He was transferred to Zuñi in February of 1632 and was killed just a week later. On hearing the news in Santa Fe, Lujan and a party of soldiers reached Zuñi in remarkably fast time.
Lujan inscription, 1632
This is the end of the inscription part of our trail. You may retrace your steps back to headquarters, or, if you wish, you may continue your hike on up over the mesa top, past the ruins, and down to headquarters by the return trail on the other side.
Please stay on the trail
TRAIL TO THE TOP OF THE ROCK AND RUINS
The first stake is some distance along the trail, so keep walking and watch for it.
1.
The cave-like depressions in the side of the rock are created by water. Rain falling on the top of the mesa enters cracks in the rock, runs down the cracks (called joints), and comes out of small openings on the side of the mesa. The water seeping out of the opening gradually wears away the rock. The freezing of the water in winter and thawing in summer helps to weaken the sandstone.
The tall trees in the vicinity of this stake are ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa). They are readily identified by the needles, which grow two or three to a cluster. These trees grow in well-watered, protected areas within the Monument. The larger ones are somewhere between 200 and 300 years old.