Day 112: Jemez, NM

We spent a relaxing and enjoyable morning trout fishing at the Seven Springs Hatchery. The boys didn’t have any luck casting into the kids only pond but we delighted in watching the birds, bees, forest animals and waterfowl. We saw the incredible sphinx month, a coyote, a beaver, turkey vultures and much more. On our way back to the car, we had the great luck to cross paths with a Grandpa fisherman named Martin from Albuquerque, out fishing himself. Grandpa Martin caught his limit of trout in only half an hour so we took a chance and asked for some hints. Fishermen can be notoriously shifty about sharing their secrets but, luck was in our favour today because Grandpa Martin turned out to be wonderful. Not only did he offer help, he took us to his secret spot, shared his special bait with us, and then stayed with us to demonstrate how to catch the fish and passed his rod over to Ali each time he hooked one so Ali could reel it in and take the credit for catching it. He patiently showed Ali how to hold the trout so they couldn’t wiggle away and how to hook them on the threader. Meeting Grandpa Martin was the highlight of our morning. He was so kind, helpful and patient and it was absolutely our pleasure to have met him.

Grandpa Martin and Ali. Best fishing friends.

After lunch and monitoring the status of a nearby forest fire that we passed on the drive home from fishing, we headed to another local hot springs pool. Spencer Hot Springs was only a 6 minute drive from our campground. We managed to time it perfectly (complete luck) arriving at 2 pm because this normally busy spot was empty! We had it all to ourselves for about a half hour before a steady stream of soakers arrived. This hot springs was only lukewarm but it had the unique feature of a sauna cave attached to the pool. Neat!

Seamus sniffing a Ponderosa Pine tree. Their bark smells like vanilla and butterscotch cookies.

We checked out the local general store and the little library to return a finished book.

Our last adventure of the day was an exploration of Sulphur Springs, part of the Valles Caldera National Preserve. This volcanic site felt like we were in the middle of nowhere. It was down a washed out dirt road followed by a short hike. Upon arrival at the site, we were astounded to learn the Sulphur Springs once boasted a hotel, general store, cabins, bathhouses and campground! No kidding?! It also at one time was home to a large sulphur mining operation with loads of heavy machinery. Despite it feeling remote now, this place has had an exciting and varied history.

Our evening was quiet with cleaning up the truck to locate Liam and Seamus’ raincoats that had gone missing in action and reading a novel with a cup of tea.