Valles Caldera Trail Ride

 

In July, I was invited by my friend Paula to join her, and 3 of her friends, on a trail riding adventure at the Valles Caldera National Preserve in the Jemez Mountains, northwest of Albuquerque.

We were going to be riding inside the beautiful Valles Caldera Grande, an amazing place that is only opened up to horseback riders 2-3 times per year. 

 

My friend Paula picked me up, and along with her neighbor friend, we headed up into the Jemez Mountains, about a 2 hour drive from my house.

We drove into the caldera and parked inside the Staging Area on the far western side of the caldera, and unloaded our equines and saddled up.

 

On these special days open to horseback riders, only 50 equines and their riders are permitted into the Preserve. On this day, there were only about 30 horseback riders, which was probably due to people’s worries about the recent forest fires that had occurred on the edge of the caldera, and thinking that it was still smokey there and that fires affected the beautiful views. And I’m sure the fact that monsoon season had just begun, with the threat of afternoon rainstorms, probably played a part in there not being a full-house in the caldera that day. Many people drive 2-4 hours just to get to Valles Caldera Preserve, so of course, they want to get in a full day of riding.

Before we arrived I actually had concerns about having to share the caldera with 50 riders and equines, but I need not have worried.

The Caldera Grande is 13.7 miles wide and has a land area of over 89,000 acres, so there is plenty of space to spread out. 

 Also, with the many miles of ranch roads, livestock, game and hiking trails, the Valles Caldera Grande has been an excellent location for several Endurance Competitions in the past, as well. In the winter, the caldera is used for x-country skiing and ski orienteering.

As we explored the caldera, I soon came to realize that the distance perspective in the Caldera Grande was very misleading. What looked to be just a couple miles away, was actually 8-13 miles away!

 

Right away, as soon as we headed out to explore the caldera, I discovered that Apache and I were going to have a few issues with this caldera riding experience.

 

Apache tends to be a slow-poke anyway, but even more so when she knows, or believes, there is no reason to hurry. And being able to see your fellow equines at all times, just about anywhere they were in that great big bowl, must have given her a false sense of security, because she was the slowest she has ever been since I’ve owned her! I swear, at one point I saw a turtle and a snail pass us by!

(Below, our riding group, from back to front: Michelle riding an Icelandic, Mary Jo riding an Azteca, Sandi riding Paula’s mule, and Paula in the lead)

 

 

And although the caldera looks smooth, flat and grassy, it was actually much more varied in terrain than it appears. The grass there was very clumpy and quite difficult for the horses to travel over and between the clumpy grass, and the prairie dog holes, riders have to be careful and ride mostly at a walk or a slow trot. There were also a lot of hills to ride up and down, too. And there were small, narrow, shallow creeks to traverse.

Here is Apache and I. Sandi is in front of me, with Paula in front of her, and Mary Jo and Michelle way off behind us. I had just made Apache trot to catch up, which is the only reason we weren’t the ones who were way in the back.

Also notice the clouds building up in the sky………. 

 

The base of the Caldera Grande is close to 9, 000 ft elevation, so it feels like you can almost touch the clouds.

(Michelle and her Icelandic mare)

 

(Mary Jo and her Azteca horse) 

 

(Paula and her gelding) 

 

(Paula’s neighbor friend Sandi, riding Paula’s mule) 

 

Apache and I in the knee high grass. Which leads me to explain the other issue we had with our Caldera Grande riding adventure: Grass.

 You have to keep in mind that Apache is basically on a dry lot for 10 months of the year. If we do get our yearly monsoon rains, she might get to enjoy 2 months of grass, but for the past 4 years, our state has been in an extreme drought, and even the meager monsoon rains didn't produce any grass growth.

So, suffice it to say, that Apache was overwhelmed with all of the grass available to her on this ride, and it was a challenge for me to keep her face out of it, so we wouldn’t fall back even farther from our group of riding buddies.  Let’s just say that my shoulders, neck and back were pretty sore by the next day!

 

But for the most part, it was a wonderful ride, and the terrain was interesting and the views were spectacular. The Valles Caldera was definitely on my Bucket List and I had to keep pinching myself to be sure I was actually riding there on my horse. (Probably another reason I was sore the next day, too!)

 

Amazing to think that there were 30 other riders out there riding, along with hundreds of cattle, elk and deer grazing. This caldera is vast!

