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VERSION:2.0
PRODID:icalendar-ruby
CALSCALE:GREGORIAN
METHOD:PUBLISH
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTAMP:20260424T101551Z
UID:348-924144@uscabq.org
DTSTART:20260425T150000Z
DTEND:20260425T200000Z
CLASS:PUBLIC
CREATED:20260407T135624
DESCRIPTION:Meet at Unity Spiritual Center at 9:00am. We will caravan from 
 there. Bring water\, a hat\, trail food and dress for the weather. Wear st
 urdy hiking boots.\nA Sacred Landscape\nAt first glance this land looks ba
 rren\, covered only by sparse clumps of grasses and scrawny sagebrush. Clo
 ser examination reveals much more. Volcanic cones and dark basalt rock tel
 l us this landscape is volcanic in origin. Also visible is the variety of 
 desert plant life which provides shelter\, food\, and refuge for small ani
 mals. It is what remains unseen that has attracted people to this landscap
 e for centuries. This land is a place of spiritual meaning for generations
  of Native and Hispanic people who traveled to and visited these volcanic 
 “sisters "as a sacred place of worship.\nA Natural World\nKnown locally 
 as the Albuquerque Volcanoes or the Three Sisters\, they are a classic and
  rare example of a fissure eruption. In fissure eruptions magma rises alon
 g thin cracks in the Earth’s crust unlike most volcanoes in which magma 
 rises through a vertical central vent. Here the fissure is over 5 miles (8
 km) long. Very long cracks like these may result in a row of aligned erupt
 ion craters—all active at the same time. Such eruptions create “curtai
 ns of fire” like those that occur today at Kilauea in Hawaii Volcanoes N
 ational Park.\nThe Rio Grande Rift\nThe volcanoes are located near the mid
 dle of the Rio Grande Rift Valley. A rift valley is a zone of weakness and
  thinning in the Earth’s crust. As the crust is pulled apart\, large blo
 cks of land drop down forming the valley. Thin cracks open deep into the E
 arth releasing molten lava while blocks on one or both sides of the valley
  rise. The Sandia Mountains\, just east of Albuquerque\, formed by uplift 
 along a major fault that marks the eastern edge of the valley. The Rio Gra
 nde Rift Valley extends from southern Colorado south to El Paso\, Texas. I
 t is one of only few active rifts. Others include the East African Rift\, 
 the Rhine Graben in Germany\, and the Lake Baikal Rift in Russia.\nLava Fl
 ows and Volcanic Cones\nThe West Mesa\, an area that includes lava flows a
 nd volcanic cones\, formed about 150\,000 years ago as liquid lava flowed 
 from fissures in the Earth. There were six lava flows. The first two flows
  traveled the farthest creating the lava-covered plateau of the West Mesa 
 and extended east to what is now the boulder-strewn volcanic escarpment. T
 he boulders were later used by American Indians and settlers of mixed Span
 ish\, Mexican and Indian background to create more than 20\,000 petroglyph
 s. As the amount of lava production decreased\, later eruptions did not fl
 ow far and created the volcanic cones we see today.\nHuman Activity\nOver 
 the centuries the quiet yet massive presence of the volcanoes has attracte
 d many groups of people to the area. This is a sacred landscape to all Nat
 ive people. Pueblo Indians of the Rio Grande Valley regard this place as o
 ne of the last remaining undestroyed sacred sites in the area. The Pueblo 
 people believe the volcanoes and the petroglyphs pecked into the volcanic 
 boulders provide a direct spiritual connection to both their ancestors and
  to the Spirit World\, the place where time began.\nWestern Pueblos\, Nava
 jos\, and Apaches believe these landforms were created by spiritual beings
  who lived in the ancient past. These prominent landforms were also used a
 s landmarks that helped guide people who traveled long distances to trade 
 or perform religious pilgrimages.\nHispanics view the entire West Mesa and
  the volcanoes as an active site of religious ceremonials and as a living 
 reminder of a cultural heritage based on powerful spiritual ties to the Ea
 rth.\nWe Learn From Our Past\nRecent human activity in this so called “b
 arren” landscape has been nearly as violent as the natural forces that c
 reated it. Ranching\, open-pit rock quarries\, military bombing\, illegal 
 dumping\, and off-road vehicle use occurred prior to the volcanoes inclusi
