Ramblings from the Road: Manzano Mountains

Tuesday, April 10, 2018

Manzano Mountains

Beginning a fresh blog post can be daunting sometimes. You are staring at a blank screen and just cannot get the flow started.

I talked it over with Freddy and we decided to create a tag line. An opening sentence to sum up our visit to Manzano Mountains State Park. We came up with an appropriate one.

The pup volunteered to type it so I went off to make a sandwich.

"Hi everybody, it's me, Freddy! I changed it just a bit. Hopefully Greg won't notice."

I Pees in the Trees.

Gotta run, Greg is coming back. Yip Yip Woof!

"Freddy, that is not what we agreed on for the tag line."

"I like mine better."

"Don't you think At Ease in the Trees sums up our experience here?"

"Yeah, well mine pretty much sums up my visit."

He makes a valid point.

The park is located on the eastern slope of the Manzano Mountains at just under 7300 feet of elevation. It is pretty much in the center of the state. Mountainair is the closest town about 16 miles away. The campground is very well maintained by the outstanding state employee Clarence.

The restroom, though older, was clean. Make note that there are no showers available.

Aside from the trails, amenities include a group shelter with campsites available and a horseshoe pit.

At this time there are 37 spots for campers. Eight sites offer electricity and six of those can be reserved. These are close to the restroom. Here are three of them.

There are a half dozen or so sites along the northeast edge that have neat views and shelters. Some can be reserved.

On the western edge of the park, past the group shelter, are five overflow sites that offer the most privacy. Like these two.

Yes, you can come here just to relax and read a book. Enjoy a campfire. Take in the scenery. But you would be remiss not to ramble along the trails.

They are Freddy approved.

The Nature Trail is a self guided short interpretive loop with 15 points of interest. Be sure to grab a map from the mailbox at the start. And when you are done, return it for the next camper.

The Outer Loop Trail encircles the campground.

They are about 3/4 and 2 1/4 miles in length respectively. Wildfire is a spur trail connecting the overflow area to the Outer Loop while the Park Entry trail joins the Outer Loop to, well, the park entrance road.

Just outside the park boundaries we came across something spectacular. I am not at liberty to tell you where it is but if you see a tree growing out of a rock you are close.

And if you stumble across a canyon, look closely at the walls under the crevices.

Because you will see history. Petroglyphs to be precise.

Please remember the camper's motto at places like this one. Take only pictures and leave only footprints. Several have been scratched over with recent graffiti. Unforgivable.

I won't even begin to explain how old these are or who created them. Just looking at the images and an occasional gentle touch gave me a profound sense of the past.

How will the current residents of our planet be remembered?

The day after the WonderPup and I arrived at Manzano Mountains State Park the weather changed. Just a little bit.

The snow only lasted for half a day before melting. Knowing this would probably happen, Freddy and I hit the trails at dawn.

Walking in a winter wonderland. In the spring.

Freddy was captivated by the snow. He had never seen it before. He frolicked and played.

But what really captured Freddy's attention here were the giant squirrels.

There are known as Abert's Squirrels, named after Colonel John James Abert, an American naturalist and military officer who headed the Corps of Topographical Engineers and organized the effort to map the American West in the 19th century. At least that is what I remember from high school.

Locally they are also known as the Manzano Mountains Tufted Ear Squirrel. To Freddy they are known as intriguing.