I walked up Valle Canyon with 3 other women. There were lots of big, red raspberries on the upper part of the trail. I had to measure a tree's branch spread on the way back so, after turning around at the VCNP fenceline, I told them to go ahead, not wait for me.
I ate my way down Valle Canyon. Now I know how wild animals feel while they are eating. As I plucked the raspberries and stuffed handfuls in my mouth, I'd look all around to make sure no bear was sneaking up on me.
I measured the Clothespin tree's spread but I'd only consider it a very rough estimate as it was really hard to see where the opposite branch was because another tree's branches obstructed it. It's either a southwestern white pine or a limber pine. It was named by a master hiker because of its split on the bottom 12 feet or so of the tree which resembles an old-fashioned, one-piece, wooden clothespins.
I got 38' 8". I used my backpack to weight down one end of the measuring tape. My reward was to eat lots of fat raspberries growing beneath the tree. The trampled grass around the tree was evidence that another mammal has also enjoyed the raspberries!
Walking back by myself was a touch creepy in the narrow parts of the canyon. I kept saying "Bear, where are you? I am here!"
I looked for the two shaggy mane mushrooms that we had spotted on the way up but didn't see them coming back.
On the drive to the trailhead, I saw two well-fed coyotes cross the West Road Bypass; they were heading toward LANL.
creepy
wild onion coyote