 Photo by Wes Naman
by Stephen Ausherman
For many folks, a good long hike is already on their summer agenda. But with so many opportunities available just a hop and a skip away from the city (how lucky are we?), Local iQ thought it would be helpful to consult an expert on the subject. Enter author and world traveler Stephen Ausherman.
Albuquerque Open Space Visitor Center
6500 Coors NW, 505.897.8831
cabq.gov/openspace
With more than 25 percent of its land protected as public open space, Albuquerque tops the national list of largest city park systems. Visiting the Open Space Division used to mean venturing into Tijeras Arroyo, a toxic drainage ditch shared with a waste facility, a bio-disease unit and a rifle range. That changed in late 2006 with the completion of the Albuquerque Open Space Visitor Center. This Pueblo-style compound overlooks fields and bosque between Coors Boulevard and the Rio Grande, and boasts a panoramic view of the Sandia Mountains. It also houses interpretive displays and an art gallery, making it the ideal place to begin exploring LAND/ART this summer.
 Photo by Stephen Ausherman
LAND/ART (landartnm.org) is a series of exhibits and events that explore the relationship between nature and culture. The program involves more than 25 New Mexico arts organizations and at least 60 artists from around the world, and takes place at indoor and outdoor sites in Albuquerque, Mountainair and Santa Fe. Their contemporary approach sets it apart from traditional land art, demonstrating that the vision and concepts of environmental art have evolved beyond bulldozed spirals and landforms wrapped in polypropylene. Open Space Coordinator Joshua Willis likens it to, “Interpreting landscape the way an animal would: It involves all of your senses.” The projects selected for the Albuquerque Open Space Visitor Center, he says, “Range from the use of downed cottonwood branches to a sound and light installation to an interactive video display.”
Recommended trail:
Bosque Installation Trail
(WGS 84)
N35 degrees 09’ 54”
W106 degrees 40’ 24”
Begin at the Albuquerque Open Space Visitor Center for a brief orientation and a LAND/ART Field Guide. This handy little treasure map is all you need to hunt for seven installation sites in a nearby stretch of bosque. The designated route is slightly over two miles, but can easily be extended for miles in either direction along the river. Be warned, however, that it’s not entirely under the canopy. Exposed sections, particularly along the channels, can get quite hot. Along the way you’ll discover contemplative works by three artists who used found materials — jetty jacks, invasive plants, tree debris — to reinterpret the riparian environment that thrives in the urban center of New Mexico.
Getting there:
Albuquerque Open Space Visitor Center is located east of Coors Boulevard at the end of Bosque Meadows Road, about halfway between Montano and Paseo del Norte.
emnrd.state.nm.us/prd/CerrillosHills.htm
 Photo by Stephen Ausherman
Cerrillos Hills Historic Park is visible from I-25, to the east. It consists of the cluster of conical hills that protrude from the plains about halfway between Albuquerque and Santa Fe. The hills were mined extensively for minerals in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, but for hundreds and hundreds of years before that, native peoples had taken turquoise from the earth there. Today, thanks to extensive community planning in the late 1990s and the joint management of Santa Fe County and the Bureau of Land Management, the park has developed trails for hiking and biking, and offers some of the most pristine views of one of New Mexico’s historic and intriguing land formations. The park is in the process of being turned into a state park, and will then be under the management of the New Mexico State Parks Division of the Energy, Minerals and Natural Resources Department. Plans are in the works to build a visitors’ center that will act as a main source of information for the park, as well as a community center for the village of Cerrillos. Building isn’t planned to begin until next spring, but the trails at Cerrillos are currently open and there’s plenty of exploring to do here.
Recommended trail:
Elkins Canyon Trail
(WGS 84)
N35 degrees 26’ 42”
W106 degrees 07’ 22”
Elkins Canyon Trailhead Coordinates:
(WGS 84)
N35 degrees 26’ 28”
W106 degrees 07’ 30”
You can create numerous routes from these well-marked trails. Interpretive signage, mine shafts and a couple of cattail springs punctuate the piñon hills, but my favorite feature is the narrow chute of Elkins Canyon. The best route starts with a strenuous push up Escalante Trail and onward to the Mirador overlook, but the quickest way starts with a quarter-mile walk back down the way you drove up. Just after passing the cemetery on your left, turn right onto Yerba Buena (CR 59A) and go west another quarter-mile. Turn right onto the trail here and start a short but steep ascent to the northwest. When you hit the arroyo, follow it upstream through the canyon.
Getting there:
From N.M. 14 turn west into the village of Cerrillos. At the first stop sign, turn right onto First Street. Go over the railroad tracks and drive another 0.25 miles to the Y. Bear left onto CR 59 (Camino Turquesa) and go 0.4 miles, following the signs to the Park. A kiosk on the left should be stocked with trail maps. Entrance to the parking area is just past the kiosk.
