SACRED HONORING

Our friend David Little Elk guides a Red Road Summer Solstice practice of honoring this sacred day to assist the bringing of blessings for these globally changing and challenging times.

FOUR-LEGGED WISDOM

It is said…When most wild animals sense an incoming storm, they attempt to outrun the danger. They generally turn to run away from the storm, but unknowingly increase their exposure as they continue to travel in the same direction as the storm overhead—never outrunning it.

The way Buffalo react to an incoming storm is different. Buffalo wait for the storm to cross the ridge of a mountaintop and, just as the storm approaches, Buffalo turn and charge directly into the storm. By huddling together and facing the storm head-on, they actually minimize the time spent in the storm and minimize the hit to each member of the herd by taking it on together.

CONTEMPLATE

Joanna Macy and The Great Turning is a short film about the societal shift now underway from an industrial growth society to a more sustainable civilization. Based on an extensive interview with well-known writer, teacher and activist Joanna Macy, the film lays out Macy’s understanding of the Great Turning as the third major revolution of human existence after the agricultural and industrial revolutions. "The most remarkable feature of this historical moment on Earth," says Joanna Macy, "is not that we are on the way to destroying the world - we've actually been on the way for quite a while. It is that we are beginning to wake up, as from a millennia-long sleep, to a whole new relationship to our world, to ourselves and each other." Macy considers how human beings have previously responded to the major challenges of our past and shows how we are doing so once again, in hundreds of ways both small and large. Illustrated with beautiful footage shot around the world, the film is at once sobering, insightful, and inspiring. The Great Turning is ultimately a call to take part in this new adventure in order to help create a more life-sustaining world.

Find more on Joanna’s work and projects here.

ART

LEANING INTO THE WIND

Filmmaker Thomas Riedelsheimer follows artist Andy Goldsworthy on his exploration of the layers of his world and the impact of the years on himself and his art. As Goldsworthy introduces his own body into the work it becomes at the same time even more fragile and personal and also sterner and tougher…

LOCAL LORE

The Thrill of the Chase

A Memoir By Forrest Fenn

…Fenn posted clues to the treasure’s whereabouts online and in a 24-line poem that was published in his 2010 autobiography “The Thrill of the Chase.”… …Fenn, who lives in Santa Fe, said he packed and repacked his treasure chest for more than a decade, sprinkling in gold dust and adding hundreds of rare gold coins and gold nuggets. Pre-Columbian animal figures went in, along with prehistoric “mirrors” of hammered gold, ancient Chinese faces carved from jade and antique jewelry with rubies and emeralds.He said he hid the treasure as a way to tempt people to get into the wilderness and give them a chance to launch an old-fashioned adventure and expedition for riches.

EXPLORE

Orilla Verde Chollas in bloom!

A short drive south on West Rim Road we have a  veritable treasure trove of easy trails and scenic views. The area offers a unique beauty, sacred energies and plenty of recreational activities. Throughout the area are sculptural cholla cacti, all bursting forth with colors from vibrant fuchsia to shades of peach and bright yellow.

At the descent point into the canyon is Dead Cholla which offers lots of great rock climbing spots. Theres a beginner’s wall further down, expert guidance for hire. Mountain Skills rock climbing adventures offers guided climbs and a Rock n’ Raft combo adventure.

La Vista Verde trail is next at mile marker 11. Petroglyphs and early colonial Spanish graffiti can be found on rocks throughout the area. The canyon was a travel route for indigenous peoples of the area and I suspect there was a trade meeting spot in a particular clearing sheltered by rock mounds on the trail. It’s not uncommon to see bighorn sheep, coyote, red tail hawks, bald and golden eagles (roughly Nov-March) in this area. La Vista Verde is an out and back trail, very level and easy, just 1.2 miles and the view at the end is breathtaking if not dizzying.

Further down at the base is the confluence point where the Rio del Pueblo meet the Rio Grande. Tucked within the lush foliage is the lower entrance to the Slide Trail which was once a road connecting the upper mesa to the canyon. After a rock slide ended its days as a vehicle access road it became a hiking trail. The difficulty level is easy to moderate, 5.2 miles up and back so about 2 hours at a moderate pace. Be sure to visit early after a good rain or during a morning drizzle to experience the most gorgeously intoxicating high desert petrichor—aficionados will certainly appreciate! This time of year, many birds of bright colors can be found along this trail especially. I’ve seen a few river otters here which are a special sight along with the graceful blue heron often fishing alongside anglers and gliding elegantly over the river.

Orilla Verde (Green Ribbon) trails and camp spots are scattered throughout the area. It’s a nice quick getaway with endless exploration to be had.