Tent Rocks

On 11 April, the older kids had a field trip to Tent Rocks National Monument, and since Ryan and I had done this trip before, I volunteered to go along. Besides realizing how much I like teaching adults for my vocation, we had a great time, and the hike alone is legendary.

Tent Rocks is a BLM-administeed site on Cochiti Pueblo land, mid-way between Albuquerque and Santa Fe. Volcanic ash from the Valles Caldera northeast of Albuquerque deposited hundreds of feet deep and compacted into a light, airy (and easily eroded) basalt. This was later covered by a layer of more resilent rock. Over time, water has eroded steep canyons into the plateaus of the region, and in this spot, slot canyons have developed. The harder rock atop the basalt erodes more slowly, leaving large caps on top of narrower pillars. These caps lend the name to the monument.
The hike meanders for 3 miles (round trip), into a slot canyon and then up to the mesa top, with stunning panoramic views of the Sandia, Jemez, and Sangre de Cristo mountain ranges. The last portion of the hike in (and thus the firt part of the hike back) is a steep and gravely ascent, with one spot where small children have to be boasted up and lifted down. It's a strenuous hike for children.

At one point in the slot canyon, a 20-foot boulder has fallen and lodged a few feet from the canyon floor; we had to duck under it to get by. In another spot, a 100 foot pine stands with its roots exposed 6 feet high, as the soil has been washed away from periodic flooding. The kids were able to walk through the roots.
I had a group of 5 kids, including Allyson and Ryan, one of Ryan's classmates, and two of Allyson's peers. Since we had two kindergarteners, we went a bit slower than the 2nd-grade classes, but we made good time, getting there and back in about 2 hours.