 

Michelle and I bringing up the rear.

There are a number of cattle grazing leases for the caldera, and there are fences set up inside the caldera to separate the herds and to help rotate pastures, but even though we rode by several herds of cattle and could see more cattle off in the distance, we didn’t notice a lot of destruction that cattle typically cause with loads of manure and trampled down vegetation. So, I would say that it seems as if the Valles Caldera Preserve is doing a pretty good job in managing the area.   

 

Anytime Apache saw another group of riders in the distance, or cattle, she just wanted to stop and stare. She didn’t want to join them and she wasn’t excited, nor did she call out, but she just wanted to watch them. Perhaps she was also trying to figure out that whole distance perspective thing, too, because they really looked so close, but had to have been about a 1/2 mile away! Thank goodness for camera zoom!

 See those mountains in the distance? They are about 10, 500 ft elevation. Our plans when starting out, while looking at a map, were to ride to those mountains, have lunch in a beautiful meadow beside a creek and then ride back.

We didn’t even come close to making it all the way to those mountains. And it wasn’t for lack of trying. 

Paula took this photo of us: Sandi, Mary Jo, Me and Michelle.

Sometimes I was able to keep Apache moving forward and even trotting, too. It was nice to not always be so far behind.

(Mary Jo and Michelle bringing up the rear)

 But I do know my horse and I know she loves to just stop and look. I wish I could read her mind, because I’d love to know what she’s thinking when she gazes off into the distance. She does this often when we ride in the mountains and she sees an opening in the trees that affords a beautiful vista. She just stops and stares while I take photos and enjoy the views, too.

I suppose you could say it’s true what they say, “Show me your horse, and I’ll tell you who you are”. I really did end up with a horse that is perfect for me.

 

Of course, the problem with having a horse that enjoys stopping to appreciate nature and all it’s beauty, also means that you get left behind by most of your riding buddies.

(Michelle and Mary Jo way up ahead. About a football field away! And another group of riders even farther off in the distance) 

 

We started to hear thunder and the clouds rolling in from the west became thicker and darker. But Paula and Sandi wanted to see if they could make it to those mountains, so Mary Jo, Michelle and I headed back.

We climbed up to the ranch road that encircles the entire caldera, hoping that would make our journey back a little faster and easier for our equines.

But Apache still decided that slow was better. She wasn’t worried about being so far behind her fellow equines. She could see them just fine off in the distance.

(You can see Michelle and Mary Jo in front of us, and a couple of other riders way up in front of them on the dirt road…and you can also see the road as it travels into the tree line. That’s the road we were going to take all the way back to the Staging Area…..which is actually located all the way to the left and out of this photo! Yeah….we had a long way to go. Hurry up Apache!!) 

 

At one point it started sprinkling, so Michelle and Mary Jo stopped to put on their rain jackets, so Apache and I were able to catch up to them.

(Notice the groups of riders way off in the distance? See how tiny they are. We are about 3/4 mile away!)

 

Michelle asked if I would take photo of she and her horse in front of these beautiful boulders.

 

This is a funny photo to me, because in the 6 years that I have owned horses, and the 4 years I’ve owned Apache, and all the many miles we’ve traveled over many trails, this is the first time I have ever had to don my rain slicker! Seriously, we have just been very lucky weather-wise and have never needed it. Plus, for the past 4+ years New Mexico has been in an extreme drought and rain was rare to non-existent for months.

So, I’m pretty happy about this goofy photo. It was raining! And I finally christened my rain slicker!!! 

 

We were still a couple miles away from the Staging Area when we started seeing lightning and hearing the boom and crack of thunder.  

 

Thankfully, the side of the caldera that we were riding, was clear of any lightning, and we only had to deal with some rain sprinkles. When we rode up to the top of a hill, we had a good view of the Staging Area and Cattle Barn, and all the horse trailers. We could also see where the forest fires had burned the trees in the mountains above. So, I zoomed in with my camera and took this photo.

We still had quite a ways to ride! 

 

So we decided to take a short cut and get off the road and ride directly towards the Staging Area…and directly towards the oncoming storm.

You probably can’t tell in this photo that we are at least 300 feet, on top of a hill, from our riding buddies, and that we had to ride down that fairly steep hill to get down to the little valley they were riding in. It’s that crazy distance perspective thing again. I tell you, the Valles Caldera is like a Bermuda Triangle Phenomenon kind of place!

