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Cochiti Mesa Bike Exploration
I’ve been talking with local forest service rangers to get a feel for the current outdoor issues around Santa Fe, and found that the hot item is the proposed new Travel Management Rule. There is a lot of uproar about which routes will and will not remain open to motorized travel. The forest service folks…
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Wheeler Peak Hike
I meet Tom at 7 am again, but this time we drive north to Taos before heading into the mountains for one of Tom’s favorite loops over Wheeler Peak, New Mexico’s high point. It is indeed a hike packed with treats: wildflowers, cascading streams, mountain lakes, bighorn sheep, ridges, peaks, and expansive views. We figure…
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Penitente Canyon Climbing
It’s likely to get too hot to climb at Penitente this time of year, and we resolve not to sleep in too late to catch the cool morning. That translates to about 8:30 in practice. Dave, Lisa, and Dyson were waiting for us at the campsite last night, and Dre and Serena join us in…
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Mount San Antonio Hike
We’re sore and the day is looking hot, so instead of climbing we start our drive south and stop to check out Mount San Antonio, a solitary volcanic dome that has always piqued my curiosity. There are two summits of nearly equal height, and one of them is home to some radio towers. On our…
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Cochiti Mesa, Eagle Canyon Scout Trip
When Ann gets off work we head to Cochiti Mesa to check out the climbing there. We find an old trail up the Ponderosa-filled canyon, reach the rocks, and spot bolts, but we can’t identify the climbs at all. After a lot scrambling and scraping through brush we find the last route on the cliff…
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Redondo Peak Loop Hike
As promised, Tom meets me at 7 and takes me to the lush Winsor Creek trailhead in the Pecos valley, where we begin our 4,200-foot climb up to the Santa Fe ridge. Storms move in as we near it, but never hit us directly. The ridge walking is superb, as are the wildflowers and views…
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Lake Peak Loop Hike
Ann prods me to go hiking to get me in a better state of mind this week. I still manage to start in a frustrated mood, having forgotten batteries for my GPS receiver, but that soon fades with the rhythm of a good hill climb up Raven’s Ridge. By the time I reach Desolation Peak…
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Tres Piedras Climbing
I can’t think of anything I’d rather do for my birthday weekend than explore a new climbing area! Tres Piedras (Three Rocks) is a tiny town in northern New Mexico, distinguished by three rock formations visible from afar. The largest is partially in Carson National Forest, and has some nice climbing on highly featured granite.…
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WordPress Geo Mashup Release 1.1 Beta 3
Some significant overhauls have been made since the last beta release, which will make this upgrade a little more involved than usual. For details on this and documentation of new features, see the Beta Documentation. If that looks good, go for the download. Please report any issues you have soon – it’s time to get…
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White Rock Overlook Climbing
We feel like climbing cracks today. There is some high cloud cover, which Ann thinks may keep it cool enough to climb at The Overlook in White Rock, another scenic area on the Rio Grande. Our routes: Headwall Crack Left 5.8 A nice handcrack, supplemented by lots of good face holds. That’s a theme here.…