Past Trips

I had to reschedule this trip as I got sick.

Weather permitting, we’ll head out Saturday, September 1st (12 noon) to the north side of Wheeler Peak, close to Red River. We hike up to Horseshoe Lake, set up camp, and spend Saturday exploring the ridge. We'll return to camp, spend another gorgeous night at the lake and head down Monday am, with an expected return time to Los Alamos by 3 pm.

If the weather looks too rainy/T-stormy, I’ll cancel or pick an alternate location. Horseshoe Lake is above timberline and exposed. 

Cerro de la Olla stands isolated on the Taos Plateau west of the Taos Gorge; it is one of the volcanic domes that dot northern New Mexico, along with San Antonio Mountain and Ute Peak. The peak lies at 9,475 feet, 1,662 feet above the trailhead. The out and back hike totals 5.8 trailless miles, and rewards those who make the summit with open views in all directions.

Now that the weather has cooled off, join us for a classic Bandelier Hike: the Middle Frijoles Trail going up Rito de Frijoles. We meet at Ponderosa Campground and set up a shuttle to Juniper Campground. From there, we'll head down the Frey Trail, up the Middle Frijoles Trail to the Ponderosa Trail, and end back at Ponderosa Campground. The shuttle back to Juniper Campground will get everyone back to their cars. Rain is predicted for later in the day, so let's get an early start, meeting at 7:30 at Ponderosa Campground to start the shuttle.

Cerro de la Olla stands isolated on the Taos Plateau west of the Taos Gorge; it is one of the volcanic domes that dot northern New Mexico, along with San Antonio Mountain and Ute Peak. The peak lies at 9,475 feet, 1,662 feet above the trailhead. The out and back hike totals 5.8 trailless miles, and rewards those who make the summit with open views in all directions.

THIS TRIP is now RESCHEDULED FOR Sept. 15.

Bill, Rachel and others have offered my services to help folks get over the threshold to trip leading. To date, however, we have had no takers. Not sure why, I bath regularly and occasionally even brush my teeth. So let’s try a new tactic.

I have a morning free on Saturday, so would like to hike the Cabra Loop trail, which is a 3.1 mile loop that starts from Rendija Canyon not far downstream from the cemetery. I'd like to stretch the hike out to 5-6 miles by taking an out-and-back branch off the northernmost loop of Cabra along the lower Guaje Ridge trail. We'll leave at 8 AM and be back in town by 1 PM at the latest. Bring hat, sunscreen, light jacket, water, and snacks. Contact Bill at bill@priedhorsky.net to join, and to coordinate a meeting place.

I'm proposing a trip to the Wilson Group of fourteeners, in the western part of the San Juan mountains, over July 20-22.  This will be a short backpack and peak climb, assuming that the San Juan National Forest is still open at that time.  The Wilson Group consists of Wilson Peak, Mt.

In search of somewhere still open for a hike in this dry season, hopefully just about at its end, I recalled Cerrillos Hills State Park, south of Santa Fe near Madrid, which can be explored via a 5-mile loop trail. Information about the park can be found at http://www.emnrd.state.nm.us/SPD/cerrilloshillsactivitiespage.html; from the web site "Cerrillos Hills, New Mexico's 35th State Park, is a year-round, day-use park located off the Turquoise Trail National Scenic Byway between Santa Fe and Albuquerque.

Start celebrating the Fourth of July with an early morning hike up Pajarito Mountain's Lower Aspenola-Aspenola Trails to the top of Townsight Lift where we'll watch the sunrise (yup, it will be an early start!). Meet at the Lower Aspenola Trailhead (the small parking lot before the main lodge parking lot) and we'll start hiking at 5 a.m. promptly. Bring a flashlight and layers. Sunrise is at 5:54 a.m. The hike is about 2.5 mi roundtrip and 850 ft elevation change each way. Please contact the trip leader if you plan to go.

This hike will be in desert-like terrain, about a half-hour's drive from Los Alamos, in the valley.

The hike should take a couple of hours.

We'll leave town at 7:00AM; this should get us back to town in plenty of time to prepare for the rest of the day's activities.

Call me or email r.mccrady@comcast.net for more information.