(Notice the roof of the Cattle Barn and the tops of the horse trailers off in the distance)

 

We thought we would ride directly into the Staging Area through the meadows, but our horses insisted we change our plans when we came upon a twisting, narrow, shallow creek lined in knee high tall grass. The creek was standing in our way of reaching the Staging Area in the most direct route. So we each tried to convince our horses to cross that creek, from the saddle and from the ground, too, but all 3 of our horses refused. I was perplexed because Apache has no trouble with water crossings.

But the thunder and lightning were getting closer and it was starting to rain a little heavier, and we saw a dead rattlesnake in the creek…so we took that as an omen, and turned away from the creek and rode up onto the ranch road instead.

We noticed right away, that we weren’t the only ones whose horses refused the shallow creek and forced their riders to choose the longer route back to the Staging Area.

(Notice the group of riders in the meadow up ahead of us. There are creeks and marshes all along this roadway covered in thick tall grass, so we had to stay on the road, until we got up to that next treeline just past the bend in the road)     

 

Right here is where the fog and rain rolled in and we could watch it as it got closer to us.

(Beautiful little historic cabin in that little canyon up ahead)

 

We also saw a herd of elk grazing in the trees.

 

And more fog and low rain clouds. 

 

And we got to see some of the old historic ranch cabins.

 

The Valles Caldera and some of it’s ranch buildings have been the filming locations for many movies, including: 

• 1971 Shoot Out w/Gregory Peck
• 1977 Peter Lundy and the Medicine Hat Stallion w/Leif Garrett
• 1982 The Gambler w/ Kenny Rogers
• 1994 Troublemakers w/ Terence Hill
• 1995 Buffalo Girls w/Anjelica Huston
• 1997 Last Stand at Saber River w/ Tom Selleck
• 2003 The Missing with Tommy Lee Jones
• 2007 Seraphim Falls w/Liam Neeson and Pierce Brosnan
• 2013 The Lone Ranger w/Johnny Depp and Armie Hammer

 

Just before we reached the Staging Area and Cattle Barn, the sky opened up and poured on us. Apache and the rest of our equines were eager to get out of the rain just as much as we were, and we had to hold them back as they started to jig and trot in place. Yes…even my slow pokey pony!

We hastily trotted our way to the Cattle Barn so we could tie up our horses out of the pouring rain. There was also a nice picnic table in the center of the barn where we all gathered to finally eat our lunches, while listening to the cattle mooing in their pens inside the barn and the sound of the rain falling all around us and on the metal roof. 

Paula and Tecumseh, and her friend Sandi made it into the barn before Michelle, Mary Jo and I did, so they weren’t as wet as we were. They had been able to urge their equines to keep a faster pace and to cross that little creek! 

 

My wet pony tied to the Valles Caldera cattle chutes inside the Cattle Barn at the Staging Area.

Apache, “Hey, Mom can we leave now? Those cattle are making too much noise, and they stink. I’d like to dry off and get back home to my own comfy, non-stinky, quiet barn”.

 

All in all, it was a great ride, and we survived all the challenges and we got home safely. But I’d love to go back when we’re not in the middle of a rainy monsoon season so we can get in a full day of riding…and perhaps the grass will have lost it’s novelty…or at least be brown and not as tasty?

Here is the GPS Map from my Valles Caldera Ride (7.4 miles):

Valles Caldera Trail Ride

EveryTrail - Find the best Hiking in New Mexico

Tsankawi ~ A New Mexico Treasure

 

Warning: This is a long, photo-heavy post. I tried to make it shorter, but I just couldn’t do it, at the expense of not giving this incredible place the respect and admiration it truly deserves. So, if you’re not into learning about archaeology, Native American history, the past and it’s people, this post might be a bit boring and long.

But I completely and whole-heartedly recommend a visit to Tsankawi if you are planning a trip to New Mexico. And hey! Let me know when you’re coming and I’ll be happy to be your tour guide.

So, here goes:

After packing up our campsite, I had to make the final decision about the direction we would go to return home. We could return the way we came, driving south through Albuquerque. Or we could traverse the Jemez Mountains northwards, and drive through Santa Fe and down the Turquoise Trail.

I chose the latter because I’m always up for a scenic, relaxing drive, and driving through Albuquerque just doesn’t compare to driving the northern route.

