Ted. For at least 1,000 years, and probably much longer, a wide array of goods were traded between Mesoamerica and the area now know as the Southwestern US. When the Spaniards arrived, they continued to travel these well-known routes. One of which, connecting Mexico City with Santa Fe came to be called El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro (the Royal Road of The Interior Land). Following this ancient trail about 12 miles south of Santa Fe, one comes to some basalt cliffs in an area known as La Cieneguilla. Protected as BLM land (Bureau of Land Management), the rocks are covered with hundreds of petroglyphs dating back at least 800 years.
Judy and I walked about a mile along the cliff base clambering over the boulders and studying the incredible array of figures drawn there. Birds are very common as are many depictions of Kokopelli, the legendary humpbacked flutist.
We only saw four other folks at the site, possibly because the trail is very rough and there was precious little shade. The effort was definitely worth it though, as this was by far the largest collection of pre-Columbian North American art that we had ever seen.
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