Desert Camping Weekend (Cañon Jarido, La Ventana Mesa, Empedrado WSA, and Mesa San Luis)

Ojo Jarido Spring

This weekend, I needed some time to myself. So throughout the week, I began planning what shenanigans I should get myself into. First I thought, perhaps I'll go south and explore some slot canyons in the southern Gila. Then I had the thought of visiting pueblitos and arches south of Navajo Lake. Then I stumbled upon the idea of visiting the vast region north of Cabezon, but southwest of Cuba.

Cañon Jarido in the morning twilight

I left work on Friday with a plan. Drive up north to Cañon Jarido, find a nice spot to park, roll out the sleeping bag, and sleep in my car. As suspected, I had a difficult time finding the correct road off of the main dirt road. I unsuccessfully attempted three roads that went toward my destination, but all quickly deteriorated to a condition I didn't feel comfortable driving in, at least at night. After a fourth attempt, I found the correct road, which, albeit not great, was better than the others. I laid in my sleeping bag with the wind blowing against the car to lull me to sleep.

Beautiful sunrise!

Fenced off and healthy spring

Woke up Saturday morning to a chilly 24 degrees outside. Coldest temps I've camped in yet! It was manageable though, and well worth it to wake up in such a beautiful location! I was between low-rising hills to the south and steep sandstone walls to the north. I saw my destination just ahead of my car, so I opted to warm myself up by going for a quick stroll before breakfast. I found a nearby geocache and then strolled over to a large arching "cave". Inside this cave exists something I have never seen before...a Navajo Star Ceiling.

X's on the ceiling represent stars

Faint stars on the ceiling roughly 50 feet up

On the roof of this cave exist many small x's. These x's represent stars, but the meaning behind them is somewhat lost. Some believe the stars represent specific constellations that are significant to Navajo and their religion, while others believe the stars are random and meant to simply signify the protection given by the stars (again, a Navajo belief). However, I am no archaeologist, and I simply admire these features with awe and appreciation. Nearby, the remnants of an old homestead remain, with a small nook carved into a boulder that was one of its walls. Was this nook for storage? Fire? I'm not sure, but it was interesting to see.

Nearby homestead ruin

Carved into the boulder on edge of ruin

I explored the area further after this, where I found one site that I suspect is rubble of an ancient structure, and lots of pot sherds in certain pockets. I simply admired it, leaving everything where and as it was. The mesa tops were so beautiful with the entire edges being a sandstone wonderland. After some more wandering, I headed back to the car for my second hike of the day over near La Ventana Mesa.

Mesa top wandering

Another seep spring site

I stepped out of the car at the parking area for the Continental Divide Trail, hoping the wind wasn't as bad as the uniform angle of the grasses implied. It was. I put on an extra layer and just started hiking south on the CDT. The hike in wasn't terrible, as I was hiking with the wind. However, I was not oblivious to the fact that the hike back (into the wind) was going to be a little less than enjoyable. En route to Jones Canyon, the CDT is very easy to follow. A combination of well built cairns and white-topped posts line the trail, sometimes as close as 20 feet apart from one another. As you near the rising western slopes of La Ventana Mesa, you begin to encounter more sandstone features, which always enrich any hiking experience in my book.

Jones Canyon Spring and alcove

It's hard to miss the Jones Canyon spring. As you hike the CDT and pass the small side canyon that branches off the main Jones Canyon, there is a big and obvious sign pointing the way, distance, and providing the knowledge that the spring water must be treated. From this point if you look north you can spot the large homestead ruins. Staying in the arroyo will bring you right to the spring, which was solid ice on my visit. Above the spring is a large overhung alcove, providing bountiful shade opportunity on sunny days. The main canyon south of this spring is where I'm lead to believe one may find petroglyphs and pueblo ruins, but I was unable to spot them on my exploration as I left the mesa later.