Camping:
None in the park, though you’re free to pitch a tent on adjacent BLM land.
Basic info: Accessible restrooms, no handicapped accessible sites, showers, phones, potable water, hookups. Reservations must be made at least four days in advance. Three-day minimum stay on holiday weekends. Tent only, non-electric, $8; standard non-electric, $8-$14; standard electric, $12; group standard non-electric, $8-$25
Rancheros de Santa Fe (about 25 miles from Cerrillos via N.M. 14)
736 Old Las Vegas Highway, Santa Fe 800.426.9259 or 505.466.3482
rancheros.com
Basic Info: Full RV hook-ups; tents; camping cabins; group tenting, $6.50/person
Pecos National Historic Park
nps.gov/peco
505.757.7241
What do you know about New Mexico’s role in the Civil War? If it all boils down to a vague recollection of The Good, The Bad and The Ugly, which featured an insignificant skirmish 20 miles south of Albuquerque, then it’s time to brush up on local history.
In 1862, Confederate Texans set out to take control of New Mexico in a campaign to win the West. They marched up the Rio Grande, kicking Union butt along the way and pausing only to stick a Confederate flag on the Palace of the Governors. They then turned east on the Santa Fe Trail and surprised the Union’s Colorado volunteers in Glorieta Pass. Just when it seemed the Rebels would score again and ultimately win the territory, the New Mexico Volunteers came to the rescue.
These local fighters had two admirable strengths that all others seemed to lack: a profound disdain for Texans and a remarkable ability to use the landscape to their advantage. To fully appreciate their heroic tactics, hiking and history buffs alike need to see the lay of the land for themselves. Unfortunately much of the site is buried under I-25 and NM 50. Though the Battle of Glorieta Pass later became known as, “The Gettysburg of the West,” it eventually faded into relative obscurity. A wedge of the historic battlefield was incorporated into Pecos National Historic Park, but remained off-limits to the public, until now.
Recommended trail:
Glorieta Battlefield Trail
(WGS 84)
N35 degrees 34’ 01”
W105 degrees 45’ 17”
June 2009 marked the unveiling of a new interpretive walking trail at the Glorieta Unit of Pecos National Historic Park. The expertly groomed and tightly coiled path, winds for 2.25 miles along a wooded ridge. A few pointers to make the most of it:
• Check their website for guided tours; Their summer schedule lists daily events.
• Drop by the Pecos National Historic Park Visitor Center to pay the $3 admission, which also gets you into Fort Union National Monument (nps.gov/foun). You’ll also get driving directions to the battlefield, along with a glossy booklet packed with photos and facts that correspond to numbers you’ll find posted along the trail.
• Load your iPod with your favorite battle hymns and strap on your headphones for the hike. Though mostly obscured by forested hills, highway traffic is always within the length of a football field.
Getting there:
From I-25 north, take Exit 299. Cross over the interstate and turn right on to N.M. 50. Go about six miles east to the Pecos village. Turn right and go two miles on N.M. 63.
Camping:
There are currently no campgrounds in the Pecos National Historic Park.
Nearest campgrounds:
Santa Fe National Forest, Pecos-Las Vegas Ranger Station
fs.fed.us/r3/sfe/districts/pecosLV
N.M. 63, north of Pecos, is a virtual candy lane of camping areas. Call the ranger station or drop by on your way through Pecos for the complete list of possibilities.
 Photo by Stephen Ausherman
505.661.3333
Reservations: 866.382.5537
vallescaldera.gov
The Valles Caldera Trust, which manages the national preserve, has been chartered with maintaining the preserve as well as granting access for more people to experience the beauty and wilderness that the preserve was created to protect. After public meetings in Albuquerque and Los Alamos in June, the trust will be encouraging more public input through its website as well as in person at meetings slated to begin July 15 (in Jemez) and later meetings in Albuquerque and Santa Fe.
Recommended trail:
La Garita
(WGS 84)
N 35 degrees 58’ 20”
W 106 degrees 30’ 16”
Two “free spontaneous hiking” opportunities are on the southeastern fringe of the preserve: Valle Grande Trail and Coyote Call Trail. But if you find a chance to reserve a hike on La Garita Trail, seize it. The shuttle ride to the trailhead is a rare bonus tour of the interior. The hike follows an old logging road to the north rim. Listed at six miles (out-and-back) with a 1,400-foot elevation gain, La Garita is rated as the most difficult hike offered in the preserve, but it’s moderate by most standards. The designated route ends at an unremarkable point at the north boundary fence. A right fork before the fence hooks around clockwise about a mile to a 10,300-foot peak with spectacular views.
