I would like to announce the eleventh edition of our successful hike/explore/bike trips to Moab. We have been going most Novembers since 2008, and every time has been a great success. The 2014 trip report can be found at http://lamountaineers.org/node/479#comment-57.
The group will meet at the Quemazon trailhead (48th and Trinity) at 9:00 am. Parking is available at the trailhead. From there, we will hike down to West Road and reach Reservoir Road, which is partly washed out but passable. We will continue hiking the Los Alamos Canyon pass the Reservoir, then connect to the newly completed Knapp trail. After a steep ascent on nicely graded switchbacks, we will reach Quemazon trail and hike down to complete the loop. We will return at about 12:30 pm. Bring water and a snack, dress according to weather conditions.
We did it last year - let's do it again! I'd like spend a hiking weekend based in Bluff, Utah, which is the closest corner of the canyon country, just 5 1/2 hours drive from Los Alamos. Going in late October, we should have fine, cool weather, perfect for exploring the slick rock and ruins in the vicinity of Bluff, farther afield in the canyons that carve into Comb Ridge, in the canyons that drain Cedar Mesa, and in White Canyon and its tributaries. An old trip report can be found at http://lamountaineers.org/oldtrips/204.html.
I have not done this hike, so it is somewhat exploratory.
Limit: This hike is limited to 6 backpackers, to ensure moving at a reasonable speed. First come, first serve. I need to have a firm commitment including payment by July 13.
This is a 17 mile loop in the Cedar Mesa area in Utah. Note that this trip requires permits, and permits can be acquired the earliest 90 days in advance. The permit is $8/person plus $6 for the group, and they have to be picked up in person by noon of the first day at the Kane Gulch Ranger Station.
From the Pajarito Canyon trailhead on West Jemez road, we will hike up on the Pajarito Canyon trail to the Townsite lift area and continue on to the top of Ski Hill. We will go off trail from here down the steep slope to connect to the Canon De Valle trail. This portion will go down almost 1000 feet in less than a mile. Once we are on the Valle trail it is mostly downhill hike to the Perimeter trail junction and then back on the Pajarito Canyon trail to the car.
On Sunday, October 6, we will attempt the Wheeler Peak via Williams Lake trail head. This is the highest peak in New Mexico over 13,000 feet. It offers outstanding full panoramic views. The round trip mileage is about 8-9 miles with significant elevation gain of more than 3000 feet. Much of the trail is above the tree line with the final 1000 feet being rock scree slope. This is an extremely strenuous trip and participants should be prepared and in shape for the challenge.
For a fall 2019 Canyon trip, we will head to a destination that we have not yet visited: Ladder Canyon, beyond the First and Main area and above the Escalante River. First and Main was our fall 2006 and fall 2011 destination.
After a year off of this popular LAM trip, I'm excited to get back to Zion National Park for some canyoneering. I hope you will join me! The 2019 dates are September 26th to October 1st. The first and last days are considered travel days, and the four days between are canyoneering days.
In order to keep this trip notification short (I tend to write very long ones), I have put all of the general trip information on my website at http://www.canyoneeringnm.org/lam-zion-trip
published by mraltherr1@gmail.com on Tue, 2019-08-27 00:07
Leader:
Michael Altherr
Telephone:
505 231 3561
Date:
Sat, 2019-09-21
Leader Email:
mraltherr1@gmail.com
Difficulty:
Easy
Technicality:
Intermediate
Are dogs allowed?:
Not allowed
For club members certified in WFA or WFR (or those recently timed out) who would like to participate in a 'non-formal' review and refresher, lets spend Saturday September 21st at my house starting at 10:00 AM. We will spend about an hour reviewing systems and fundamentals. After that we will set up a series of scenarios with different sets of participants acting as patients, responders and observers. Following each scenario we will critique the response as a group to identify positive elements and alternatives to the actions taken by the responders.
