The Bisti Badlands, which is also
called Bisti/De-Na-Zin Wilderness, is a massive rolling landscape of
phantasmagoric formations of earth and stone situated in northwestern New
Mexico’s high desert lands. Bisti is resulting from the Navajo word “Bistahi”
which means "among the adobe formations." De-Na-Zin takes its name
from another Navajo word for "cranes." In this beautiful landscape
here wind and water erosion over a long time have carved a imaginary world of bizarre
rock formations and hoodoos in the form of pinnacles, spires, mushrooms and
other rare forms that have fascinated names such as "Cracked Eggs",
“Bisti Wings” and "Rock Garden".
This is untouched area so far and
very least visited and mostly unknown was once an ancient riverine delta on the
shores of an ancient sea, somewhere 70 million years ago. As the time passes the
water gradually receded, lush foliage grew along the numerous riverbanks and several
prehistoric animals wandered the area. Therefore, when the water disappeared completely,
it left behind layers of jumbled sandstone, shale, mudstone, and coal. However,
abundance of the coal burned away in ancient fires that lasted centuries. Moreover,
erosion then formed the characteristic features of the contemporary landscape
of the Bisti Wilderness. Furthermore 6,000 years ago, when the last ice age retreated,
the waters of the melting glaciers assisted uncover fossils and petrified wood,
as well as eroding the rock into the hoodoos now observable. Mostly three kinds
of formations are bare in Bisti Wilderness area — the Ojo Alamo Formation,
which has left naked the thick deposit of volcanic ash from an ancient
eruption, and Fruitland formation and the Kirtland Shale. Here are recreational
activities in the Bisti/De-Na-Zin Wilderness includes hiking, camping, wildlife
viewing, photography, and horseback riding. Make sure, campfires are forbidden
in the Wilderness.
The Ojo Alamo Formation extents
the Mesozoic/Cenozoic boundary, and typically contains dinosaur remnants. Thus,
the Fruitland Formation comprises layers of sandstone, coal and shale was laid
down when the surroundings were marshy, humid and warm, with meagre drainage.
The Fruitland Formation is found mainly on the western side of the Wilderness. However,
the Kirtland Shale is the product of alluvial muds and overbank sand deposits
from the numerous channels draining the coastal plain in the late Cretaceous
period. Though, it overlies the Fruitland Formation, and is exposed on the
eastern side of the badlands. Several of the gray hoodoos in the wilderness are
made up of this formation. The exclusive egg-shaped formation, in the “egg
factory” area, is also the result of erosion. Consequently, the cracks are the
result of differential weathering conditions, whereas the speckled appearance
due to mineral deposits in the stream that cut through the sedimentary rock. The
Bisti Badlands is an amazingly scenic and colorful expanse of undulating mounds
and unusual eroded rocks covering 45,000 acres, hidden away in the high desert even
less publicized. The badlands are administered by the BLM (Bureau of Land
Management), are free to enter, and are known officially, but less evocatively
as the Bisti Wilderness Area.