Way back in 2003, I bought a book called Mysteries & Miracles of New Mexico: Guide Book To The Genuinely Bizarre In The Land Of Enchantment, by Jack Kutz. Chapter One is about New Mexico's Mystery Rock so naturally I followed his cryptic instructions and found it at the base of Hidden Mountain. 

That was 16 years ago.

Last weekend, I grabbed the book and took Johnpaul out to the desert and we found it once again.

Still the topic of much archaeological debate, the Los Lunas Decalogue stone is written in a dead language and predates Columbus by well over 1000 years.

It is older than the petroglyphs and written in a language from the other side of the world. So, uh... hmmmmm.

One common theory about the Decalogue Stone is that it is a transcription of the Ten Commandments. I even had someone on Twitter, who lives in Jordan, claim to be able to decipher the writing and confirm that it is in fact the Ten Commandments. I'm not saying it is or isn't but there have been other translations that tell a very different story.
Specifically, the translation from ancient language expert, Dixie Perkins, who published another translation that reads as follows:

"I have come to this place to stay. The other one met with an untimely death in battle, dishonored, insulted and stripped of flesh. The men thought him to be an object of care whom I looked after, considered crazed, to be tossed about as if in a wind, to perish in poverty and need. By my kinsmen I was respected and honored, of blessed lot, with a body of slaves and so many olive trees, a peg to hang anything upon. Men punished me with exile to exact retribution for a debt; meanwhile, I remain here as a rabbit. I, Zakyneros, just as a prophet, out of reach of mortal man, I am fleeing and very afraid. I am dross, scum, refuse, just as aboard a ship a soft, effeminate sailor is flayed with an animal hide, all who speak offensively are lashed or beaten with a cane; but after a short time, the hurtful ones may be sated; at an unseasonable time, I remain to protect from the rainy southwest winds the hollow or the ravine. Very much harvest is gathered in, very much is the woody dell and glen; very many bags of young deer. Very many hides with delicate, luxuriant hair; by the channel of a river, swift flowing. Very much is given by the gods for again and again, at the unseasonable time I become gaunt from hunger."

There are some who dismiss the Decalogue Stone as nothing more than elaborate hoax perpetrated by archaeology students from The University Of New Mexico. However, due to eyewitness reports of the stone's existence in the 1800's, the hoax theory has been mostly dismissed.

I am not a historian or an expert on ancient languages so the writing on the stone could be directions to the closest Wal-Mart for all I know. What I am, however, is a person who asks "why?"

How and why was this traveler from the Mediterranean wandering around New Mexico 2000 years ago, when people from that part of the world were not known to have been here?

Why would this person spend untold hours carving the Ten Commandments into a rock on Hidden Mountain? I mean, not for nothin', but that's a lot of work. Why would they carve the Ten Commandments on a rock for no one to see?

In my mind, it makes a lot more sense that someone who was alone and frightened would write their story, a soliloquy of sorts, into the stone in hopes of someday being remembered. Like a message in a bottle or a page in a memoir, this message is meant to say, "I was here and this is my story."

These photos were shot on December 21, 2018

My mom and I like to go exploring for petroglyphs. Albuquerque is host to Petroglyph National Park and within the park these are several unique sites. Piedras Marcadas Canyon is not as well known as some of the other trails in the park and it's difficult to find because the there is no address listed for it on the park service website. 

The petroglyphs range in age from 400 - 1000 years and as you enter the canyon, it is like stepping into a time machine. The noise of the city falls away and a sense of suspended time sets in. It is easy to image what the people who drew these images saw everyday because the area has remained unchanged since these drawings were made.

Last weekend, Johnpaul and I went on a little photo-adventure to the Rio Puerco Bridge on-the-mother-road-to-rio-puerco-bridge.html which is out on Historic Route 66 west of Albuquerque. From there, we decided to take Hwy 6 back to Los Lunas and, on the way, came across Maybelle's Diner. 

After posting a few photos on Twitter, one of my followers shared some interesting information about this location, namely that there never was any such place as Maybelle's Diner.

Turns out the original name of this place was Wild Horse Mesa Bar. After it closed, Hollywood came in and used it for an on-location set in the 2016 movie Katie Says Goodbye. It was renamed Maybelle's Diner for the movie.

Originally constructed in 1933, the Rio Puerco Bridge stands guard over this section of Historic Route 66 in New Mexico. It is no longer accessible by automobile but I-40 is a mere stone's throw away and certainly a safer method of crossing the river.

The Rio Puerco Bridge is a Parker Through Truss style bridge and was fabricated by the Kansas City Structural Steel Company. The bridge is 250 feet in length, making it one of the longest bridges of it's type in New Mexico.

These photos were shot on January 12, 2019.

La Ladera Road in Peralta, New Mexico has been my shortcut from the bottom of Meadow Lake hill to north bound Hwy 47 for years. I used to take this way on my commute to UNM in Albuquerque circa 1994 - 1995. The road itself has changed very little over the past 25 years. I have always envisioned La Llorona walking the ditch bank and one night I even saw a black swirly mass right behind my car. (No, not exhaust fumes) Needless to say, never pick up anyone on this road at night. Ever. Especially if they're wearing a white dress and have no eyes.  And should you decide to go walking after midnight, be sure to leave instructions for notifying your next of kin.

Along the ditch bank are outcroppings of ancient Cottonwood Trees that are easily over 100 years old. I drive past them every day and every day they call out to me. It's easy enough to drive by and dismiss them as "just trees", but let me assure you they are very much alive and even aware of my presence when I walk amongst them.

Cottonwood leaves hang on long into the winter and they rattle in the wind. Listen carefully to the video below to hear the whisper of the trees.