Plaza Blanca - The White Place
One of Northern New Mexico’s most popular hiking destinations is Kasha-Katuwe Tent Rocks National Monument. Bizarre cone-shaped hoodoos carved out of white volcanic tuff tower above a serpentine slot canyon whose walls literally shut out the sky in places. Opening up into a sculptural amphitheater, a steep trail takes hikers up to the top of a mesa with dazzling views in all directions.
Unfortunately Tent Rocks is closed. Neither the Bureau of Land Management, who administers it, nor the Pueblo of Cochiti, whose land must be crossed to access the Monument, has given any notice of a reopening date.
But there is another landscape, equally white and equally impressive, that hikers can visit, with the help of local guides. This is Plaza Blanca, or The White Place, a hidden network of canyons made famous by Georgia O’Keeffe, who painted here:
Georgia O'Keeffe. The White Place - A Memory, 1943. Oil on canvas (Georgia O’Keeffe Foundation FaceBook post)
The White Place is carved out of a thick layer of the Abiquiu Tuff. Tuff is a geologist’s term for any kind of rock, soft or hard, consolidated from volcanic ash. Around 25 million years ago, stupendous volcanic eruptions spread pale, silica-rich ash over large parts of New Mexico and Colorado. These events followed the birth of the Rocky Mountains, but they are much older than the impressive volcanic features of the Jemez Mountains to the south.
One of these volcanic centers lay to the northeast of Abiquiu, between Taos and the southern Colorado border. The distinctly stratified appearance of the white cliffs near Abiquiu lets us know that those volcanic debris were remobilized by streams and spread out as alluvial flats in the sinking rift valleys of central New Mexico. In more recent time, the Chama River and its tributaries have begun excavating the rift fill and carving an exotic badlands topography into the weak layers of gravel, sand, and tuff.
Unlike the formations above and below it, the Abiquiu Tuff is cohesive enough to stand as dramatic cliffs. Vertical flutes cut by rainwater complement the intricate horizontal stratification of the tuff. The stark white cliffs, bleached like old bones in the desert, contrast beautifully with the intensely blue skies above. No wonder Georgia O’Keeffe was fascinated by the White Place.
Walking in Plaza Blanca
Plaza Blanca sits on private land, and there is no public access as of August 2022. However, two local guiding companies have permission to hike there: Great Southwest Adventures and Santa Fe Mountain Adventures. The drive to the trail head is about 50 minutes from Santa Fe, similar to the time it takes to reach Bandelier National Monument from town. If you are interested in visiting this unique landscape, please contact either of these outdoor adventure companies.
No visit to the White Place would be complete without a stop at Bodes in the village of Abiquiu. This classic Western general store has it all!
About the author
Scott Renbarger is a local outdoor enthusiast and guide in Santa Fe, and occasional adjunct instructor of geology at Santa Fe Community College. He is a board member of the Santa Fe Professional Tour Guides. Through his company Outspire Hiking and Snowshoeing, Scott leads individually-arranged hikes for small groups in Santa Fe National Forest, Bandelier National Monument, and the canyon country along the Rio Grande. Snowshoe adventures are offered in the winter season when conditions permit. And he’s always happy to set up a geology walk - his favorite subject! - for you, in the foothills of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains above Santa Fe.