Homestead ruin

Slickrock hiking on the CDT

After visiting the impressive homestead ruins, I continued up the CDT to where it follows the spine of La Ventana Mesa, making side trips here and there to locate geocaches.The terminus of my hike was a location on the north end of La Ventana Mesa, just less than three quarters of a mile off trail. This required navigating through one cliff band, which I found an easy down climb location to get through. After this it was wandering through beautiful juniper dotted hills, skirting an occasional sandstone drainage. I arrived at my destination shortly thereafter...a point with spectacular views in ALL directions! The Nacimiento Mountains to the northeast, the Jemez Mountains and Red Mesa to the east and southeast, and incredible views of the whole stretch of La Ventana Mesa from north to south. Just below this viewpoint lie the bare bones of an old Navajo hogan. The walls still stood for a couple feet above the ground but most of the structure has deteriorated and vanished. Some large, blank, pot sherds remain within the boundaries of the hogan. What a place to live! I couldn't help but ponder if whoever inhabited this hogan knew of a nearby spring or if they hiked down to the Rio Puerco for their water. Though I suppose it would've been easier to hike back to Jones Canyon Spring than to hike all the way down to the Rio Puerco.

Southern views of La Ventana Mesa

Northern views of La Ventana Mesa and the Nacimiento Mountains

Faintly visible hogan site

The hike back was beautiful, with views of Mesa Portales to the north most of the way. The wind was less than amicable. They were probably a steady 20+ mph in the lower and more open areas, and gusting close to 50 mph along edges of Jones Canyon. I wandered the cliff bands throughout the canyon, keeping my eyes peeled for any signs of historic visitation, but my untrained eyes didn't catch anything. Surely, the penetrating winds had no part in the short duration of my visit.

Parking/camping spot out in the Empedrado/La Lena WSA region

I arrived back to my car, happy to find windless shelter within its confines. I drove back to 550 and then south, getting off the highway on the road to Cabezon and San Luis. I could have just driven BLM 1102 from near my CDT hike all the way south, but didn't want to risk any lost time by coming across any washouts or general conditions that I couldn't navigate. So I drove up the southern end of 1102 to a jeep road where I drove west into the Empedrado WSA. I camped off the road in my car again, listening to the brutal and relentless winds outside. As I was reading in my car, I couldn't help but think "I should've brought a sudoku book or something!" That's the only downside of camping at this time of year, where the sun is set by 5 o'clock and the winds knock the wind chill down into the single digits. Eventually I bundled up, curled up in my sleeping bag, and slept the night away.

Badlands below unnamed mesa

Unnamed mesa with a prominent "bow" like feature

The next morning, I woke up to see a line of cows making their way to the large man-made pond just north of me. The first spot they came to appeared to be solid ice, so they wandered around until they found a spot thin enough to break and drink from. It was a cozy 17 degrees! Now THAT is my current coldest camping temperature. Luckily, sleeping with three layers of pants, four layers of shirts, a sleeping bag, a blanket inside the sleeping bag, and another blanket on top of the sleeping bag were all enough to keep me warm enough to sleep through the night, despite the frozen condensation on a few of the windows.

Neat erosional features

Little ruin structure

After eating a quick breakfast, the sun had warmed things up a bit and I was ready to get going. That day, my plan was to visit several geocaches in the region in order to get a starting point of exploration. First I hiked northwest toward the base of a large unnamed mesa that lies just north of the Empedrado wash. There were some spectacular badlands with varying colors of hoodoos beneath the towering mesa walls. After a short hike along the base of this mesa (which prompted me to post a hike with the Mountain Club to come back and explore the mesa proper), I hiked cross country a few miles south to visit some more geocaches. These other two were placed in locations that highlighted some of my favorite aspects of the desert: sandstone canyons and limitless views. This visit farther south definitely piqued my interest and I cannot wait to get back out here to wander these sandstone drainages further! I came up one short slickrock canyon en route, finding one small ruin site, and came to the prime destination which was a pocket of sandstone domes that were reminiscent of Moab-area landscapes.

