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| | Jemez Mountain Scenic Byway, NM | | | |
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Jemez Mountain Scenic Byway, NM
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| Scenic Drive | 60.00 Miles |
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| | Scenic Drive | 60.00 Miles | | | |
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| no partners | | After my Hike to Jemez Falls, I wanted to check out some areas that caught my interest on Hwy 4 past the Fenton Lake turnoff. I didn't realize that Hwy 4 was actually a Scenic Byway when I planned this trip, so I didn't do a lot of more detailed research, but what I picked out was more than enough. So back up the highway to it's top point and down the other side. I had about 2 hours of daylight left when I hit my first stop.
Battleship Rock
There is a parking lot at the top just off the highway. What I didn't know is that if you drive just a bit further, you can turn off and go into a Day Use area there. No matter, there was a set of stairs that took you down to the creek from the upper parking lot and a trail that took you to a bridge over the creek. Battleship Rock of course is named for the face of rock over the day use area. This is also the place where the San Antonio Creek, that runs through Valles Caldera, meets the East Fork of the Jemez River. Once they join up, the waterway going forward is the Jemez River. I didn't see the East Fork, I crossed what bridges the San Antonio. I went up into the Day Use area and dinked around the creek a bit before moving on.
Soda Dam
Didn't have high hopes for this stop, but they make it a highlight for a reason and they were right. Yes, it's a natural dam, but a river still runs through it and it falls as it goes. It was a pretty remarkable place. Spent some time there before moving on.
Was going to hit up some Ruins in Jemez Springs, but by the time I got there, it was closed. Thought about stopping for dinner there in town, but I had one more stop and I was chasing daylight at this point.
Gilman Tunnels
Again, not sure how good it was going to be, but again, it was a point of interest for a reason and for good reason. Took a lot longer to get there than I hoped. You turn off Hwy 4 and the road kind of turns into a 2 lane residential road for awhile, winding along next to private properties. But then you leave them behind, but the road stays 2 lane and gets pretty narrow in places. This road is also the back way to Fenton Lake and would turn to dirt at some point past the tunnels themselves. There was a little bit of traffic on that road, but not much. I imagine it's quicker for people from Albuquerque and Santa Fe to go through San Ysidro and up this way than to go all the way around.
The road finally did a sweeping turn and started heading into a canyon, labeled the Guadalupe Box. And it was quite the canyon in that it got deep fast. I stopped a couple of times just before the first tunnel to check it out. There are two tunnels, roughly 150 feet apart. Went through the first, checked out the canyon again and then went through the second. I never even imagined what I would see on the other side of the second. This canyon was deep, but the depths were short-lived. There was a pullout right after exiting the second tunnel and I pulled over and just stared. The Guadalupe Rio is the water running downhill through this canyon before it dumps into the Jemez back down at Hwy 4. At some point in time, who knows when, there was a massive rockfall, or all the rock blasted for the tunnels was dumped along the road into the canyon. And at some point the Guadalupe Rio had to find a way to get down all that rock. There was at least an 1/8 mile stretch where it was a series of waterfalls and cascades. It wasn't like the most picturesque, because of all the boulders, but still, it was quite the sight. Needless to say, spent a little time there, but just along the road. I would have never had time to go down into the rocks for better photos. This will be a return trip for sure, would like to travel on foot down the length of this "Box".
Turned around and started back. By the time I got back to Hwy 4 it was dark and I had at least another hour drive back up the Hwy to be close to where I wanted to start in the morning. The next day would be a half day and my last, for the actual hiking, exploring etc. After my hikes tomorrow, it would be back to Santa Fe to my friend's place to pick up some things and then head for home the next day. |
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| Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty & well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, totally worn out & proclaiming, "Wow What a Ride!" |
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