Breaking News: Humans in North America 23,000 Years Ago!

Fossilized footprints found in White Sands National Park have been dated back 23,000 years. This discovery has been covered in a National Park Service news release and a New York Times article, both dated September 23, and a further article linked in the NPS release. The dating was accomplished by analysis of carbon isotope ratios in grass seeds found in sediment layers adjacent to the footprints.

Rising from the heart of the Tularosa Basin is one of the world's great natural wonders - the glistening white sands of New Mexico. Photo by Rebecca Wiles Burghart/NPS

At a site north of Austin extensive evidence has been found dating 5,000-15,000+ years old. Previously the earliest North Americans were thought to have been of the Clovis culture, with sites dated 12,000-13,000 years old. This is further to an article in last month's issue of this newsletter about the park and these footprints in the Tularosa Basin.

For an Indigenous person's perspective on this discovery, read The White Sands discovery only confirms what Indigenous people have said all along.

Ice Lakes, San Juan National Forest, Colorado

In July 2020 I did a few hikes in New Mexico (pictures in this March, 2021 newsletter) and then some in Colorado. This area is just west of Silverton.

The campgrounds were full but I found a nice camp spot on the South Fork of Mineral Creek, just off the road in. After getting home and editing my pictures I found one named Ice Lake taken October 2015, and remembered I had been there earlier. My excuse for the memory lapse is the lake was frozen over with deep snowbanks on the earlier visit; everything looked entirely different.

Most of the way to Ice Lake, which is above and to the right of a basin upper center. A coyote was going up the trail right center howling, maybe a juvenile looking for it's family? October 2015.

Hiking the Ice Lakes

There's a trail guide with nice pictures at HikingWalking.com and another at RockyMountainHikingTrails.com. An article in the Denver Post (December 14, 2020) discusses damage done by hikers burning wood from historic mining structures and leaving feces around the lakes.

And the San Juan National Forest webpage mentions a wildfire in October 2020 and that the area is "wildly popular". The trails weren't too crowded when I was there in 2020 though parking was pretty tight. Wonder what it looks like now after the fire.

Near Mineral Creek, which originates from the lakes, there are a few of those old mining structures and machinery to be seen. We try to imagine what the land looked like then and what remains in the soil from the extraction operations.

Ice Lake, looking southwest. This was a lollipop loop done clockwise. The trail up is out of the picture left. Standing on the trail to Island Lake (following picture), coming uphill from Ice Lake. A trail proceeding uphill on the left is to Fuller Lake.

Island Lake. Sure looks like a caldera. The rock appears to be volcanic pumice, should have looked more closely. Maybe the whole area is of volcanic origin.

Clear Creek, which joins Mineral Creek, looking northeast, not far above the trailhead. This is the result of an avalanche some years earlier, which apparently crossed the valley below and went up the opposite side a ways. Looked like maybe 1000 trees taken down.

From the e-Mailbag

From time-to-time, the Alamo Group receives messages concerning local environmental issues. If you have thoughts to share on any of these issues, send us a message and we'll forward it to the writer.
The views and opinions expressed here are those of the authors individually and do not necessarily reflect the views or opinions of the Alamo Group or its members.

Bexar Audubon Society offers mini-grants

Bexar Audubon Society is offering funding from $100 to $1000 for small scale projects that benefit the environment.

These funds could be used for bird houses, bird blinds, pollinator gardens, field trips, educational materials, and many other worthy initiatives. The deadline for applications is October 31, 2021.

For more information and to access the application form, visit the Bexar Audubon Society website.

Outings: The Call of the Wild

Visit the Alamo Sierra Club Outings page on Meetup for detailed information about all of our upcoming Sierra Club Outings.

The Alamo Sierran Newsletter

Richard Alles, Editor
Published by The Alamo Group of the Sierra Club, P.O. Box 6443, San Antonio, TX 78209, AlamoSierraClub.org.
The Alamo Group is one of 13 regional groups within the Lone Star Chapter of the Sierra Club.

Changed your contact information?

If you're not sure whether the Sierra Club has your current email address, send an email to Member Services with your name and address and/or member ID (see Locating Your Member ID) so they can add your email address to your member record.

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