Hiking in the De-Na-Zin Wilderness, 8/10/2019

Today’s adventure was to do some hiking in the Bisti Badlands, but we ended up in the De-Na-Zin Wilderness Area (not enough planning!) Anyway, to clear this up, from Bloomington, NM:

• If you want to go to the Bisti Badlands, take 64 west to Farmington, and then 371 south about 40 miles to left turn into badlands. 
• If you want to go to De-Na-Zin Wilderness (45,000 acres), take 550 south about 40 miles and turn right. This is where google maps takes you when you enter Bisti Badlands.  
• Regardless, pick up a map a Visitors Center in Bloomfield, Farmington, or Aztec, NM, and be prepared to use landmarks and GPS (although you may not have cell service) to keep track of where you are! It is easy to get lost. 

As always, bring a compass, hat, sunscreen, and plenty of water. 

So, following the google maps directions, we saw signs to the De-Na-Zin Wilderness Area and came to a small parking lot. 

At first there seems to be a trail through the sagebrush prairie, but after about a half mile we came to a canyon with incredible rock formations. We made sure to identify landmarks so we could find our way back to the car. 

Walking across some slickrock we came to several patches of bright orange rocks. 

Our sweet doggie, Sadie, loved the chance to explore this area. She is great at finding trails, but here she seemed to prefer walking in washes. But when she finds a hole or cave, she always wants to explore. 

These rock formations are called mudrock. When I first saw them, I thought it was dried mud. But, no, it is really hard rock!

This large dark rock seemed so out of place. Who knows how it got here? I think I need to take a geology course to help sort these things out in my mind…

John is one of those guys that wants to climb on top of things. I'll bet he did that as a kid (and is still doing it at 70+). And, of course, Sadie wants to follow him everywhere. I just walked around it.

When we got to this canyon we wanted to get a closer look at the caves. And, we found the perfect rock picnic table to enjoy lunch nearby. 

The views were great from our vantage point. I was glad John helped me climb up there (and back down). We have learned that we need to be careful, especially in such remote settings.

Everywhere we looked, we saw interesting areas to explore: “mushroom” rocks, large and small monoliths, and overhangs (where Sadie found shade from the hot sun). 

As we meandered through the washes, Sadie tried to explore every crack and crevice along the way. 

We were thrilled to come across these pieces of petrified wood in one of the washes. 

We found our way back to the car (and the sagebrush prairie), carefully following the landmarks we had identified.

But, we knew we just needed to head west to reach the road where we were parked. Always carry a compass! And as I tell my daughter (who has a terrible sense of direction), the sun rises in the east. 

Hot and tired by the time we reached the car, this was a fantastic experience. The remote location, unusual rock formations, and freedom to just explore was awesome. We loved it!

For additional information about the De-Na-Zin Wilderness Area, go to www.blm.gov/visit/bisti-de-na-zin-wilderness.