In order to celebrate the movement in Congress of the Ojito Wilderness Bill (S. 156) we thought that we would look at some fine hiking opportunities in the Ojito area itself.

The Greater Ojito Area, less than an hour's drive northwest of Albuquerque, offers good recreational opportunities, houses important historical, religious, cultural, archaeological, and paleontological sites and is also an important habitat for many species of wildlife and rare plants.

The proposed Ojito Wilderness Area provides excellent opportunities for traditional recreation and personal reflection via its remote box canyons, steep-sided mesas, deep arroyos, rough terrain and dramatic views of distant mountains. The proposed wilderness caters to would be explorers of nearly every age and experience level. It is also accessible to small children but, be warned, water, and lots of it, needs to be taken into the area as there are no real sources of water in this parched territory. The Ojito is a place where history lives, where ancient Pueblo ruins, dinosaur fossils and petrified wood wait to be discovered and appreciated. It is home to unique petroglyphs, exotic multi-colored badlands, redrock mesas and wildlife that is as diverse from eagles to mountain lions.

The Ojito, being the New Mexico desert at its best, is definitely not home to any cool mountain air and the summer is best avoided unless you enjoy punishing yourself.

According to Martin Heinrich at www.ojito.org one of the easiest but most unique hikes to do is what he calls the Hoodoo Pines Hike (Length 2 + miles of easy to moderate difficulty). This hike is accessible to a wide range of skills and leads to an area of mushroom shaped hoodoos and relic Ponderosa pines growing far below where they are generally found in New Mexico.

Another short hike in the area is what is called the Puni Views Hike. The word Puni is a Zia word for the Ojito meaning "land to the west". The "land to the west" in this case being the spectacular views of the redrock mesas and badlands that are accessible to recreational seekers of varied abilities. This area is also home to the site of the discovery of a Siesmosaurus skeleton, a replica of which is to be displayed in the New Mexico Museum of Natural History in Albuquerque. The Badlands are also host to many cultural and paleontological resources and visitors to the area are advised to treat these artifacts with due respect. Hikers are reminded that no collecting is allowed in BLM Wilderness Study Areas.

Experienced hikers may feel like heading and exploring the badlands and its promise of wildlife. Although actual sightings are rare, deer, elk, porcupine, badger and coyote spoor can be found and there is a good sampling of bird life from doves to raptors.

A third hike recommended at http://www.ojito.org is a moderate two-mile hike known as the Colored Bluffs Hike. Situated close to Highway 550 this hike offers the user multi-colored bluffs and badlands of red, white, buff, gray and orange. Good views of the Nacimiento Mountains and the Jemez are also available to those who are prepared to do some steep slope climbing. For those who like to live dangerously, there is also a well defined anticline where approaching the edge without care would result in a serious mishap.

For More Information

• More information on all three hikes with comprehensive instructions on how to find them can be found at http://www.ojito.org