Another venture to higher elevation for cooler temperatures, this time driving up Hyde Park Road from Santa Fe to the Borrego trailhead.  We started early enough to enjoy the cool air, tho’ it warmed up by the time we finished, the heat amplified by the uphill climb back to parking.

The Hike

This is a very popular trail with lots of hikers and bike riders; it didn’t feel crowded however. We chose to do the loop counterclockwise, so proceeded down the Borrego trail to its intersection with the Winsor trail.  Looking for more that the 4 miles of the loop, we turned right onto Winsor and climbed a mile up to our maximum altitude where we enjoyed our mid-hike break.  Then it was back down Winsor, past the Borrega intersection to the intersection with the Wallow trail.  Turning left there, we headed up the mile plus back to parking.  This was a steady uphill climb; to have the elevation gain of this trail at the end of the hike – I’ll call it “building” .. endurance that is.

As mentioned above, the trail is well used, which makes it’s surface wide and smooth (a few rocky areas).  It is also well marked with signs at the intersections identifying the trails.  The folks in the featured image above were marking out a new path through a nice meadow; the original tracks had become deep and narrow, washed out after years of use and rain.  The new track is a great  improvement. Thanks to the trail steward from the Santa Fe Fat Tire Society.

Jay here: Not sure exactly why this hike took so much out of us, although uphill for the last few miles was surely a factor. Letting faster hikers lope on by us we were reminded that we had 40 years on them and a whole lot more lifetime miles.

Statistics

Total Distance:  6.30 miles
Elevation: start  8,878 ft, maximum  9,127 ft,  minimum  8,207 ft
Gross gain:  920 ft.  Aggregate ascending  1,932 ft, descending  1,945 ft
Maximum slope: 32% ascending, 31% descending, 10% average
Duration: 4:10

If you haven’t explored these hiking tracks with Google Earth, I urge you to try it. With the virtual 3-dimensional presentation, achieved by panning and tilting the view, you can get a much better idea of the hikes and terrain than you can get from the screenshot above. For some ideas, check out  Using Google Earth Track Files.

References and Resources

Santa Fe New Mexican: Happy Trails: Borrego Trail offers …
ASCHG: Bear wallow – Borrego Loop Hike
Hiking Project: Borrego Trail
AllTrails: Borrego-Bear Wallow-Winsor Triangle Trail

Jay's Photos: Click on a Photo for Gallery Show.

George's Photos: Click on a Photo for Gallery Show.

Seeking cooler temperatures, we headed for higher elevation – the Sangre de Christo mountains and the Aspen Vista trail. We began at nearly 10,000 feet; ’tis a steady climb up 3.4 miles to 11,300 feet.  Air temperature was much cooler than in Albuquerque or even Santa Fe (well above 90 there); more like upper 70s on top (‘tho we descended into warmer temperatures, finishing the hike mid-afternoon).

The Hike

This trail is a well used two track;  ‘tho not crowded on this Sunday, we encountered maybe 40 day hikers and a few mountain bikers.  We could see why this trail is dubbed “Aspen Vista”; there are very large groves of very tall aspen for about two miles from the trailhead.  Then nearing 11,000 feet elevation, the forest becomes primarily douglas fir and spruce.  Because of the forest, there are few opportunities for vista views, although on this day smoke and humidity hindered getting a clear picture across Santa Fe, the Rio Grande valley, and to the Jemez mountains.  At the top of our hike (half way to the advertised end at the peak above Santa Fe Ski Basin), we did enjoy a more open view from north, west, and south.

Jay here: Long uphill slog to get to a magnificent view and of course the elevation is always a reminder that most of our hiking is done well below 8,000 feet. You would think that downhill all the way back would be easier…but you would be wrong. It still requires you to put one foot behind the other.

Statistics

Total Distance:  7.74 miles
Elevation: start  9,979 ft, maximum  11,361 ft,  minimum  9,979 ft
Gross gain:  1,381 ft.  Aggregate ascending  1,940 ft, descending  1,945 ft
Maximum slope: 26% ascending, 20% descending, 8% average
Duration: 4:06

I urge you to explore our hiking tracks with Google Earth. With the virtual 3-dimensional presentation, achieved by panning and tilting the view, you can get a much better idea of the hikes and terrain than you can get from the 2-dimensional screenshot above. For assistance: Using Google Earth Track Files.

References

ASCHG: Aspen Vista Hike
ondafringe: Day Hike: Aspen Vista
Trails Alliance of Santa Fe: Local Trails (scroll down to Aspen Vista Trail)
AllTrails: Aspen Vista Trail

Jay's Photos: Click on a Photo for Gallery Show, or Click Here for Slide Show

George's Photos: Click on a Photo for Gallery Show, or Click Here for Slide Show

The Hike

Wow, what a  hike.  The highest and greatest elevation gain yet this year.  And our first foray into the Sangre de Cristo mountains.  The hike begins Ski Santa Fe parking lot and proceeds -up-.

Statistics

Total Distance: 4.09 miles
Elevation: 10,262 start, 11,809 maximum, 10,262 minimum
Gross gain: 1,547.  Aggregate ascending 1,706, descending: 1,720
Maximum slope: 41% ascending, 53% descending, 15% average
Duration: 3:45

If you haven’t explored these hiking tracks with Google Earth, I urge you to try it. With the virtual 3-dimensional presentation, achieved by panning and tilting the view, you can get a much better idea of the hikes and terrain than you can get from the screenshot above. For some ideas, check out  Using Google Earth Track Files.

Jay's Photos: Click on a Photo for Gallery Show.

George's Photos: Click on a Photo for Gallery Show.