El Morro National Monument

On the way back from Taos to LA I was able to stop at El Morro National Monument. This is an oasis on the trail through the desert. A natural watering hole at the base of the sand stone bluffs. It was reliably full all year long.

The pond at El Morro

The running water has left mineral deposits on the sandstone

El Morro

The bluffs are sand stone, which means the weather has brought about erosion in some beautiful patterns:

Pine tree at the top of the bluff, I love the corrugation effect

This looks like small stones piled on large ones

The cliff face through the juniper trees

This looks like,,,,well you can figure it out

Do you see the face?

Because this was such a reliable water source, this was a major stop for travelers for centuries

Ruins of a native village at the top of the cliff

petroglyphs at the bottom of the cliff

More petroglyphs

Big horn sheep are native to this area

The wall of the cliff also gave way to man oldest preoccupation - letting people know he was there. That's right, graffiti.

Some of the above carvings date from before the Pilgrims landed.

The walk to the cliff face is an easy 0.5 mile round trip with some hills. There is also a 3 mile walk to the top of the cliffs.