“It was at the same time one of the most sublime and beautiful inland prospects every presented to the eyes of man…”
–Zebulon Pike. 1807

Dividing Conejos County to the west from Costilla County to the east the Rio Grande traverses the southern margins of the San Luis Basin, then descends between ever steeper and higher banks that downstream widen up to a quarter-mile, reaching depths of more than eight hundred feet. Rising in the San Juan mountains west of Creede the river flows east past Alamosa, turning south past the mouth of Rio Conejos (Rabbit River) to meet another tributary—Rio Costilla (Rib River) just across the New Mexico Border. After studying maps over breakfast at the Windsor Hotel in Del Norte, I follow the Rio Grande past Monte Vista to Alamosa, where I turn south onto Highway 285—the road to Santa Fe. Passing the village of La Jara—named for Cistaceae, a species of desert-flower commonly known as rockrose. Turning east onto Highway 142 at Romeo, past Manassa the road traverses the Conejos River a few miles below its confluence with the Rio Grande. Undulating grasslands spread out to the north, across the San Luis Valley. Further to the south, high-desert sage and pinyon cling to rocky soil. Parking my rental car on the east bank of the Rio Grande in Costilla County, I walk back across the bridge in search of a compelling visual narrative. Big Year birders from Montreal arrive, in search of a migratory rarity spotted in the area. Both upstream and down, the waterway is flanked by modest outcroppings worn by erosion. Green tendrils swayed beneath the clear water. I was surprised to learn that the elevation was eight thousand feet—

This text is an excerpt from SKETCHBOOK TRAVELER SOUTHWEST,  Now available worldwide.

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