April 9, 2016
Having planned to stay at the Lake Cochiti Army Corps of Engineers campground, we discovered that there was yet another National Monument within only a few miles and decided to explore it the morning after our stay. We were not disappointed and the photos will show you why!
During our trip, Dave and I have come to joke about the many parks in AZ and NM, stating they have "unusual rock formations" and "hiking trails". This National Monument scored two out of two!
| "The
National Monument, on the Pajarito Plateau in north-central New Mexico,
includes a national recreation trail and ranges from 5,570 feet to
6,760 feet above sea level. The cone-shaped tent rock formations are the products of volcanic eruptions that occurred 6 to 7 million years ago and left pumice, ash, and tuff deposits over 1,000 feet thick. Tremendous explosions from the Jemez volcanic field spewed pyroclasts (rock fragments), while searing hot gases blasted down slopes in an incandescent avalanche called a “pyroclastic flow.” Precariously perched on many of the tapering hoodoos are boulder caps that protect the softer pumice and tuff below. Some tents have lost their hard, resistant caprocks, and are disintegrating. While fairly uniform in shape, the tent rock formations vary in height from a few feet up to 90 feet."
|
Yet another amazing place!
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