Shallow slickrock canyon

Downstream view of little slickrock tributary

Leaving this sandstone wonderland, I headed back east to reconnect with the CDT. I traveled along the edge of Mesa San Luis to get there, where more of that beautiful sandstone and badland-studded mesa country was just beckoning! As I neared the CDT, I dropped off the top of the mesa to wander some of the drainages. I found one that had a short slot section with big dryfall that would've required a rappel to descend directly. Immediately after, I found another with a short arch that crossed the narrow sandstone drainage. Beyond this I hiked below some beautifully eroded cliffs and boulders, climbing up there to reconnect with the CDT. From the CDT travels north through a deep wash that drops down off the mesa to the south.

Sandstone dome in a sandstone wonderland!

The short stretch following this was another section that ignited a fervor for exploration! So much erosion, so much sandstone, so much color! There is a reason I consider myself a desert rat...this is by far the greatest landscape of all, and if you look around, there isn't another soul here to spoil the silence and the views. After exiting the last of the sandstone-decorated wash, the trail travels cross country toward Empedrado Wash. At a certain point I left the trail again to head back toward the car, but visiting one last pocket of white sandstone country before leaving. I saw what looked like a short slot leading into the white bluffs, so felt I must certainly visit it to see if my eyes were deceiving me or not.

Views of Cabezon, Cuate, Santa Clara, and Guadalupe from my lunch spot

Upon reaching the bluffs, I found that my first hopeful slot was not a slot at all, but merely a short dryfall that was recessed into the cliff band. My second hopeful slot, however, was an actual slot, probably only 50 feet long and with a couple of big drops to negotiate getting in and out of it. It was a lovely way to end the 8.5 mile long loop through this under-appreciated country.

Small arch in a tribuary on the edge of Mesa San Luis

To top off the day, I wanted to hide a geocache I've intended to hide for months. On my way out, I stopped somewhere along BLM 1102 to hike down into the main arroyo that follows the road all the way back to CR 279. There is a lovely tributary of this arroyo that passes through a short slot-like section, complete with slumps you must travel beneath, a small bridge you travel beneath near the beginning, and a double bridge near the exit of the tributary. It is short, but it is a lovely surprise hidden right off the road! Managed to neglect photos of this spot this time around. After revisiting this area, hiding my geocache, and hiking back to the car, I left the region feeling so satiated, though my ironic thirst for the desert was only just beginning to feel quenched.

Small white sandstone slot

Peering out of slot

So if you stuck around all the way to the end, congratulations! I don't have anything to award you, but hopefully you didn't feel like it was a total waste of your time, and hopefully it inspired a desire for you to look more into this wonderful landscape north and northwest of Cabezon Peak. As always, don't just take my word for how unique and worthwhile this region is...get out and find out for yourself!

Wet Shoes in Painted Arch Canyon

(I will be combining photos from my last trip and this trip to this canyon. My phone was in a bag to keep it dry yesterday so not many photos were taken. They will be specified by March or August)

The elusive Painted Arch, for which the canyon is named

In the El Malpais region, just off the road, hiding around the corner from a frequently visited tourist stop, lies a beautiful gem known as Painted Arch Canyon. Named after the nearby arch (Painted Arch), this canyon cuts very quickly through the sandstone layers and takes you from the mesa top down to the road. It is a short one, but the technical aspect makes it last longer and gives you a lot of bang for your buck!

(1st trip) Kristin making her way down the first short downclimb

Yesterday, I led a New Mexico Mountain Club group of three down this canyon. All of us were climbers, and two of the three I had either climbed or descended other canyons with. So it was a great group of people and it made for a fun descent!

(1st trip) Shari keeping next rappeller on fireman's belay on the 80 ft. rappel

(1st Trip) View from cave behind the bottom of the first rappel

We arrived at the parking for La Ventana Arch at roughly 8:30. The notoriously inaccurate forecast from KRQE was suggesting a 30 percent chance of storms by 10, but we were banking on the more accurate forecast from NOAA that predicted nothing above 20 percent chances and nothing until after noon. There were large ponds off the road in a couple spots from the recent rains, and the sand was still wet from the storms the day prior.

(2nd Trip) Randi and Alli making their way toward the rabbitholes

I descended this canyon earlier this year in the spring, near the end of an exceptionally severe drought period. At that point, the canyon was nice and dry, the only obstacles being the rappels themselves and a couple of rabbitholes. It is a bit of a different canyon right now.

