Tramway Trail 82, Sandia Mountains, 1/3/18

Another NMMC (New Mexico Mountain Club) Wednesday hike. Hike lead by Steve Heath as we learned that the person who organized and lead the Wednesday hikes for many years will be unavailable for a period of time. Seventeen of us followed the Tramway trail connecting with the La Luz trail head and back, a distance of ~5 miles.

A short side trail lead to Jaral Cabin.  To my surprise there was an active spring right next to the (now nonexistent) front door of the cabin.

 

White Sands National Monument, NM, 12/31/17

A 5-mile trek of shimmering white gypsum dunes waited us at the very end of the park all the way to Alkali flats (where the park borders with the missile range.)  In summer, this is an inferno of heat but today we hiked under ideal conditions: cool mid-50s temps, no wind, and a cloud cover to protect us from direct and reflected sun.

The ranger at the visitor center told us it is alright to hike bare foot.  He added that if the sand was too cold it is best to put shoes back on as the sand just gets colder and colder.  Decided to try it for the last 3/4 mile or so.  The sand was tolerably cool and did get colder as I got closer to the end of the hike.  

This place is a paradise for families.  On this holiday, it felt as if all of Alamogordo's children were out sledding on the dunes. 

Dripping Springs and Fillmore Slot Canyon, Organ Mountains, NM, 12/30/17

 Panoramic photo of approach to Dripping Springs Natural Area with Organ Mountains in background.

A thriving resort in the early 1900's, then a sanatorium, and most recently a ranch before being acquired by the Nature Conservancy and transferred to the BLM, Dripping Springs delights visitors with its natural and man made attractions alike. Above, stables and outbuildings of the former resort.  

 Partially restored sanatorium. 

 Lovely lunch spot :)

Hiked from the visitor center to the sanatorium, resort ruins and springs,  over to Fillmore slot canyon with its trickle of water, and back to the visitor center via La Cueva Cave, the hermit case.  Covered almost 6 miles with minimal elevation. 

Baylor Pass hike, Organ Mountains, Las Cruces, NM, 12/29/17

First hike of our 3-day adventure exploring the Organ Mountains around Las Cruces, NM.

Drove from Albuquerque that morning and got to the trail head by 3 pm.  A bit late to get to the pass  with the sun setting just after 5 pm :)  Managed 2 miles and got off the mountain just as the sun set.

Rewarding views to the northeast.

This is the Chihuahua desert and it reminded us very much of several hikes we did around Tucson, AZ, minus the saguaros.

Pino Trail Loop, Sandia Mountains, 12/21/17

Mountain Club hike on Solstice day! 

The sun was particularly low in the sky, even at midday, giving the scenery lovely long shadows.  Twenty club members joined us for an almost 6-mile loop from the Pino trail head to the lower tram tower and back, with a side hike up to the middle tower - see 3rd photo.

Doc Long Loop hike, Sandia Mountains, 12/9/17

Sunday short hike.  Started from Doc Long picnic area in the lower eastern Sandias and meandered from Bill Spring Trail to Faulty Trail, over to Sulpher Trail. A connecting trail, Wolf Spring, was supposed to get us back to the car park.  However, after walking from some time on Sulpher (not marked) it was clear that we were not where we thought we were!  No panic.  We could hear the cars from the main road and finding our bearings was easy.  Beautiful crisp autumn day.  Hiked ~4.5 miles.

Honningsvag hike, Norway, 9/24/17

Arrived in Honningsvag, gateway town to the North Cape midday. It was dark and overcast but no rain.  Instead of boarding a bus to go to the Cape, opted to hiked up to the high plateau (~1000 ft) above the town.

 It was the right decision: spectacular desolate expanses....

 Beautiful colorful tundra.... and,

 reindeer!

See in the harbor: A traditional drying rack for cod/stock fish, the staple of the region. The crew on the ferry told us that, to date, no modern technology had been developed that dried cod better than the traditional method. So that is how it is still done.