A Million Little Pieces Of My Mind

New Mexico

Shiprock, New Mexico

By: Paul S Cilwa Page Views: 1,346
Hashtags: #Places #Shiprock #NewMexico
All the photos and text describing my trips to the home of the Navajo people.
Estimated reading time: 2 minute(s) (239 words)
Shiprock

Most of my husbandé's relatives live in or near the town of Shiprock, New Mexico. In addition to its being the seat of Navajo Tribal Government, it happens to lie in an extremely beautiful part of the state and is named after a spectacular rock formation that arises seemingly out of nowhere.

Shiprock (Navajo: Naatʼ?anii Nééz) is on the Navajo reservation. Named after the nearby Shiprock rock formation, Shiprock is home to the annual Northern Navajo Fair, held every October. Since 1984, the community has been the host of the Shiprock Marathon and Relay. It is also home to a campus of Diné College (formerly Navajo Community College), a tribally controlled community college with seven other campuses across the Navajo Nation. It is the site of a Chapter House for the Navajo, a Bureau of Indian Affairs agency, the Northern Navajo Medical Center (an Indian Health Service hospital), and a branch of Farmington Public Library.

Shiprock is a key road junction for truck traffic and tourists visiting the Four Corners, Mesa Verde, Shiprock and the Grand Canyon. The town lies at the intersection of U.S. Route 64 and U.S. Route 491 (formerly U.S. Route 666). Consequently it sees a lot of tourists all year round. And, although under the terms of their treaty no Navajos are allowed to own businesses on their own reservations, they are permitted to sell their own wares along the roads.

The Shiprock

By: Paul S Cilwa Occurred: 2/29/2016
Posted: 3/10/2016		 Page Views: 1,456
Hashtags: #Places #Photography #Geology #Shiprock #NewMexico
Stunning photos of one of New Mexico's most amazing geological wonders.
Estimated reading time: 1 minute(s) (184 words)

Keith and his twin brother, Chris, wanted to make a trip to Shiprock, New Mexico, to visit with their family there; and they graciously invited me along.

This was my second trip to Shiprock, and I was happy to spend an hour examining the nominal geological icon.

The Bisti Badlands

By: Paul S Cilwa Occurred: 10/5/2016 Page Views: 1,158
Hashtags: #Shiprock #NewMexico #BistiBadlands
Photos from our short hike in Northern New Mexico
Estimated reading time: 3 minute(s) (704 words)

Keith, his twin brother, Chris, and I took a day trip to visit the Bisti Badlands Wilderness Area. It's south of Farmington, the nearest large community to Shiprock.

Visiting The Jims

By: Paul S Cilwa Occurred: 10/8/2016 Page Views: 1,170
Hashtags: #Places #Shiprock #NewMexico
Keith and I make a short visit to his parents' in northern New Mexico.
Estimated reading time: 2 minute(s) (374 words)

Given that it's been several months since we've been able to visit Ames and Norma, Keith's parents, we decided that now was the time—mostly because it is now cooler. Keith's twin brother, Chris, signed up for the trip; I found a place to keep Ella the dog; and we set out on our way.

Incredible Journey Comes To Shiprock

By: Paul S Cilwa Posted: 4/26/2017 Page Views: 1,153
Hashtags: #Places #Shiprock #NewMexico
Not all who wander are lost.
Estimated reading time: 5 minute(s) (984 words)

This past weekend, Keith and his brother Chris and I drove up to Shiprock to visit their family. (Actually, since I'm still recovering from a double-broken leg, Keith did nearly all the driving while I kept my leg up on the dashboard.) It was just a quiet, relaxing visit along a route we've taken many times before; so I wasn't expecting to be taking much in the way of photographs. But then we started getting visitors, including an animal family consisting of one dog and four various cats.

Full Moon in Shiprock

By: Paul S Cilwa Occurred: 2/8/2020 Page Views: 692
Hashtags: #Places #Shiprock #NewMexico
In addition to a gorgeous full moon, we also "enjoyed" driving through snow to get back home.
Estimated reading time: 1 minute(s) (201 words)

It's time for our last visit to Keith's family in Shiprock, at least, the last before we move to Hawaii. This trip was punctuated by a gorgeous full moon, plus a drive back through a snowy landscape.