Plus we wanted to search for a LETTERBOX placed in a very special location I have long wanted to visit: Tsankawi

So….Let’s get started. 

Another reason for choosing the northern route was that I was very interested in seeing the aftermath of the Las Conchas forest fires that burned in the Jemez Mountains this past summer.

This fire burned over 122,000 acres of forest, including over 20,000 acres of the precious Bandelier National Monument.

You can check out a thought-provoking post by a Mountain Climber blogger that lives in the Jemez:

Las Conchas Fires 

Even though fires are an important part of the health of a forest, it was still shocking and sad to see such a beautiful place transformed by so much destruction.

The forest that lined the side of the main roadway, which we remembered as being lush, thick with trees and vegetation was now bare, blackened and deserted looking.

The benefit of the loss of all those trees are now wide open vistas.

(This fun winding, sharply curved, steep road is perched above Los Alamos.)

(Those mountains in the distance are the Sangre de Cristo (Blood of Christ) Mountains above Santa Fe and they follow the route we take to drive back home.)

There has been a lot of clean up work removing most of the burnt, and fallen trees.

We were surprised that, even just 3 months after the last of the forest fires were extinguished, we were already seeing new grasses, wildflowers and tiny saplings sprouting up beneath the ponderosa trees that had been burned and scarred by the fires.

Once we left the burnt forest, we traversed the tops of high desert mesas for about 12 miles, driving through the town of White Rock and passing the turn off for Los Alamos.

And then we arrived at Tsankawi.

 

Pets are not permitted on the trail, so we found a shaded parking spot and opened all the windows to let in the cool cross-breezes, and left a large bowl of ice water for Dobbie. I would never recommend this during the summer, even with shade, because it is just too hot, and there are no cool breezes, like there are during Autumn. While it did get very warm for us while hiking up on the mesa top, when we returned to the van, we were surprised to find that the inside of the van was comfortably cool and the ice in Dobbie’s water bowl hadn’t even melted yet.

Anyway, at the entrance to the trail, we borrowed a very informative booklet. Unfortunately it's hard to hike and read at the same time, so we could only read parts of it during the hike. The booklet covers 20 numbered signposts, and is highly recommended.

We were also surprised to find out that there were no parking or entrance fees being charged that day, due to the main section of Bandelier National Monument still being closed due to the forest fires. Ironically, the very next day, Monday, the park was planning to begin busing visitors into Bandelier from the town of White Rock, to visit limited areas of the park.

We started off on a short section of trail that wound it’s way through the juniper and scrub brush, and ended at a rock wall and a hand-made wooden ladder, the only way to ascend the wall and continue onto the rest of the trail.

Jen is pretty afraid of heights and in the past, nothing we said could persuade her to climb a ladder or ride a roller coaster, so I wasn’t sure if we’d be able to complete this trail. But I wanted to try.

And I really would have been terribly disappointed if we weren’t able to explore this amazing historical site. So we just didn’t make a big issue of it, and even though she was a little nervous, with our encouragement, she climbed right up. We were so proud of her!

  

Tsankawi is a detached portion of Bandelier National Monument in New Mexico, near White Rock. It is accessible from a roadside parking area just north of the intersection of East Jemez Road and State Road 4, 12 miles from the boundary of Bandelier National Monument.

(The trailhead beginning at the parking lot down below, drawn in yellow, as seen from the mesa.)

 

A self-guided 1.5 mile loop trail provides access to numerous un-excavated ruins, caves (cavates) carved into soft tuff, and petroglyphs.

(A section of the trail, first traveling across the top of the mesa and then down to the flat red rock. I drew the path the trail takes, in yellow, as seen from the first ladder)

Tsankawi (sank-ah-WEE) was built by ancient Pueblo Indians sometimes known as the Anasazi.

Archeological evidence indicates that Tsankawi may have been constructed in the 1400s A.D. and occupied until the late 16th century -- toward the end of the Rio Grande Classic Period. It was occupied by Ancestral Pueblo people.

Archeological evidence indicates that the Indians first settled the surrounding area in small communities during the late 1100s. Over time fewer, but larger communities were built. Tsankawi was one of these larger communities.

 

According to Pueblo tradition, the people of Tsankawi spoke Tewa, while those in Frijoles Canyon, the main section of Bandelier, spoke Keres. While their languages were different, their religious beliefs, lifestyles, and worldviews were similar.

