Horned Larks Sang and Coyotes Called [Volcanoes and Petroglyphs and Bunnies]

A song she heard
Of cold that gathers
Like winter's tongue
Among the shadows
It rose like blackness
In the sky
That on volcano's
Vomit rise
A Stone of ruin
From burn to chill
Like black moonrise
Her voice fell still...

~ Robert Fanney

Storm clouds added some color to the landscape.

Volcano Venture I

We could see the volcanoes from the air. After landing we observed their black cones as we drove into town. There really are volcanoes in Albuquerque.*  We had plans to spend some time at the Petroglyph National Monument - hiking near (and perhaps on) the volcanoes on the western edge of the monument and searching for petroglyphs along one (or more) of the three trails on the east side of the monument.

 A line of dormant (extinct?) volcanoes - 5 according to the literature (I counted 6 on Google Maps).

Rain crossing the west mesa.

The volcanoes called us that first afternoon. It was too late to drive in to the parking area. But it would save us time to know where we were going. And there wasn't a lot to do that first evening. When we arrived the gate was locked and a ranger was writing a ticket for a driver locked inside. After the other vehicle left the ranger told us we were free to "walk in." We did - just for a look.

Cresting the first hill we were presented with the line of volcanic cones. What must that have been like - a line of hills spewing fire and rock across the already alien landscape? To add to the strange feel of the place, coyotes began to howl. [We would find out the next day that they howl before a storm.]

We looked at each other and decided that it might be a good time to find a place to eat and plan for the next day. We passed through pedestrian opening in the tumbleweed choked fence line and started planning.

Don't trip (as a child I remember being the one who always fell in to the cactus).

Those are some thorns!

Tumbleweeds

One last look at the storm and we were outta there.

Petroglyphs

Always start at the beginning - the Visitor Center. It's a good rule of thumb - even when warned that there are no petroglyph trails starting at the center. We watched the video, talked with the ranger (very helpful - we asked about the shut-down. He said they got lucky) and looked around the shop. It was a great gift shop, but JRF is no longer wearing souvenir T-shirts (catching on to that at his age would certainly have saved me a good deal of closet space and other issues). I looked hard at some horned lizard earrings**

After a short detour (I had on the wrong shoes - how did THAT happen? Too excited I guess) we hit the Rinconada Canyon Trail. It is a pretty easy 2+ miles in the desert at the foot of the west mesa. Scattered along the northern portion of the trail are petroglyphs in the basalt rocks. Some of the art is by early Native Americans/indigenous peoples/first peoples. Some is from early Spanish settlers/shepherds.

I never saw a "guide" to which of the three trails had which petroglyphs. I had wanted to see and photograph*** the snake. We found it here. I also wanted to see the one with "hands." That petroglyph is along another trail (so I guess we will go back while I still have legs - just make sure I take the right shoes and trekking poles).

We would walk along the foot of the mesa. The sky wasn't clear at the start.

Before we finished we would hear the coyotes again before a few thunder claps. It would rain and hail on us on this hike.

The trail was pretty sandy in spots. I poured sand out of my shoes that night.

As we got closer to the visions we sought.

Some petroglyph subjects are clear (see the bird) while others are more mysterious.

Is it a sheep?

BUNNIES!

Along the way we were distracted by Desert Cottontails.

They didn't hang around for long.

It was not easy to spot petroglyphs or wildlife, but our young companion has good eyes.

More modern marks...

...were found near ancient ones and spots where vandals had removed petroglyphs.

Someone important, I think.

And from the Spanish shepherds...

More crosses.

Another modern message [My mom would say, "Fools names and fools faces always appear in public places"]

And another

Chicken? Pheasant?

The snake and a coyote, perhaps - this was the one I wanted to see. Note the rattles.

Common Side-blotched Lizard was under a bush and never moved.

Another Desert Cottontail was busy gathering grass.

Was this for food?

Was it for lining  a nest? We don't know.

Black-throated Sparrow

We saw many Rock Wrens as we hiked, but finally got a photo we could use to identify this little fast moving bird with a sweet song.

After we turned for the car the coyotes started to howl and it began to rain. The rain was not hard, but fell in large drops. Then the hail started. DH and JRF were moving fast and turned around to urge me onward. I was trying to document the hail. Who would believe this weather? [Apparently those who live in New Mexico have seen just about everything.]

As the hail began to fall, DH became insistent we get out of the open.

It wasn't big hail.

The storm clouds were gorgeous.

And we saw only a hint of what the bloom would be in a few weeks.

Volcano Venture II

If you are the first people through the gates, well....trust me....you want to be the first people through the gates. This place and its experience - desolation - stark reminder of the power of the earth - song of the Horned Larks - are best served in relative solitude.

The path to the nearest volcano. The trails up to the first were closed so we moved on to the next one. The ravens joined us on the heights.

The paths are not difficult. Some are a little rocky, but the view is amazing.

From the top of one volcanic peak one can see those on either side and then across the plateau to the Sandia Mountains.

From the center of one volcano - a peek at a neighbor.

One can spend the day hiking, but we had other places to be.

The Raven, the trickster in Native American lore,  followed us - watched us.

The trickster joined us on top of the volcano.

This was the brightest - clearest day of our visit. Albuquerque could be seen below.

The wind blew cold across the mesa. More hikers joined us on the trails. We hiked backed to the car watching the tricksters and listening to the song of the Horned Larks. They sang at the beginning of the trail and could be seen and heard across the mesa.

A Horned Lark

NOTES:

*https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albuquerque_volcanic_field
 https://www.cabq.gov/parksandrecreation/open-space/lands/volcanoes

**I need no T-shirt and I need no earrings. But I was overwhelmed by some silver earrings towards the end of the trip. It's hard to behave.

***As part of a reptile course I am teaching I want to show the long time "human connection" with the animal world. I have information on "turtles," but (because snakes are so maligned) thought this would be a great addition.

****Horned Lark call:  https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Horned_Lark/sounds


What else?

We were warned about snakes, but it was too cold still. The only snake we saw was a petroglyph.

We saw a lot of this all over the monument - trails/areas closed for repair.

It's Albuquerque. There would be balloons. We saw them between stormy days.