Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
The best desert experience in the San Luis Valley, Penitente Canyon offers visitors the
chance to climb, hike and bike among a never-ending tumble of strangely shaped giant
boulders, spread out through four separate canyons. The main canyon takes its name from
Los Hermanos Penitentes and is symbolized by the fading, blue-cloaked mural of the Vir-
gin of Guadalupe painted on a canyon wall. Local legend has it that the mural was painted
by three men, one of whom descended sitting on a suspended tire; the inscription reads
'Consuelo y Espiritu' (Comfort and Courage).
However, history here stretches back much earlier. Some 27 million years ago, an
enormous volcanic explosion (one of the largest in the earth's history) spewed an incred-
ible 1000 cubic miles of ash that was over 100ft deep,: the origin of the rock formations
you see today. After the eruption the underground chamber collapsed, forming the caldera
(a geologic depression - this one is 22 miles wide by 47 miles long!) west of Penitente,
where these ancient ash formations and volcanic plugs rise like spires in a haunting land-
scape.
Also of note are the scattered pictographs on the canyon walls, painted by either ances-
tral Puebloans, Apache or Ute, who possibly used the area for game drives. Most will be
hard to find, although you can easily spot one at the entrance to the main canyon, near the
parking lot.
Activities
Rock Climbing
Sport climbers are attracted to Penitente's bolted face climbs on the canyon's pocketed
rhyolite rock walls. The walls are short - usually ranging from 40ft to 100ft in height -
but there are over 300 climbs here, some of which are extremely challenging (ranging
from 5.2 to 5.13c) and lots of fun. Further climbs are located in the Rock Garden and
Witches Canyon.
Hiking & Mountain Biking
The surrounding desert landscape makes for some excellent hiking, but be aware that this
is rattlesnake country - watch your step. A great trail is the Penitente Canyon Loop (2
miles), which follows the lush canyon, shaded by groves of aspen and thickets of
chokecherry, before climbing back up into the desert where you'll be rewarded with glori-
ous views across the valley to the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. Along the way you can
take a detour to view some old wagon (
carreta
) tracks grooved into the stone. Numerous
