Bandelier
canyon walls are really “tuff”, like none we’ve seen before.
The Route
We only drove 105 miles today, but it felt like more as we
explored Bandelier National Monument
and then moved on to Taos, NM. First, we
took US-285 in Santa Fe to NM-502, NM-502 to NM-4, and NM-4 to White Rock. After visiting Bandelier, we took NM-4 to
NM-30, NM-30 to NM-68 at Espanola, and NM-68 to Taos.
About the Day
It was 64°F when we got up, overcast
most of the day, rained intermittently and only warmed up to 77°F.
We left for Bandelier at
10 am, explored until 3 pm, and then headed for Taos.
On the Way
Bandelier
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| NM-502 took us toward Los Alamos and White Rock. |
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| We crossed the Rio Grande River |
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| The climb revealed dramatic terrain. |
NM-4 took us to the Bandelier National Monument Visitor Center in White Rock. Visitors are required to use the Bandelier shuttle until 3 pm daily. The shuttle runs every ½ hour from 9 am to 3 pm weekdays. The service is provided free by Atomic City Transit. It’s a 30 minute ride from White Rock to the Frijoles Canyon visitor center.
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| RV parking at White Rock Visitor Center provides shore power. |
Canyon walls are formed by volcanic ash compacted over time to form a soft, crumbly rock called tuff.
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| Erosion gives it a “Swiss cheese” appearance. |
One to two stories high, the Village of Tyuonyi (QU-weh-nee) contained about 400 rooms and housed about 100 people.
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| Looking down on he village |
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| Reconstructed Cave Kiva |
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| Hmm. Now what? |
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| Housing units could be several stories tall. |
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| A treat along the path. |
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| Petroglyphs high on the walls |
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| Pictograph |
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| We saw 4 deer grazing beside the path. |
Taos
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| Rio Grande Gorge (near Taos) looks like the earth has cracked |
The Campground
We’re staying at Taos Valley
RV Park & Campground. We’ve been here before. It’s OK.
 |
| Site #17 is pretty cozy |
Tomorrow
We’ll stay here and explore Taos.
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