Palomas PeakHike.Jay.2016-05-01
Introduction
‘Twas a cloudy, windy day in New Mexico. None the less, the dauntless duo set off to hike a new trail, Palomas Peak. Not to disappoint us, the dreary day on the mountain brought — a steady fall of snow throughout the hike.
The Hike
The trail, starting from the parking lot for the Sandia Man Cave at about 7100 feet elevation, the well traveled trail leads up a canyon for about a mile, the slope steady but never strenuous. The trail then levels out at about 7900 feet; we took the trail to about 1.7 miles where we took our break, just before the trail turns south on the edge of a quite steep down-slope.
Throughout, the trail passes through New Mexico woods: juniper, pinon and a few ponderosa pines, some white fir, and many smaller “shrubs” that I can’t name. This day we didn’t have an views, weather having the area “socked in”, but we could see enough to think that views in all directions will be spectacular. We’ll return in coming weeks; this trail will be one for the summer months.
Statistics
Total Distance: 3.38 miles
Elevation: start 7,049 ft, maximum 7,970 ft, minimum 7,049 ft
Gross gain: 921 ft. Aggregate ascending 1,154 ft, descending 1,186 ft
Maximum slope: 40% ascending, 45% descending, 11.6% average
Duration: 2:54
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References
ASCHG
Palomas Peak Two Ways Hike
Palomas Peak Downhill to Sandia Man Cave Hike