(2nd Trip) Randi rappelling past the rabbitholes

A stroll across the top of the mesa led us to the drainage, and shortly thereafter the first rappel. The canyon begins with an 80 foot rappel right away that deposits you at the mouth of a large cave. A small arch on the west side of the mouth can be found. After setting the rope, I looked over the edge to check out the pool at the bottom, but it was smaller than I anticipated. Allie, one of the pair I had descended Big Canyon with, took the lead and did the first rap.

(1st Trip) View looking down the hallway corridor

After pulling the rope, we came down to our next obstacle. This is a spot where you can either squeeze through one of two rabbitholes to get down, or you can rig a rappel to get over the lip. Apparently the tight squeeze and subsequent chimneying beneath the squeeze were intimidating and no one else in the group wanted to use that option. Randy tried it and managed to get through the squeeze, but the slight flare of the chimney below the squeeze didn't feel good with wet shoes. It definitely was more difficult than in dry conditions.

(1st trip) Kristin and Greg below the rabbitholes

We found an anchor RDC (right down canyon) left from a recent descent party. Actually all of the rap anchors were relatively new and in good condition. We used this anchor and everyone rapped to the base. The rope managed to get twisted near the anchor and I wasn't able to pull it. Luckily I was able to just climb up the rabbithole, fix the problem and get the rope down, then climb back down the rabbithole.

(1st trip) Chris rappelling the narrowest part of the hallway

Immediately we were met with the next rappel, probably 15 feet or so down an undercut drop. Last time we just did the first 15 feet, however because of the pools found in this part (the beginning of the narrow hallway corridor), we extended the rappel to get down the next short downclimb as well. Randy and Allie both took the path of least resistance and just waded through the shin deep pools here, while Lukas and I both tested our stemming skills and made it to the next rappel dry.

(1st Trip) Andrew rappelling into the bowl after the hallway

This next spot was quite different! On my last trip, there was a ground level rabbit hole that could be squeezed through and we built the next rappel station beneath it. From this spot I found it was actually downclimbable, with a ~20 foot stem to the bottom. This trip, however, was much different. The rabbithole was clogged with mud and debris from recent flooding, so we coudn't get underneath the chockstones like before. However, the last descent party already had another rap set up from the top of the chockstone we usually get beneath. This eliminates the option of downclimbing. We rapped down into the calf-deep pools of the narrowest section and then into the knee deep water of the bowl below.

(1st trip) Christine getting off rappel in the bowl. On 2nd trip this bowl was knee deep water

Onward we went, coming across one more deeper pool that could be crossed with a full body stem. We quickly reached a downclimb. Last time, we downclimbed a RDC trending crack into the bowl above the last rappel. However, this time we had wet shoes and there was a pool of unknown depth at the base of the downclimb. Allie took one for the team and descended the handline I set up, and found that the pool was waist deep in its most shallow sections.

(1st trip) Kristin practicing her full-body stem over a mudhole

One by one we went down and through the pool. Randy made note of something all of my previous and current group had missed...Moki steps! They were present in the downclimb crack section as well as up over the water flow. They were rather worn, but definitely visible. We took a short break at the top of this last rappel, rehydrating and scarfing down a few quick calories.

(1st trip) Downclimb into bowl. Moki steps slightly visible on ramp and up dryfall

The last rappel was rigged around a boulder at ground level, and it descended an undercut 40 foot drop. There was a deep pool at the base of this, but we were lucky enough to be able to land on the edges and avoid the pool. Below this there is a small drop into another bowl. Last time, I downclimbed this drop and hiked down. However, there was another deep pool at the base of it, so we just hiked up and around, to avoid this last pool.

(2nd trip) That same downclimb. Me in the back, waist deep.

It was a good day and my first time descending a canyon with unavoidable pools. As always, the people that you do this with can make a big impact on how well the day goes and I was very lucky to have such fun and capable partners.

(1st trip) Unknown on the last rappel at 40 ft. 

(1st trip) Fox buried and pinned under these boulders. Must've been caught in a flash flood.

(1st trip) Last short downclimb. Opted around this on second trip, possibly a swimmer with water.

