Continuing from the Headland Trail you’ll naturally connect to the Inscription Rock Trail that leads along the bluff and observes the other significant focus of the monument – several ancient petroglyphs and hundreds of historic rock inscriptions. A careful eye will notice several petroglyphs on the large vertical faces of the cliff where big circular erosions have occurred. Some triangles, crosses, and other shapes I can’t quite make out as they are obscured behind trees or have been worn away by time.
We also get another look at Woodpecker Arch which does indeed resemble a woodpecker more from below than it does above.
From here the trail becomes a bit more developed as you will see railings, border stones, and educational signs. Take your time here, there is much to see.
I was fortunate to find a trail guide deposited in the collection bin along the railings but if you are smarter than I am be sure to pick one of these up at the visitor center before heading out. It explains in far greater detail than I will here about the history behind each inscription and shows high-contrast images to help you make them out.
This was the part where my camera’s memory card ran out and I had to walk back to the truck first. Including this more distant shot from my return trip to show that if you don’t take a walk on this trail you’ll never even know where it is. The low brush and trees cover them from your view unless right up alongside the rocks. Can’t see them from up on top of the rocks either – that’s a long way up!
Whatever you do, be sure to mind the signs and rules. Don’t leave your own marks, just enjoy the ones that already exist and leave them be for future visitors to also enjoy.
Since I’m now doing the trail in reverse from how I started, we will jump past the inscriptions for a moment and focus on possibly the single most important feature in all of El Morro: the Oasis (also listed on some maps as “The Pool”). Reportedly this is the only reliable source of fresh water around for 20 miles, and the reason for the Zuni’s ancestors to settle here at A’ts’ina around 700 years ago. Without this water it’s likely none of this history exists and I wouldn’t be visiting the monument.
The water is certainly well-protected in an alcove and hidden below reeds and cattails. In this late season the water is a bit low and stagnant but does appear fresh and clear.
Above the pool are the mud nests of cliff swallows which I didn’t see any of today (likely as they were migrating) but even if I did they are extremely fast and near impossible to capture on camera.
Evidence for the source of the pool’s water is painted on the cliff walls in the form of discoloration. Rain spilling over from atop the cuesta and cascading down this waterfall must be some kind of sight when it’s happening.
Immediately after the oasis the inscriptions start. There are sometimes number markers on the railings to help find the guidebook entry for full details.
First up was a wide collection of petroglyphs. Many shapes of hands, some snakes/lizards, and a number of other objects that are up to interpretation and imagination.
Don’t forget to continue observing the natural features as you go – plenty of interesting geology to be seen, some amazing shapes created from the eroded sandstone.
One of the most striking inscriptions is an amazingly sharp and perfect mark of P. (“Peachy”) Gilmer Breckenridge, 1859, who was part of the “Camel Corps” when the army experimented using camels. Unfortunately the Civil War started which ended the experiment which was scrapped afterwards. Breckenridge ended up fighting for the Confederacy and died in Virginia in 1863. Contrasting against the D. Morrow (?) below and other letters of vague legibility an Breckenridge’s carvings are a near work of art. That took some time and skill.
Other areas have collections of petroglyphs, English lettering/initials, and images like goats and human faces that are of more contemporary origin.
Another grouping of bighorn sheep or maybe even elk, stick-men or maybe lizards, and other miscellaneous letters and scratches.
More petroglyphs and other inscriptions…
And finally another very clear mark of R.H. Orton, Capt. 1st Cal. Cav. 1866. Since he was a captain who fought in the civil war this was probably made as he was returning home to California. Beside it is a cross on a pedestal, likely made by the Spanish conquistadors several centuries before that.
Others not shown here include future governors, conquerors, settlers, and a wide array of others both ancient and more recent. Though in some ways this is like a graffiti post, it also serves as a direct historical record of people that passed this place over the past thousand years.
Hiking Data
Here’s the path as if only hiking this small loop from the visitor center. Which in this case I did unintentionally due to my memory card mishap. This loop is considered accessible as most of it (maybe all of it, can’t fully remember) is paved in concrete and flat. It’s listed as only 1/2 mile which is quite short and will pass faster than you think as you slowly take in all the inscriptions and the oasis along the route.
Statistics show actual distance for me was a bit over 0.6 miles but that’s probably from walking back and forth taking photos. You can where the inscriptions start as my moving speed slowed considerably.
