During a trip to Chama with Pat, I met Jay near Abuquiu for lunch and a short hike to visit the Poshuouingue Ruins.
The Drive In
Poshuouingue Ruins are 3 miles east of Abuquiu on US 84.
The Hike
Poshuouingue Trail Hike.Jay.2021-08-11
There is ample parking just off of the highway, and signs point clearly to the trail, which climbs 100 feet to a plateau which offers a view of the layout of the Pueblo below. The trail then climbs another 250 feet to the top of a plateau which affords a great view of the Rio Chama valley. And there are signs that give one information about the P’oshu’owingeh people, and their Pueblo.
Statistics
Total Distance: 1.06 miles Elevation: start 5,960 ft, maximum 6,194 ft, minimum 5,960 ft Gross gain: 234 ft. Aggregate ascending 279 ft, descending 290 ft Maximum slope: 35% ascending, 37% descending, 9.0% average Duration: 0:54
If you haven’t explored these hiking tracks with Google Earth, I urge you to try it. With the virtual 3-dimensional presentation, achieved by panning and tilting the view, you can get a much better idea of the hikes and terrain than you can get from the screenshot above. For some ideas, check out Using Google Earth Track Files.
This was a road trip combined with a hike in Northern New Mexico. The road trip component was to drive around the perimeter of the Jemez Mountains – San Ysidro, Cuba, Regina, Abiquiú , Española , Santa Fe, and return to Albuquerque. For the hike component, we intended to visit the Nogales Cliff House, ruins of the Gallina people dating from 1100 AD to about 1275 AD.
The Expedition
On our way towards Cuba, we enjoyed beautiful scenery – snow from the night before highlighting the Nasciemento Mountains all along US 550 to Cuba. We thought this might not bode well for the intended visit to Nogales Cliff House. Sure enough, after a pleasant drive out of Cuba on NM 96 and NM 112, we found that the dirt road, County Road 5, was still wet from the snow. We gave it a try, but found ourselves nearly stuck in the super-slick wet clay. It was time to back out and find a Plan B for hiking.
Back to NM 96, then east towards Abiquiú , looking for a place we might hike – nothing. Then north on US 84 to Ghost Ranch, but we weren’t attracted that day. While enjoying our mid-expedition break overlooking Abiquiú Lake, it occurred to us – return to Plaza Blanca. Plaza Blanca is a bit hard to find – no signs point the way. About 3 miles east of the village of Abiquiú, turn north from US 84 onto NM 554. After crossing the river, turn left on County Road 155, follow the road to the entrance to Dar al Islam.
The Hike
Plaza Blanca Hike.Pat.2018-03-28
Parking is about .6 miles from County Road 155; you will enjoy some amazing geologic features. So that became our hike.
From there, we headed to Española and El Parasol for really good tacos. Then on towards home, having enjoyed a very nice day in the Land of Enchantment.
Statistics
Total Distance: 1.66 miles Elevation: start 6,096 ft, maximum 6,214 ft, minimum 6,049 ft Gross gain: 265 ft. Aggregate ascending 391 ft, descending 391 ft Maximum slope: 56% ascending, 54% descending, 7.7% average Duration: 1:13
I urge you to explore our hiking tracks with Google Earth. With the virtual 3-dimensional presentation, achieved by panning and tilting the view, you can get a much better idea of the hikes and terrain than you can get from the 2-dimensional screenshot above. For assistance: Using Google Earth Track Files.
For the second day of our trip to Abiquiú, after spending the night at the Abiquiú Inn in a very nice room with a gas fireplace, we headed to the Ghost Ranch. We had stopped by the day before, so we had our eyes on hiking one of three trails there. We chose the one rated Moderate, the Chimney Rock trail, a good choice for us that day.
The Hike
Ghost Ranch-Chimney Rock.Pat.2017-03-16Flora for this hike: ‘Tis winter, so not many plants are “showing off”. But this Juniper looks great with the Chama River valley and Cerro Pedernal in the background.
Starting at the Visitor’s Center, the hike proceeds up a long ridge to the top of the mesa and behind Chimney Rock itself. Along the way, the views across the Chama River valley are stunning, with Abiquiu Lake in the background and more mesas like those here at Ghost Ranch on the far (west) side of the valley. But, turning the other way, looking east, the views into the Ghost Ranch canyon (Arroyo del Yeso), its side canyons, and the surrounding mesas were equally stunning. The trail is well traveled, at times steep, and in a few places a bit narrow. But nowhere is it especially challenging, and being on top of the mesa makes the climb well worth the effort. After our mid-hike repast, the descent was easy with only one area of rocks where extra care was required.
Statistics
Total Distance: 3.08 miles Elevation: start 6,451 ft, maximum 7,062 ft, minimum 5,451 ft Gross gain: 611 ft. Aggregate ascending 1,002 ft, descending: 1,006 ft Maximum slope: 70% ascending, 62% descending, 11% average Duration: 3:00
I urge you to explore our hiking tracks with Google Earth. With the virtual 3-dimensional presentation, achieved by panning and tilting the view, you can get a much better idea of the hikes and terrain than you can get from the 2-dimensional screenshot above. For assistance: Using Google Earth Track Files.
On the spur of a moment, Pat & I headed off to Abiquiú for a couple of days. We had flown over it out of Santa Fe a year ago, so now to see the area on the ground. Our first stop was Plaza Blanca, an area of white rock formations owned by the Dar al Islam organization, but open to the public. Although not widely publicized (as far as we can find) this is an amazing place.
The Hike
Plaza Blanca.Pat.2017-03-15
Approaching the Plaza, at first it doesn’t appear to be very exciting. But as we skirted the eastern perimeter and entered into the first ravine (or small canyon?), the forms and shapes of the formations, and the patterns created by erosion, and the variety of rocks – we were fascinated by it all. Working our way back to the main wash and heading west, we encountered more and different formations, all the way to the end where the wash became a short box canyon. We enjoyed our mid-hike repast, then headed back to the car. This is a place we look forward to visiting again.
Statistics
Total Distance: 2.75 miles Elevation: start 6,107 ft, maximum 6,256 ft, minimum 6,054 ft Gross gain: 202 ft. Aggregate ascending 628 ft, descending: 629 ft Maximum slope: 55% ascending, 53% descending, 7% average Duration: 3:05
I urge you to explore our hiking tracks with Google Earth. With the virtual 3-dimensional presentation, achieved by panning and tilting the view, you can get a much better idea of the hikes and terrain than you can get from the 2-dimensional screenshot above. For assistance: Using Google Earth Track Files.
There is ample parking just off of the highway, and signs point clearly to the trail, which climbs 100 feet to a plateau which offers a view of the layout of the Pueblo below. The trail then climbs another 250 feet to the top of a plateau which affords a great view of the Rio Chama valley. And there are signs that give one information about the P’oshu’owingeh people, and their Pueblo.
