Perk Canyon Trail T-93
I hadn’t hiked this trail in a few years, so I was excited to see it again with my dad. Luckily this trail is very close, the trailhead is in Upper Canyon, a short drive from about anywhere in Ruidoso. It was a cool morning during monsoon season, and the ground was damp with flowers blooming everywhere! The dew was gorgeous on the native grasses. So sparkly!
May/June in Ruidoso is dry. When the monsoon starts in July, grasses and plants start growing like it’s spring! By August everything is blooming and pollinators are out in abundance. There were Four O’clocks, Thistle and Cutleaf Coneflower in the meadows of Perk Canyon Trail.
Water was flowing in the creek that runs alongside the trail. There are several small natural waterfalls along the way and we were enjoying the bubbly sounds. I think my dad stopped at every little waterfall to listen for a minute 💕.
My favorite sighting on this hike was the Two-tailed Swallowtail! I’ve seen a lot of what I thought was Tiger Swallowtails flying high in the woods, but this is the first one I could get close enough to to identify. I didn’t even know the Two-tailed Swallowtail existed. It is a very large butterfly and when it flies it floats in the air, barely flapping it’s wings.
In one partial shade area, I noticed a small subtle flower blooming. So interesting! Simple Campion became my new favorite flower on this hike.
Just before we turned around to go back out, I saw a mess, then realized what it was – a beehive that had been torn apart by a predator (probably black bear?). The queen was apparently still there and the swarm hadn’t moved on, this made me think it had happened overnight or early in the morning. When I came back up this trail a few days later the swarm had moved on. I did not stick around and tiptoed by while taking some photos. Luckily the bees weren’t interested in us.
On the way back to the trailhead, I noticed a few things I didn’t on the way in. Douglas fir, Ponderosa Pine and Cedar cones were on the ground and some were being eaten. This Douglas Fir cone was eaten on a fancy dining table.
Lots to see in a 3 mile hike! and I got to share it with my dad.