Even today, active pueblos San Ildefonso, Cochiti, and others retain strong social and traditional ties with these two cultural sites.

The 1.5 mile trail through Tsankawi takes you along centuries-old paths of the ancestral Pueblo people.

In many areas, the trails have been worn into the rock 8 to 24 inches deep as the people traveled from the mesa tops to their farms in the canyons below.

The trails also connected to other villages in the surrounding area. The natives either wore sandals or walked barefoot.

In the Tewa language of nearby Pueblos the name for Tsankawi, ‘saekewikwaje onwikege’, means "village between two canyons at the clump of sharp, round cacti."

(This was the only place on the trail that gave you a choice of what kind of ascension method you’d like to climb up to the mesa top. Believe it or not, this narrow, rocky crack that Jem is sitting within is actually a stairway. You could choose this to climb to the top of the mesa, or you could choose a steep 12 ft long ladder.)

(We chose the ladder)

Jackson would have made a fine Anasazi Mesa Top Pueblo Dweller. I had to shoot fast or I would have missed my photo op with him climbing the ladders. He was swift and adept at ladder climbing.

And Jen was becoming more confident with the heights and climbing. I was very proud of her!

(And for me, climbing the ladders was a big deal, too. Less than 2 years ago, my ACL was severed when I fell off my previous horse when she teleported sideways. For over a year, while I healed up from the surgery, stairs and steep hiking trails were a huge challenge. Climbing ladders was unthinkable.)

I can climb ladders now.

The village ruins are reached after the trail winds through cliffs covered with petroglyphs and climbs to the top of the Mesa.

The village was built out of tuff stone plastered inside and out with mud. It was roughly rectangular in shape with about 350 rooms and an enclosed central courtyard or plaza. Not only were the rooms used for cooking and sleeping, but for storage of food for the winter months or when crops failed. The architectural design with rooms surrounding a central plaza is still used by present day Indians. The buildings were two or perhaps three stories high with roofs made out of wood and mud. But why have a village on the top of a mesa where, with the exception of rain collected into a small reservoir, water had to be hauled from the springs or rivers below? Was the mesa top a place of defense?

(A view of Los Alamos Laboratories, with the Jemez Mountain looming in the background, as seen from the trail upon the mesa. You can even see the ski runs of Pajarito Mountain Ski Resort)

 

The Tsankawi inhabitants were totally dependent upon the environment for survival. Their food, clothing, and shelter came from "Mother Earth". The climate was dry, averaging less than 15 inches of rainfall a year, yet the inhabitants were able to develop an agricultural way of life.

(There are unexcavated pueblo structures scattered all over the top of the mesa. This section was the main plaza, with the circular remains of a sacred kiva off the side. A kiva is where many special and private ceremonies would take place within it’s walls) 

They made use of native plants such as the pinion pine, juniper, rabbit brush, saltbush, mountain mahogany, and yucca for food, dyes, medicine, and tools. They also cultivated corn, beans and squash.

Yet in this sparse environment, natural resources were scarce, and over time the Puebloans depleted their resources. Firewood became hard to find and the soil became exhausted due to centuries of farming.

(The cobbled rocks behind Jem are an unexcavated section of the pueblo structures on the top of the mesa)

Since there was no metal, tools were made from local materials. Obsidian formed by the Jemez volcanoes was used to make arrow points, knives, and scrapers. Volcanic basalt was used as manos and metates to grind seeds and corn. It was also used to enlarge the soft tuff caves (cavetes) and to shape blocks used in building.

(Notice the trail carved into the sandstone, by thousands of trips up and down these cliffs by the Ancient Anasazi people? Also notice the cavete (cave) on the bottom left side of this photo. See the foot stairs, carved into the sandstone rock?)

The pueblo was built sometime in the 1400's and inhabited until the late 1500's by Pueblo Indians. There's not much left now -- decaying rock walls, mostly. We had to imagine the 350 rooms and hundreds of native Americans. Their descendants may now live in the nearby San Ildefonso Pueblo.

After the inhabitants left in the late 1500s, the buildings fell into ruin. The roofs collapsed and the walls crumbled. Wind blown materials filled the cracks and crevices so that only mounds of rubble can be seen with pieces of pottery lying on the ground. Today the Tsankawi mesa top is quiet and peaceful, yet speaks of a people long gone.

