Hiking/Camping Reccs in New Mexico

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Andrew Russell
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Re: Hiking/Camping Reccs in New Mexico

Post by Andrew Russell »

Chicago Transplant wrote: Tue Aug 17, 2021 12:05 pm If you do Wheeler, loop the whole ridge and come down off Kachina through the ski area. Some fun sections of scrambling interspersed along the way.

Truchas Peaks were fun too, we did them from the north with Santa Barbara CG as our trailhead, nice backpacking and fun peaks.
Truchas Peaks and the Pecos Wilderness are great. Windsor Ridge is an amazing fall colors hike, comparable to what you see around Kebler Pass. Also, second what John said right above me
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nyker
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Re: Hiking/Camping Reccs in New Mexico

Post by nyker »

davebobk47 wrote: Tue Aug 17, 2021 11:56 am Tons of great stuff -
Tent Rocks (short day hike with cool rock formations)
Taos area - peaks in this area aren't too different than CO (except usually less busy). Many hike the state HP via Williams Lake or Bull of the Woods
Above Santa Fe there are also a ton of great peaks - Santa Fe Baldy, Lake Peak, etc. Could do many many days here
Further South the Sandia Mountains have a lot of great hikes and climbing. La Luz trail is a famous one. (also have the tram if you want to only hike one way)
South Sandia Peak is a longer hike but a real gem - you won't see many people once you get up higher.
+1 for Sandia Peak. Also pretty doable in winter with an accessible trailhead. Check out my trip report on it.
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madbuck
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Re: Hiking/Camping Reccs in New Mexico

Post by madbuck »

Some of these triggered my memory of similar and additional recommendations in this previous thread. Have fun!
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Re: Hiking/Camping Reccs in New Mexico

Post by seano »

Chicago Transplant wrote: Tue Aug 17, 2021 2:07 pm The one to avoid is Rio Quemado trailhead as the Truchas Land Trust has a history of harassing those who do not posses the "blood of the ancestors" including possible vehicle vandalism. In addition, that trailhead is also supposed to be quite small (2 cars), 4WD and a lot of confusing roads through the land trust to get to it that getting lost on could result in unfriendly encounters. Most of the stories are several years old of problems so I have no idea if Rio Quemado is any better these days, but go-newmexico.com does say "There is a higher than average incidence of vandalism to vehicles in this area" on their website. I will not post directions to Rio Quemado, you can look it up if so inclined, but I think it best to avoid it in favor of areas that are safer.
That's funny -- I used Rio Quemado twice to do Truchas in the winter, on one failed and one successful attempt, and had no issues. Of course I had an old 4Runner with NM plates, so maybe that helped. The second time, I actually met a couple locals when I got back. I had heard the usual tales of the locals' animosity, and I looked maximally gringo in my running tights. They had dogs and guns for hunting mountain lions, but they were super-friendly, and even offered me some of their moonshine.

The TH I've heard to avoid is Borrego Mesa, which is supposedly a local party/hangout place, but offers an even shorter approach.

Northern NM is poor, with centuries of history going back to the conquistadores, so it's understandable that there's some friction with recently-arrived and better-off whites. And NM as a whole is one of the poorest states in the nation, so none of us are too fond of rich, loud Texans invading.
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Re: Hiking/Camping Reccs in New Mexico

Post by dr_j »

NM resident here. I admit to spending more weekends in CO than in NM.

Wheeler Peak horseshoe- we did it starting at Kachina Peak and working our way CCW to Wheeler, then descending down to Williams Lake. Grab food / beer at the Bavarian, hopefully they’re returning to their normal German menu.

Santa Fe Baldy, also the Deception / Lake loop. La Luz, and down via the tram. Bandelier backcountry once the monsoon recedes and the temps go down.

Pedernal in the Jemez, for classic O’Keeffe country.

Try to spot the locations of Ansel Adams photos, some of his best known photos were taken in northern NM.

For the cultural stuff, Taos Pueblo and Acoma Pueblo, Rancho de Taos church, Santa Fe Plaza, Chimayo, Los Alamos for A-bomb history and weirdos, the earthships west of Taos for more weirdos. ABQ for the strip mall Wild West, Las Vegas NM for the old Wild West.

It’s really a beautiful state, with all the cultural tensions you might expect.

The food is great. Hatch Chile for lyfe.
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