Lower Water Canyon Trail

Soft Rock Pueblo Loop Trail Stop 10

~4 min drive

The cliff in front of you has numerous holes, some big and some small. These holes are created by wind and water erosion of the volcanic tuff we talked about earlier. Water freezes and thaws in the permeable rock breaking off big and small pieces (most are microscopic). Wind p…

First Cavate Pueblo Loop Trail Stop 11

~4 min drive

You have arrived at the first of three ladders you can climb into cavates (CAVE-eights), human excavated openings. Although sometimes used for housing, the main purpose of cavates was often food storage. Remember the Ancestral Pueblo people lived here for over 400 years and th…

Talus House Pueblo Loop Trail Stop 12

~4 min drive

This is Talus House, reconstructed in 1920 to show the structures that would have been found in front of many of the cavates when the Ancestral Pueblo people were still occupying the canyon. For many years park staff believed the reconstruction was inaccurate due to what appea…

Frijoles Canyon Pueblo Loop Trail Stop 13

~4 min drive

Stop and look out over the canyon. Does it look lush, and green compared to the mesa above it? As we discussed earlier this is a riparian area that has greater diversity of plants and wildlife than other nearby areas. Although much farming was done on the surrounding mesas som…

Cavate Pueblo Loop Trail Stop 14

~4 min drive

Have you notice anything different about the cavates you have entered by climbing ladders? They all have concrete floors. Without the concrete to protect them from our footwear, the natural cavate floors would have been worn deeply by our entering these significant features. R…

Cave Kiva Pueblo Loop Trail Stop 15

~4 min drive

This is Cave Kiva. Unlike the other cavates you could climb into, this one is a kiva. Do you remember earlier on this walk when you saw Big Kiva? This cavate was used for the same purpose as Big Kiva. Unfortunately, this kiva cavate must be smoked and replastered regularly to…

Frey Trail

~4 min drive

The Frey Trail is a historic trail that travels from the park visitor center in Frijoles Canyon up onto the mesa and Juniper Family Campground. Distance one way is 2 miles and approximately 550 feet elevation change. Lots of great vistas and closeup encounters with the Piñon-…

Frey Trail Pueblo Loop Trail Stop 16

~4 min drive

The dirt trail to your right is the Frey Trail, named after an early concessionaire in the park. If you follow this trail, it will switchback its way out of the canyon, gaining approximately 500 feet in the climb. There are excellent views back into the canyon as the trail asc…

Junction Pueblo Loop Trail Stop 17

~4 min drive

At this point, you may turn right to continue on to Long House and Alcove House or turn left to return to the Visitor Center for a shorter walk.

Fire Tyuonyi Overlook Trail Stop 4

~4 min drive

Fire has always been a part of life in the Bandelier area and fires likely burned this area many times while the Ancestral Pueblo people lived here. From studying tree rings scientists know that the natural fire cycle here was a low intensity fire every fifteen years or so. In…