Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
3. Valle Grande
You'll soon catch your first glimpse of Battleship Rock, a massive monolith of basalt that
seems to navigate the confluence of the Jemez River's forks. Farther on, State Rte. 4 leads
totheJemezFallsCampground,whereashorttrailtwiststogracefulJemezFalls.Anover-
look amid the wooded countryside offers a clear view of the cascade, which fans out as it
splashes down a jagged cliff.
The foliage thickens along the next leg of the drive, a climb that approaches the
9,000-foot mark, where groves of towering firs and spruces cover the mountainsides.
Then, stunningly, the forest floor falls away, with views of a vast meadowland. This is
the heart of the Jemez Mountains: A great valley spreading across an area that was once
a massive volcanic peak is called Valle Grande. Its energy spent, the fiery giant collapsed
into itself, forming a caldera that covers about 175 square miles.
4. Bandelier National Monument
AsanancienthomeofAnasaziIndians,Bandelieraboundsinmystery.Thetribe,vanishing
from history with few hints as to why, arrived in this area in the 12th century, carving
dwellings into the cliffs of tuff (composed of ash and other fine volcanic particles). They
were farmers who raised corn, beans, and squash among the ponderosa pines and box eld-
ers that line Frijoles Creek. The community flourished, and as the centuries rolled by, the
population snowballed into the thousands. About 1550, however, the Anasazis abandoned
the site, never to return. Yet their onetime presence remains indelible, and trails—some of
them steep and equipped with ladders—lead through the ruins of their bygone civilization.
5. White Rock Overlook
Up ahead lies the Pajarito Plateau, an arid realm spotted with piñon pines and juni-
pers—hardysurvivorsthatoftengrowsidebyside.Thedriveslowlydescendsasitfollows
State Rte. 4, passing several small canyons, each cut into the plateau's eastern slope by the
streams that tumble down to the Rio Grande. Inviting as the area may seem, parts of it are
off-limits for good cause. Much of the land here is controlled by the Los Alamos Nation-
al Laboratory, where scientists working in utmost haste and secrecy developed the atomic
bomb during World War II.
The White Rock Overlook, perched on the crest of a mesa, offers a panorama from
above the Rio Grande Valley. A dizzying 700 feet below, the river runs through a gauntlet
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