When I was researching places to hike around the Santa Fe area, I came across Bandelier National Monument and decided to check it out on our second full day in New Mexico. The weather was quite nasty with intermittent rain, wind, and cold. Still, my wife and son (almost 6 years old) made the hour drive through some beautiful scenery up to Bandelier near Santo Domingo Pueblo. Wow, what an amazing hike we had. We hiked the main loop. There is a 22 mile back country hike which would be amazing one day.
We explored smaller cave dwellings and made the decision to go all the way to the Alcove house which is located about 140 feet above the floor of the Frijoles Canyon. To reach the Alcove House, you have to climb a series of 4 wooden ladders and stone stairs. Two of the ladders in particular are quite long. Just don't look down! I was so impressed and proud of our son who reached the top but more importantly made it all the way down (with me right next to him protecting him).
Inside the Alcove House, there is a reconstructed kiva and the viga holes and niches of former homes. I don't know how the ancestral Pueblo people climbed to the top. The view from the top was excellent although we had grey gloomy skies. I managed to capture some shots including this 10 shot pano that I shot handheld. At first, I was upset that people wouldn't clear the area for me to shoot but now after editing the image, I'm happy to include these visitors like us. I'm also pleased that the pano stitched without issue. I shot them in the vertical orientation and just overlapped a lot.
FE 16-35 GM
Note: I'll get back to posting a few more images from Cross of the Martyr's soon.
Was there in November. Beautiful spot and great hike. Here is a view of just one segment of the climb to the alcove you described. Taken with Batis 18.
digital_AM wrote:
When I was researching places to hike around the Santa Fe area, I came across Bandelier National Monument and decided to check it out on our second full day in New Mexico. The weather was quite nasty with intermittent rain, wind, and cold. Still, my wife and son (almost 6 years old) made the hour drive through some beautiful scenery up to Bandelier near Santo Domingo Pueblo. Wow, what an amazing hike we had. We hiked the main loop. There is a 22 mile back country hike which would be amazing one day.
We explored smaller cave dwellings and made the decision to go all the way to the Alcove house which is located about 140 feet above the floor of the Frijoles Canyon. To reach the Alcove House, you have to climb a series of 4 wooden ladders and stone stairs. Two of the ladders in particular are quite long. Just don't look down! I was so impressed and proud of our son who reached the top but more importantly made it all the way down (with me right next to him protecting him).
Inside the Alcove House, there is a reconstructed kiva and the viga holes and niches of former homes. I don't know how the ancestral Pueblo people climbed to the top. The view from the top was excellent although we had grey gloomy skies. I managed to capture some shots including this 10 shot pano that I shot handheld. At first, I was upset that people wouldn't clear the area for me to shoot but now after editing the image, I'm happy to include these visitors like us. I'm also pleased that the pano stitched without issue. I shot them in the vertical orientation and just overlapped a lot.
FE 16-35 GM
Note: I'll get back to posting a few more images from Cross of the Martyr's soon....Show more →
digital_AM wrote:
When I was researching places to hike around the Santa Fe area, I came across Bandelier National Monument and decided to check it out on our second full day in New Mexico. The weather was quite nasty with intermittent rain, wind, and cold. Still, my wife and son (almost 6 years old) made the hour drive through some beautiful scenery up to Bandelier near Santo Domingo Pueblo. Wow, what an amazing hike we had. We hiked the main loop. There is a 22 mile back country hike which would be amazing one day.
We explored smaller cave dwellings and made the decision to go all the way to the Alcove house which is located about 140 feet above the floor of the Frijoles Canyon. To reach the Alcove House, you have to climb a series of 4 wooden ladders and stone stairs. Two of the ladders in particular are quite long. Just don't look down! I was so impressed and proud of our son who reached the top but more importantly made it all the way down (with me right next to him protecting him).
Inside the Alcove House, there is a reconstructed kiva and the viga holes and niches of former homes. I don't know how the ancestral Pueblo people climbed to the top. The view from the top was excellent although we had grey gloomy skies. I managed to capture some shots including this 10 shot pano that I shot handheld. At first, I was upset that people wouldn't clear the area for me to shoot but now after editing the image, I'm happy to include these visitors like us. I'm also pleased that the pano stitched without issue. I shot them in the vertical orientation and just overlapped a lot.
FE 16-35 GM
Note: I'll get back to posting a few more images from Cross of the Martyr's soon....Show more →
---------------------------------------------
darrellc wrote:
Was there in November. Beautiful spot and great hike. Here is a view of just one segment of the climb to the alcove you described. Taken with Batis 18.