 on in the national monument. All of these destructive activities scarred t
 he land. Today\, we have the advantage of learning from past mistakes. Our
  every action causes a reaction and sometimes it is not easy to fix our mi
 stakes. Keep this in mind while you are visiting the monument and leave th
 e area as though you were never there.\nThe Trails\nSeveral trails take yo
 u amongst the volcanoes however\, not all are measured in distance nor deg
 ree of difficulty. The trails highlighted below take you as close as possi
 ble to the volcanic cones without causing further resource damage. Native 
 Peoples believe that hiking to the top of the volcanic cones desecrates th
 is sacred landscape. Please respect local cultural beliefs and also help p
 rotect these unique volcanoes by not hiking to their tops.\nJA Volcano and
  the Albuquerque Overlook\nDistance: One-mile round trip from parking lot 
 to scenic overlook and back\nDegree of difficulty: Easy to moderate\nThis 
 main trail departs from the parking lot and heads east to a scenic view of
  the Rio Grande Valley\, Albuquerque\, and the Sandia Mountains. This trai
 l has three shaded rest areas with benches and trash receptacles.\nBlack V
 olcano Loop\nDistance: 0.8 mile round trip from scenic overlook back to JA
  Volcano\nDegree of difficulty: Moderate\nFrom the scenic overlook\, follo
 w trail north. At ‘Y’ intersection take left trail around base of Blac
 k Volcano. On the north side of Black Volcano you will come to another ‘
 Y’. Going right will take you north toward Vulcan Volcano and add 2 mile
 s to your hike. Or you can turn around and make your way back to the parki
 ng lot.\nVulcan Volcano Loop\nDistance: 2 miles from Black Volcano to park
 ing lot\nDegree of difficulty: Moderately strenuous\nFollow trail north of
  Black Volcano to the largest of the cinder cones. The trail along the eas
 tern base of Vulcan is difficult to find but do not give up. A gradual inc
 line up the east side of Vulcan leads to a level\, mini-volcanic valley on
  Vulcan’s north side. Continue on trail and go left (south) when you app
 roach the ‘Y’ on the northwest side of Vulcan. At next ‘Y’ go left
  again for an up-close look at this well preserved cinder cone. Follow tra
 il down\, continuing south on old road which leads to the Volcanoes Day Us
 e parking lot.\nNorth Volcanoes Loop Trail\nDistance: 2.3 miles connected 
 to the Vulcan Volcano Loop and back.\nDifficulty: moderate\nThis section o
 f the trail connects to the Vulcan Volcano Loop and will take you to the r
 emnants of a historic corral.\nWhat You’ll See\nIn terms of mineralogy\,
  the lava rock from the volcanoes is basalt. Basalt consists of the minera
 ls olivine\, plagioclase feldspar\, pyroxene and magnetite. Various textur
 es in the volcanic rock\, from smooth to rough\, as well as color variatio
 ns are due to the lava’s mineral content\, temperature\, and exposure to
  oxygen. Red lava rock had higher iron content and exposure to oxygen than
  black or gray lava rock. Other volcanic features include:\nVolcanic ash &
 amp\; cinders - small particles of dried lava that were blown high into t
 he air then fell to the ground like a blizzard of hot\, volcanic popcorn.\
 nSpatter - thin sheets and blobs of magma that cooled rapidly and coat th
 e sides of the cones with a hard crust.\nCaliche - a white\, calcium carb
 onate substance covering buried portions of rocks.\nLichen - a complex 
 “plant” composed of an algae and a fungus that live symbiotically on r
 ock surfaces. Colors vary from green\, yellow\, orange\, to rust.\nFor You
 r Safety\nDress appropriately and always wear sturdy hiking boots with ank
 le support. Spring\, fall\, and winter winds are chilling. Layer clothing 
 and wear a hat and a windbreaker or jacket. During spring and summer month
 s apply sunscreen generously\, wear sunglasses and a hat.\nPets\nDogs are 
 allowed and must be leashed. 6 feet maximum for leash\, strictly enforced.
LAST-MODIFIED:20260407T135624
LOCATION:Meet in the USCABQ Parking Lot\, 9800 Candelaria Rd. NE\, ABQ\, 87
 112
SUMMARY:Unity Explorers
URL;VALUE=URI:https://www.uscabq.org/events/unity-explorers--348/2026-04-25
ATTACH;FILENAME=Volcanes 3 Sisters.jpg;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://dq5pwpg1q
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 90/Volcanes%203%20Sisters.jpg
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