On Sunday, Feburary 20th, you are welcome to join me in snowshoeing to South Mountain in Valles Caldera.
Distance: 8+ miles
Elevation gain: about 1200 feet
The Caldera entrance gate by Highway 4 typically opens by 8:45-8:50. We will meet at the Caldera visitor center by 9am to get permits to drive to the backcountry Headquarter parking. If you want to carpool, please make arrangement with the leader.
From the parking area on south side of Highway 4, we will snowshoe past the sledding hill and continue up the canyon to intersect with FR 280. Following the forest road, we will get to the base of the Las Conchas Peak. We go off trail here and ascend to the top among young aspens and some deadfalls. This part is rather steep, especially the final quarter mile that could be tough for some snowshoers. The view on the summit at 9941 feet is spectacular.
Let's ski the Banco Bonito loop in the Valles Caldera this Saturday February 5. This is a 9 mile loop with about 900 ft of elevation gain/loss on forest service roads in the southwest part of the Valles Caldera National Preserve. Cross country skis with fish scales are appropriate for this tour. It is possible there are a couple of thin spots on the tour, where we would take off our skis and walk.
While it is not yet a great ski season in New Mexico, Wolf Creek is having a tremendous season, with ann 88-inch base and hopefully more on the way. I'd like to spend a couple days there during the week, Thursday and Friday the 27th and 28th, to enjoy some uncrowded non-weekend skiing. We would rent a place in Pagosa Springs, travelling there Wednesday afternoon, ski two days, and return on Saturday. Ski tickets on Wolf Creek are still reasonably priced, for example $51 for seniors. Please let me know if you would like to join in, and I'll organize lodging.
Join PEEC and the Los Alamos Mountaineers for an intermediate, point-to-point snowshoe or cross-country ski outing from the Las Conchas Trailhead to the East Fork Trailhead on Saturday, January 22. This trip will cover 4.5 miles and about 800 feet of elevation gain. It will be of intermediate difficulty and technicality and participants should be able to hike 5 miles in 2.5 hours comfortably and have previous experience snowshoeing or skiing. The use of snowshoes and skis will be weather-dependent.
This is a question, not a trip! Are you interested in some beginner backcountry X-C ski instruction? (you must have your own equipment) Let me know in the next couple of weeks, and we will work on setting up a date/time. There is snow now, so we shouldn't delay too long in taking advantage.
In a repeat of a classic outing, let's head north over the Martin Luther King holiday weekend downhill/ crosscountry/ snowshoe around Monarch Pass. Although this might not be the greatest snow season, Monarch should offer something, and reports 24" on the ground as of Dec. 10. We will head for Salida to establish a base in a comfortable house or cabin, and spend our days in winter sports in the Monarch Pass area. Some of the Pajarito season passes offer three free days at Monarch, and otherwise tickets are relatively inexpensive online.
Let's start the year by climbing a peak. I want to snowshoe to the top of Cerro Grande, 4 miles round trip with a 1,300 ft elevation gain. Sweeping views of the Valles Caldera from the top, at 10,200 ft.
Departure time will be 9:30 am from the trailhead parking lot, located on State Route 4.
Dress in layers and prepare for cold and possibly windy weather. Bring snowshoes, trekking poles, sunglasses, sunscreen, water, and snacks.
Join Zack on an easy out-and-back ski to Canada Bonita. We'll start at 10am on Thursday at the ski hill parking lot and go out to the caldera overlook. This is a good time to check out your gear; this is not a race and not ambitious.
Please let me know if you're coming, I'll bring snacks.
