I realized that I never told you all about the trip to Santa Fe James and I made in September. I was just going through the pics last night, so I think today will be a good day to post about a couple of places we visited while on that trip. I can't tell you about some things, but I'll try to give a good overview.
There were a few places I wanted to see on this trip, but I had to decide on a place to search where the camera crew could follow easily. I wanted the location to be interesting, and maybe somewhere where pottery sherds were lying on the ground.
Although I'd never been to Tsankawi on the outskirts of Bandolier, I thought that might be a good place to check out.
When we arrived in Santa Fe, we checked into the Inn and Spa at Loretto, and Shannon, the producer, said she was ready to meet. James and I hurriedly put our bags in our room, and then rushed down to the big lobby.
I liked Shannon immediately. She had a warm, easy going, friendly personality that made me feel at ease. She wanted to do an interview, and decided the lobby was too loud. Fortunately, there was a nice balcony near our room that was perfect for a late afternoon outdoor interview.
 |
| There was a wedding going in below us. |
We interviewed for probably an hour or so, and agreed to meet early the next morning to begin our day's journey in front of the camera.
However, we had a slight miscommunication and James thought we were going to Fort Union (we considered it earlier because it was on level land where the camera crew could easily follow), which is in a different direction than Tsankawi, so we were already halfway to Fort Union before we discovered the mistake (James had plugged Fort Union into his navigation on his phone).
However, Fort Union turned out to be the best place for the camera to follow, and also provided a lot interesting history.
As we neared the old civil war fort, I was struck by the loneliness of it's location--out in the middle of Nowheresville, NM.
So, I just said whatever came into my mind, lol, which was probably a bunch of gibberish, but James said it wasn't, and Shannon and the camera crew looked interested, so I ran with it.
We started on the pathway, and saw a lot of signs telling you not to get near the ruins. There was a covered wagon up ahead, with boxes inside that looked a lot like the box sitting next to Forrest and Donnie in a photo in TTotC. I wanted to look inside and the covered wagon didn't look like a ruin, so I walked up and lifted the lid from the first box I could reach.
But I didn't even get a chance to peek inside before a short park ranger seemingly appeared out of the blue nowhere and started with a million questions. That guy was like a little bulldog in his persistent inquisition of our motives and intentions. Apparently, they're suspicious when a professional camera crew appears on their land.
 |
| Notice the "leftover" wagon wheel ruts still visible? |
So, I reluctantly backed away from the wagon and the mysterious wooden boxes. We stopped to read some of the plaques, which were interesting.
Then, we made our way to the main reason I'd studied this spot in the past--the sundial.
So, I stood behind the sundial, found where a little past "midnight" would be, and directed my gaze a little to the right, following my line of sight to one particular chimney in the distance. I wanted to check that one out as I imagined the soldiers who had once warmed their weary feet by its cheerful flames.
When we reached the area near the chimney, we looked all around to make sure the ranger wasn't watching, then James and I sprinted off the path toward the chimney. Almost immediately, Shannon and the guys were waving us frantically back. We ran back, but it was too late--we were caught by the bulldog, who was watching from inside the visitor center in the distance.
He scolded us in a schoolmarmish way, and we apologized profusely. I remembered our every move was being filmed, so I developed a new goal in my mind--to sway the park ranger's mind in our favor.
So I started asking questions--lots of them. About everything I saw as he escorted us back to the parking lot.
I also asked him about the history of the "Star Fort," which was the second of three Fort Unions, and he seemed to acknowledge I wasn't just some blonde bimbo prancing around his ruins willy nilly, but actually already knew some of the history of this important place, including its significance as a resting spot along the Old Santa Fe Trail. Here are some cool old photos of the fort:
The ploy worked, and soon he was pleasantly chatting about his beloved fort, taking us to different
spots to point out interesting features, like where the soldiers went pee.
As we walked away from the privy, I glanced to my left and saw where the wagon wheel ruts struck off from the fort. Can you imagine the apprehension some may have felt as they left the relative safety of the fort and ventured into the often hostile and unpredictable wild west?
Well, after about 9,484 questions, I had finally converted the suspicious and potentially hostile little ranger into our friend. Before we left, he handed me the number of a prominent local historian who knew even more about the fort than he did, and I said I'd give him a call.
Once we left the fort, Shannon wanted to find a quiet place to do an interview that summarized the shenanigans at Fort Union. So we went to nearby Storrie Lake, which was beautiful...
After that, we went to one more location to shoot some footage, and then said goodbye to Shannon and the camera crew, for now. Their work was just beginning, but James and I still had more exploring to do...
