Florida)
Fri 09/12/08 @ Hoover High School W 44 - 16 (Birmingham, Alabama)
Fri 09/26/08 @ Windsor Forest High School W 69 – 7 (Savannah, GA)
Fri 10/03/08 vs. A E Beach High School W 50 - 13 (Savannah, GA)
Fri 10/10/08 vs. Groves W 42 - 21 (Savannah, GA)
Fri 10/17/08 vs. Sol C Johnson High School W 78 - 6 (Savannah, GA)
Fri 10/24/08 vs. Jenkins High School W 70 - 0 (Savannah, GA)
Fri 10/31/08 vs. Savannah High School W 63 - 8 (Savannah, GA)
Fri 11/07/08 @ Bradwell Institute W 31 - 0 (Hinesville, GA)
Fri 11/14/08 vs. Creekside High School W 49 - 0 (Atlanta, GA)
Fri 11/21/08 Northside High School- Warner W 28 - 20 (Warner-Robbins, GA)
Fri 11/28/08 Woodstock High School W 18 - 17 (Woodstock, GA — 40-minutes North of Atlanta)
Fri 12/05/08 Newnan High School W 27 - 7 (Newnan, GA — 30-minutes South of Atlanta)
Sat 12/13/08 Peachtree Ridge — – State AAAAA Championship Game (Georgia Dome, Atlanta, GA)
*Here’s a look at the most recent ESPN rankings:
1. St. Thomas Aquinas (Fort Lauderdale, FL) 13-0
2. Poly (Long Beach, Calif.) 13-0
3. Allen(Allen, Texas) 13-1
4. Lake Travis (Austin, Texas) 14-0
5. Camden County (Kingsland, GA.) 14-0
6. Oscar Smith (Chesapeake, VA.) 15-0
7. St. Ignatius (Cleveland) 14-1
8. Phoebus (Hampton, VA.) 15-0
9. Centennial (Corona, Calif.) 13-0
10. Lakeland (Lakeland, FL) 13-0
**And here’s another picture of Jake (a Junior Linebacker) after advancing to the Championship Game:
Go Cats!
*Click here for more about the Wildcats: http://www.exploreexpandevolve.com/general-mind-meat/saturday-night-lights-congratulations-jake-camden-wildcats/
Saturday Night Lights! Congratulations Jake & Camden Wildcats!
Most of my posts are about making life better in some way — improving health, deepening your spiritual connection, building strong, healthy, and happy relationships, and supporting other experts in these fields by letting you know what they’re up to. Today, I want to honor a group of young men who have brought a lot of joy and excitement to an entire community over the past several months — my son’s football team, the Camden County Wildcats!
The Wildcats compete at the AAAAA (5A) level in Georgia High School Sports; that’s the highest level of competition — the biggest schools with the biggest rosters, the biggest programs, and the biggest boosters. Football at this level is about as close to college football as you can get! If you saw the Wildcat’s training facilities, practice fields, weight room, film room, and their stadium — complete with brand-new artificial turf — you’d think you were at a Division II college. And if you saw the Wildcats play, you’d truly be impressed.
The Camden Wildcats are the only undefeated AAAAA team in the state at 14-0; and they have advanced to the AAAAA State Championship to be played in the Georgia Dome next Saturday, December 13, 2008 at 8:00 PM. The Wildcats will play the Peachtree Ridge High School Lions (12-2) for top honors at the top level of high school football. The game will be televised on Georgia Public Television, and broadcast on their web site at www.GPB.org.
These young Wildcats are truly an impressive group of young men. I’ve know some of these kids since they played little league football (and even coached some of them at that level); and they are absolutely some of the nicest and most respectful young men I’ve ever known. These young men are led by an amazing coaching staff, headed up by Coach Jeff Herron, who has a record at Camden County of 107-11! That’s an absolutely amazing feat in Georgia High School Football! Coach Herron brought the AAAAA State Championship home in 2003; and has advanced to the playoffs every year since 2000. Coach Herron is also one of the nicest people you could ever meet — always being thoughtful and kind to the kids while instilling confidence, honor, integrity, self-discipline, and heart in each of his players.
I played football in high school; and I’m not a big fan of sitting and watching anything (I’d rather be doing). But it’s impossible to live in this community and not be a fan of this team! And, speaking of fans, the Wildcat parents and fans are also the most dedicated and loyal fans I’ve ever seen — with the Woodstock Wolverines (from Cherokee County north of Atlanta) being the only other team I’ve seen that I would say matched the heart and spirit of the Camden Wildcat fans (and players). It isn’t unusual for Camden to show-up for road games with as many or more fans than the home team — even when the Wildcats traveled to Birmingham, Alabama to face Hoover High School (from the MTV show, “Two-a-days”)!
Camden, as a State AAAAA powerhouse, opened their season in the Georgia Dome with a 21-6 win over Norcross High School (another AAAAA power); and coach Herron made the motto for this season, “Dome-to-Dome.” True to his word, the Wildcats will end their season in the Dome — hopefully capping a perfect season with a Championship Ring!
Good Luck to Coach Herron and his Mighty, Mighty Wildcats; and congratulations on an amazing season!
Here’s a couple links to articles about Camden’s Semi-Final victory over the Newnan Cougars:
http://www.ajc.com/sports/content/printedition/2008/12/06/hsnew.html?cxntlid=inform_artr
http://www.jacksonville.com/news/georgia/2008-12-06/camden_county_pounces_on_cougars
Here’s a couple pictures taken of our Junior Linebacker (Jake) after their 27-7 win in the AAAAA Semi-Finals against Newnan High School:
Jake after beating Newnan
Pete, Jake, and Jenn in Newnan (It was 29-degrees!)
Yeah, that’s me and Jenn wearing our “Game Faces!”
The Eye of The Storm… Fear Not.
Here’s what it looks like in my neck of the woods this morning! How about you? This is a satellite image of Tropical Storm Fay (taken this morning). Tropical Storm Fay is the one responsible for snatching that kite-surfer several hundred feet through the air before slamming him to the ground — critically injuring him.
We live right where Georgia, Florida, and the Atlantic Ocean meet — just north of Jacksonville, Florida (right near where all the thick, white stuff is…).
When I owned the kayak shop, I would have been surfing my white water kayak on a day like today; but, today, I’ll be securing things around the house before heading to Atlanta to watch my son, Jake, play football in the Georgia Dome — in his season opener!
I know what you’re thinking: "Surfing? Are you crazy?" Not really; if I was crazy, I’d do it with a kite! Kayaks are much safer in rough water than you probably think — think: "Alaska, Canada, North Atlantic, North Pacific, winter, etc…" For thousands of years, kayaks have been used in the roughest imaginable seas — by people completely in control of their fear! Sure, they might have been killed in rough seas; but, if they didn’t find food, they would definitely die of starvation. You are going to die; fear not. When you have conquered your fear, you will truly be living — not dying a slow death waiting to discover the proximate cause of your own demise.
The point is, whether you are preparing for a storm, planning on standing and facing it, playing in it, or running from it, do it without fear. Do what you want to do; and do what you have to do — but make your choices without fear. Storms always pass; but fear can kill you no matter where you are.
Spirituality Simplified: Open Mindedness
“In order to move beyond the world we’ve always known and
explore the myriad possibilities that are always available, it’s absolutely
critical that we learn to approach new information with an open
mind. While this certainly isn’t a revolutionary new insight, the
plain and simple fact is that most people have a difficult time when
it comes to being genuinely open-minded.
-
The Belief Formula
