A Hike to Waterfall above Walker Flats

In Cleveland, NM just west of Mora is a canyon called Rio la Casa [sometimes it's called Rio de la Casa depending on the map being read]. I have friends up this canyon building a unique house on the banks of the river, Rio la Casa. Further up the canyon is a place called Walker Flats. It's a high mountain meadow. Beyond that, further up into the Sange de Cristos is a beautiful waterfall which feeds the Rio la Casa river.

Last Saturday we drove up to within a couple miles of the waterfall then hiked into it. What a day and the views were just breathtaking. That river and waterfall are snow melt from the higher elevations. The water is really, really cold. On the close up shot of the waterfall rocks is snow still not melted yet. The water doesn't warm up as it gets into the warmer parts of the canyon a few miles below and lower down in elevation. It's still quite cold.

Amola Ridge under fire

Last week was a week of watching the ridges for smoke and flames. This northern New Mexico fire is now about 80% contained but late last week the smoke could be see as far away as Santa Fe. Chuck, who was thinning my trees, is off fighting that fire. So far 16,000 acres consumed.

The upper part of the valley just north of my place was on voluntary evacuation alert for more than two days. The winds were the fire's friend. It was so bad Saturday, the aerial tankers were grounded. Sunday it calmed down.

From the Santa Fe New Mexican this am - MORA: Crews battling a wildfire burning in Northern New Mexico took advantage of good weather Sunday.

The fire was headed toward Ocate [see previous post] and highway 442 was closed for days. It's now open again.

Old Store at Ocate Junction

It's a quiet byway of northern New Mexico. Ocate, a small community in the high plains at the edge of the mountains, west of Wagon Mound, north east of Mora. The Ocate citizens see the eastern side of the Amola Ridge and my Mora valley sees the western side. Ocate is close as the crow flies, but takes time to drive to.

The junction is state highway 442 with state highway 120. 120 to the left goes to Black Lake, then Angel Fire on the Enchanted Circle. To the right, it goes to Wagon Mound. The back of the store shows in the first picture up at the junction ahead. This store has certainly been weathered by time.

High Country Aspens

The planting or transplanting season for aspens is March to mid April, so I had nine aspens added to the front section of the property.

They have been in the ground since mid March and they are already budding.

Aspens are a fast growning tree, about 2 feet a year, and are extremely beautiful in the fall.

Beavers: love 'em and hate 'em

Just past Mora to the west, is the little community of Cleveland. A few miles up the Rio la Casa canyon in Cleveland, some friends of mine are building a new, uniquely shaped home [more on that later]. The Rio la Casa river is running right through their property on it's way down the mountain. There is still plenty of water in it even in this time of dryness.

So the other day, I was up there to take pictures of the progress on their new home. Jim is building it himself. Lititia and I walked up the river to the beaver dam that is changing the flow channels of the river. To get there we had to cross a bridge of trees.

Beavers have been chewing the Aspens down for their dam and home. It's sad to see these beautiful trees, some quite large, chewed off at the bottom and felled. It's nature's way but sad to see.

The Juniper Tree

Here it is. Found the picture of the big juniper in my back yard..

Now, if this tree were in front, I could decorate it for Christmas next December. ;)

Clearing some land

Most of my property is a ponderosa pine forest with some other kinds of firs or evergreen trees. There is one huge juniper tree that is like a huge, perfectly shaped Christmas tree. I'll dig up a picture of it soon. I have Douglas firs, White pines, scrub oak and just plain evergreens, too.

This week, I'm having the yard areas closest to the mobile home pruned. Ponderosa pines crave sunlight so as they grow tall, the tree cuts off the nutrients to the lower limbs. So they always look scraggly on the bottom parts.

The three trees right by Chuck are dead or diseased [bark beetle got to them]. Bark beetles don't like water, so in dry years, the ponderosa pine forests really suffer from infestations of them. The tree Chuck is cutting was killed by bark beetles. the ones right to the right of this one were endangering my dog fence.