Sandia Mountain Bushwhack, NM, 8/31/16

Another Wednesday Mountain Club hike, on the east side of the Sandias, starting at the 10K trail head. It was a overcast but balmy day, and 16 of us showed up.  Joe, the leader, decided to head straight west, scrambling up and down a couple of ridges and over to the ski area.

 Never seen the tram in the clouds! There was no view at all of the city.

Sesame bagel mushroom, anyone?

Cerro Grande Trail, Bandelier National Monument, NM, 8/21/16

 Jim decided he wanted to attend the dedication of the new Unitarian Church in Los Alamos and I wanted to go to the opera.  It was the perfect opportunity to squeeze in a hike in the Santa Fe-Los Alamos area. We selected the Cerro Grande Trail because of its promise of spectacular views of Valle Caldera.  Cerro Grande is the name of the fire that devastated the area a few years back. And we walk through the thick of it...

 After about 1.5 miles of meandering through a ponderosa forest, the trail opened onto a wide meadow and soon we found ourselves above tree line.

 My attempt at a panoramic picture :)  At the horizon, one of the many burned out areas.

Our reward, overlook of the Caldera and 360 degree views of the surroundings: Redondo Peak, the Sangre de Christo Mountains and the upper end of Frijoles Canyon.  We took in the views, but did not linger as summer storm clouds started to build.

La Luz Trail, Sandia Mountains, NM, 8/10/16

View towards the east with Mount Taylor in the middle.  Looks like Mountain Taylor is snow capped in August! But, no.  Just a cloud hanging right over the mountain :)

We decided to join the NM Mountain Club on a Wednesday hike.  Since rain was threatening,  Joe Walker, the leader, decided to hike up La Luz and turn back if we found ourselves in a downpour.  Hiked up about 2 hours, had lunch and turned back.  It was a fun hike as both Jim and I remembered some of the people in the group from years ago.

Survey Trail, Sandia Mountains, NM, 7/10/16

Greenery, shade, a breeze and pleasant temperapures! That's why we selected the Survey trail on the east side of the Sandias for our monthly hike.  Temps in Albuquerque have been reaching in the low 100's for the last few days. Needless to say, the reprieve from the heat was most welcome. 

Found the trail head about 1/4 mile up from the Ellis trail head parking lot and followed the trail for about 2 miles to the 10K trail intersection.  From there is was a very short 1/4 mile to the Crest trail with its gorgeous views to the east overlooking the city.

Instead of retracing our steps, we opted for the Ellis trail which runs about 1/3 mile parallel and west of the Survey trail.  To our surprise, we found beautiful meadows instead of shaded forest. And, instead of the steady, slow elevation gain of the Survey trail, a number of ups and downs.  I found the explanation for the meadows in the Sandia Mountains Hiking Guide: in the 1060's trees were cut down to make way for a highway running from the Crest to Placitas. The highway was never built and the cut down areas became man-made meadows.