Imagine the people tending their gardens and going about their daily lives surrounded by the expansive vistas of what are now known as the Jemez Mountains, the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, and valleys resulting from the Rio Grand rift.

 

The people of Tsankawi were not isolated. There were many villages on nearby mesas or in the canyons. The people traded tools, blankets, pottery, feathers, turquoise, seashells, and agricultural products. They joined together for religious activities. The village plaza may have been a gathering place for dancing and ceremonies. Imagine what it must have been like for the inhabitants.

The mesa top would have had a flurry of activity. Women were busy cooking, sewing, grinding corn, or making pottery. Men were tending their fields in the valleys below, making tools, or hunting. There were the sounds of children playing, people singing, dogs and turkeys chasing each other. The smells of cooking, household fires, drying meat, and people in close quarters would have filled the air.

(Peek-a-Boo! I see you, Jem!)

 

The ancient pueblo inhabitants of Tsankawi not only had a settlement on top of the mesa, but built their homes along the base of the cliffs. They dug cavates into the soft tuff stone and extended the dwelling with walls made of talus rock mortared with mud. (Talus are the loose stones found at the base of a cliff.)

The roofs were made with timber and mud. These dwellings are called talus pueblos.

(I liked that this one’s opening was in the shape of an arrowhead)

 

It is interesting to note that the talus pueblos were built on the south facing side of the mesas.

During winter months the afternoon sun would warm the southern cliffs melting the snow, but the northern facing cliffs frequently had snow all winter long.

Imagine what it must have been like to live in the talus pueblos during the long winter months.

In this arid environment firewood was scarce, and the fires that were built left the rooms full of smoke. While exploring the cavetes we noticed that the roofs of the caves are blackened with soot.

Numerous petroglyphs can be found around Tsankawi and for that matter throughout the southwest. Petroglyphs are designs carved into the stone.

The ones we saw are located along the cliffs and in some of the cave dwellings. Unfortunately the carvings were made in the soft tuff stone which easily erodes. Many of the drawings have become difficult to see or have disappeared all together.

Even in late September this trail was quite hot, especially without much shade due to the lack of tall trees. We took advantage of this bit of shade to enjoy a little rest and a water break.

 

Our most exciting challenge of this trail was the 16 ft ladder descent, the only way to continue on the trail, unless you turned back the way you came. We had no plans to do that.

Jem went down first and helped Jen. Jax, of course, just scurried down the ladder, like a rat on a ship’s rope. And he was too quick to get a picture of.

Jen was very nervous and concerned about climbing down such a steep and long ladder, but I was so proud of her for not giving up and making it to the bottom.

I must admit, even my tummy was in knots looking down that cliff while preparing for my own climb down the ladder.

It was very exciting and such a thrill, though.

My kidlets cheered me on from down below.

  

 

We only saw a few people from a distance, on this trail, even on a Sunday. And after we had hiked a few hundred yards, I looked back at the ladder and zoomed in with my camera to notice that a family with two young children we’re tackling the tall ladder, too. Such brave and courageous kids. And a wonderfully adventurous family.

 

 

This is that same ladder and the same family, but not zoomed in, just to give a more true perspective of the challenge.

 

This section of trail, returning to the trailhead, was a little more rugged than the first section because it traversed across the cliffside and required hiking up some steeper lines, scooching through narrow parts, climbing and scrambling over, around and between boulders.

(Scooching down a steep section) 

(Squeezing through a narrow section)

(Working our way down a steep section)

 

(Another narrow section just around the bend)

(Negotiating through boulders)

 

Hey! How’d Jen get way up there?

Oohhhhh, I see now.

I guess it’s my turn next. Hmmm. Interesting trail I’m supposed to climb. Wish me luck!

 

Hey guys! Wait up!

Another challenging section of the trail……I named this one: “Diet Rock” Can you guess why?

 

“Suck it in!”

 

(Another challenging, steep section for us to descend)

 

“Did I really just climb down THAT?”

 

Amazing to realize that this is just a one and half mile loop trail. It feels much longer.

 

Hot, tired and thirsty. But we’re almost finished.

 

 

One last ladder to climb down……you can do it, Jen!

We hope you enjoyed coming along with us to hike and explore Tsankawi, but this is finally………..The End!