‘Tis winter and time to return to “open spaces” (’tis too hot for hiking in the summer). So we headed for the Ojito Wilderness and chose a hike around what we’ve called Dinosaur Ridge (because a large dinosaur was found on the northwest point of this mesa; see our other hikes Dinosaur Dig and Los Posos, and article about Alamosaurus found on Dinosaur Ridge).
The Hike
As described in the other posts in the Ojito, this is an amazing place to hike – variety of geology, superb views within the Ojito and beyond, to the Nacimiento Mountains to the northeast and even a glimpse of Cabezon to the northwest. There doesn’t seem to be a -trail- so our track followed “reasonable” terrain; only one place did we find it necessary to search for a “safe”, a route not too steep or rocky.
For an abbreviated narrative for this hike, I’ve added captions to the photos below. For other narratives, please go to the posts from our other hikes: Dinosaur Dig and Los Posos.
Statistics
Total Distance: 4.06 miles
Elevation: start 5,881 ft, maximum 5,881 ft, minimum 5,672 ft
Gross gain: 209 ft. Aggregate ascending 497 ft, descending 497 ft
Maximum slope: 21% ascending, 27% descending, 3.8% average
Duration:4:13
GPS Track Files for Download | |
136 Downloads |
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42 Downloads |
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.
Related Posts (in the vicinity)
References
Montana State University: New study reveals North America’s biggest dinosaur
Backpacker: Albuquerque, NM: Ojito Wilderness
The Armchair Explorer: Ojito Wilderness
Only In Your State: The Ojito Wilderness, New Mexico
The Southwest Backpacker: Backpacking th Ojito Wilderness – Hoo-Doo Pines :: A Tribute to my Subscribers (YouTube video)
See the other posts for additional references.