If you enjoy technical canyoneering, I would suggest this canyon for sure. It is very short, but it is a lot of fun, and such a surprising find out in this region of the state! But as always, don't just take my word for it...get out and find out for yourself!

Strolling with Purpose in Arroyo del Tajo

Last weekend I did a couple of mellow hikes in the Socorro area, revisiting the beautiful San Lorenzo Canyon and then exploring Arroyo del Tajo for the first time. I have been aware of the short box/slot canyon in Arroyo del Tajo for many years, but just hadn't taken the time to visit it. I'm glad to have finally seen its beauty for myself!

These ridges get split by these arroyos

I met my dad in the morning and we, along with the dogs, headed out, leaving Los Lunas probably around 8 in the morning after a stop for a breakfast burrito and gas top off. Southward we went, passing the pecan orchards outside of Belen, the Sevilleta and Bernardo Refuges, exiting at Escondida toward Escondida Lake. Lake is a rather aspirational term, but it is a beautiful oasis in an otherwise barren desert.

Nice long millipede

Our plan was to head south on a road just west of the Quebradas and venture to the box section from the west, visiting some pictographs in the process. We followed the "road" for as much as we could, but recent heavy rains have washed out many sections that pass through arroyos, and there was still an exceptional amount of mud. We ultimately reached a muddy stretch where the end was not in sight, so we called it and ventured around to the eastern approach, off of the Quebradas Backcountry Byway. En route I spotted my first desert tortoise!

Desert tortoise! He just made it across the road :)

If you're a lover of the desert like myself, you will definitely appreciate the views of the rugged Quebradas. A topographical delight painted with splashes of creosote and ocotilla, this region hides many treasures for those willing to wander and find them.

Arroyo near the parking area

Dad and dogs heading toward canyon

When we arrived at our parking spot, the dogs hopped out excitedly, happily trotting around this foreign landscape, smelling everything new. We ventured westward, admiring the rock formations and fossils, slowly heading downhill toward the ridge that the arroyo cuts through, creating the dramatic box. I expected to see some snakes out here, as it was a warm August day, but the only visible life were some lizards, beetles, and gargantuan tarantula hawk wasps.

Walls start rising

Dogs are loving it out here

The winding arroyo was a pleasant and modest hike, with nearly no notable elevation gain in either direction, until you enter the jewel of the arroyo that is. As you round the last couple corners, the rock starts to rise noticeably and the destination becomes obvious.

Trek peering down the first short drop

As soon as you reach the first narrow spot there is a small drop, down which our dogs skittered their way. Then it turned into more of a gorge, with dramatic walls over a hundred feet tall. You stroll through a few corners, and things start to drop again. My dad hopped over a pool and into wet sand that sank down a foot or so. Juniper (the white dog) followed suit, but she slipped into the pool and quickly ran out. The other dog, Trek, went up and over, down some more interesting terrain.

Dad in the deeper part of the canyon

Dogs in narrower section

Shortly thereafter, we were at the exit of the canyon, which terminated in another drop of about 15-20 feet. We opted to have lunch here before turning around. If you continue downstream, there is purportedly a small display of pictographs. While I would love to see that, it shall have to wait until another day, as rain clouds were starting to build.

Slot-ish tributary. Interesting, but far too thick with brush

Peering back into the open, but deep gorge

As we headed back upstream, I found a geocache that is in the area, the dogs opted to soak in all of the shallow pools in the canyon, and we found a surprisingly large beetle. We also located an old homestead ruin, one of many in the Quebradas. Everytime I find these ruins out here, I can't help but wonder what it must have been like to try to homestead this area. A harsh living it must have been.

Rare to see beetles this big...at least in my experience

Old Homestead ruin

The rest of the hike back was uneventful. Warm, but with welcome shade from the clouds attempting to spit rain. We got back to the car and headed back out toward civilization. This is such a lovely and quiet region, with surprises hiding around every corner. I've been to the Quebradas multiple times since this visit, and I am blown away by the things hiding out here every time.

Teasing monsoonal skies

But as always...don't just take my word for it. Get out and find out for yourself!