Driving up NM 117 towards Grants, the first thing I came to was the Lava Falls Trail. This is a one mile round trip into lava beds, marked by cairns. Everywhere you looked it seemed as if a big parking lot or highway had just buckled upwards. The trail ended in a basin with 20 foot high banks. I dunno if this was a volcano or not.
Driving further up NM 117 became an interesting experience. On one side of the road were the lava beds while big white sandstone bluffs, columns and pinnacles rose from the other side. Included was La Ventana (The Window) which is a large natural arch, the first I've ever seen. This was a really scenic drive.
I got on US 40 at Grants and it was something else. The entire 50 miles to Gallup I had huge red` sandstone bluffs in the distance on one side and large lava beds on the other. Great stuff.
I wormed my way into Cibola National Forest looking for a camping spot. A big dump truck came barreling by and I cussed it. A second one came barreling by and I heard the dreaded click of a stone hitting the windshield. Yup, my brand new, five day old windshield had a ding right in the middle of it. I cussed that driver up and down, back and forth and sideways for a good five minutes. I have a compass attached to the windshield with a suction cup. I moved it over the ding, hoping it will prevent it from cracking. No way am I getting another windshield right now.