The fire has slowed considerably. It’s still burning, but as of this morning the fire crews have got it 65% contained. We also have rain in the forecast, for a second week in a row: Despite the forecasts from last week, we got very little actual rain – 0.04 inches per NOAA’s three-day history tool….
The fire has slowed, but it is still working it’s way west. Here’s yesterday’s progression map: This is the scale of it now: Evacuations are ordered for the north part of Pecos – everything on Rt 63 north of the monastery. So Holy Ghost, Tres Lagunas, El Macho and Lower La Posada in the Pecos…
As you probably know, the Hermit’s Peak / Calf Canyon fire is sweeping up the eastern flank of the mountains between Santa Fe to Taos. It may well reach all the way from Las Vegas to Angel Fire within a week. It shows no signs of stopping. There is no rain forecast for at least…
Finally got an escape day to get out and try to find American Spring. It’s on the Taos side of the hike, about 4 miles from the El Nogal trailhead according to the maps. Where the maps (and Gaia GPS’s “USFS 2016” map) say American Spring is supposed to be is on the right side…
This website documents an 11-day backpacking trip from the Santa Fe Ski Basin over the Sangre de Cristo Mountains to Taos Plaza. To my knowledge, a Santa Fe to Taos hike over the mountains has not been done before. Though of course Santa Fe is very old, and I find it highly unlikely no one…
There are many reasons why I did the thru-hike. The first was just the adventure of it. The thrill of finding a way through. Of trying to do something that was not guaranteed, that was not already documented and reviewed and established. I did it because it’s fun to connect trails and trailheads in a…
Something looms over this whole project. It shaped how I did the through hike, and when I did it. I saw it in the trees while I was walking and in the lack of snow the winter prior. I watched it on TV during the fires in California. 40% of the people in my country…
Hello! These blog posts document the first time I did the thru-hike back in 2018. The current (January 2025) route of the thru-hike is here. What is described below is still on the route of the thru-hike. It is documented in these sub-sections: S2-1: Ski Basin / Winsor trailhead to “the Y”. 2.4 miles. (Gaia…
These blog posts document the first time I did the thru-hike back in 2018. The current (January 2025) route of the thru-hike is here. Only part of what I describe below – Lake Katherine to the near side of Pecos Baldy – is on the route of the thru-hike. The current route doesn’t go via…
These blog posts document the first time I did the thru-hike back in 2018. The current (January 2025) route of the thru-hike is here. SUMMARY: This was a really short day. We made it up the backside of East Pecos Baldy then down into the lake basin. I did actually try to keep going –…
These blog posts document the first time I did the thru-hike back in 2018. The current (January 2025) route of the thru-hike is here. What’s described below – from Pecos Baldy Lake to Truchas Lakes – is on the current route of the thru-hike. It’s documented in these sections: Returning to the 2018 log: The…
These blog posts document the first time I did the thru-hike back in 2018. The current (January 2025) route of the thru-hike is here. What’s described below is on the current route of the thru-hike. It’s documented in these sections: Returning to the 2018 log: The long way down. I so wish I had photos…
These blog posts document the first time I did the thru-hike back in 2018. The current (January 2025) route of the thru-hike is here. What’s described below is on the current route of the thru-hike. It’s documented in these sections: Returning to the 2018 log: This is the first day of the second leg of…
These blog posts document the first time I did the thru-hike back in 2018. The current (January 2025) route of the thru-hike is here. The thru-hike no longer goes through Agua Sarca Canyon. The new route is documented in the sections linked below. These would get you from Los Esteros to Bernardin Lake. Returning to…
These blog posts document the first time I did the thru-hike back in 2018. The current (January 2025) route of the thru-hike is here. The thru-hike no longer goes through Agua Sarca Canyon. The new route is documented in the sections linked below. These would get you from Route 518/La Cueva Canyon (492) to Bernardin…
These blog posts document the first time I did the thru-hike back in 2018. The current (January 2025) route of the thru-hike is here. The thru-hike no longer goes along Forest Road 76. The new route is documented in the sections linked below. These would get you from FR 442/Trail 442 to Bernardin Lake. S5-1:…