Getting there:
From I-25 north take Exit 242 at Bernalillo. Turn left on U.S. 550 and go 23.5 miles to San Ysidro. Turn right and go 39 miles on N.M. 4. The main gate is on the left. For Coyote Call Trail, continue another 1.7 miles and park on the left.
Camping:
There are currently no camp- grounds in the Valles Caldera National Preserve.
Nearest campgrounds:
Jemez Falls
Santa Fe National Forest, Jemez Ranger Station
fs.fed.us/r3/sfe/districts/jemez
575.829.3535
Basic info: $10 per vehicle per night, 14-day stay limit, 52 units with fire grills and tables, amphitheater, vaulted toilets, drinking water, paved access and parking. No utility hookups or dump stations; Tents, RVs and trailers up to 40 feet. Campground host on duty most weekends during high season. Pets must always be on a leash or restrained while in developed areas. Entrance to Jemez Falls Campground is on the south side of SR 4, about 7.5 miles west of the Valles Caldera main gate.
Ponderosa Group
Bandelier National Monument
nps.gov/band
505.672.3861 x534
Basic info: $35 per night, two sites limited to groups of 10 people minimum, 50 maximum; picnic tables, fire grates and small cooking shelters; pit toilets, no restrooms with running water. Ponderosa Group Campground is for tent camping. Only one vehicle in a group may be an RV.
Entrance to Ponderosa Group is on the south side of SR 4, about 10 miles east of the Valles Caldera main gate, or six miles west of Bandelier National Monument main gate.
Mount Taylor
fs.fed.us/r3/cibola/districts/mttaylor
505.287.8833
Recommended trail:
Continental Divide Trail
(WGS 84)
N35 degrees 11’ 22”
W107 degrees 46’ 20”
 Photo by Stephen Ausherman
The trailhead for the Mt. Taylor section of the CDT is easy enough to find, and a line-of-sight markers start you out in the right direction. Casual hikers are content with the first two miles or so, which include a strenuous climb up the west side of Horace Mesa. Views from the top seem endless. By this point, the actual divide is about 35 miles due West — the Continental Divide National Scenic Trail and the Continental Divide part ways in the northwest corner of El Malpais and don’t reunite until crossing well into Colorado.
Out of the estimated 770 miles of the CDT in New Mexico, about a quarter remains incomplete. CDTA Youth Corps and volunteers plan to complete the new trail route in the Mt. Taylor area this year.
Getting there:
From Grants, head north on N.M. 547 (Lobo Canyon Road). A parking area at the CDT trailhead is on the right just after the forest boundary, about three miles past the ranger station.
Camping:
Lobo Canyon (about three miles past the CDT parking area)
Basic info: No-fee area, six campsites, no trailers, 14-day stay limit, fully accessible restrooms and picnic area, no water.
Coal Mine Canyon (about five miles past the CDT parking area)
Basic info: $5, 15 campsites, trailors under 22’, nature trails, 14-day stay limit, no water.
 Photo by Stephen Ausherman
Northwest New Mexico Visitor Center
I-40, Exit 81
505.876.2783
El Malpais Information Center
N.M. 53
nps.gov/elma
505.783.4774
The Northwest New Mexico Visitor Center is a cooperative effort between the National Park Service, the U.S.D.A. Forest Service, the Bureau of Land Management and the Western National Parks Association. The closest information station is located just off I-40, south of Grants, but recreational opportunities are nonexistent.
The BLM El Malpais Recreation Map and Guide (2008) spells out the most basic options here; it’s also a work of art. It unites a land that was once divided into the corners of four separate surface management maps.
Now one can clearly see how the land is divided by governing schisms. The division of the area results in a lovely color composition on the unified map. The eye is immediately drawn to the center, where purplish splotches define the lava flow in the sea of lavender that delineates the responsibilities of the National Park Service. Bold strokes of yellow ochre mark the jurisdictions of the Bureau of Land Management: El Malpais National Conservation Area and the wildernesses of West Malpais and Cebolla, along with the canyons and the Chain of Craters Wilderness Study Areas. Where one begins and the other ends is often seamless. Sometimes they overlap, yet with each designation comes a unique set of rules and regulations.
Add to that a framework of green Zuni Mountains under the dominion of the Mt. Taylor Ranger District of Cibola National Forest, a blue and white checkerboard of state and private holdings and orange pigments for the Acoma and Ramah Navajo reservations, and all that seems missing is the festive pink of military reservations. The map is available from the Public Lands Information Center ( publiclands.org).
Recommended trail:
El Calderon Trail
(WGS 84)
N34 degrees 58’ 11”
W108 degrees 00’ 11”
Roaming a shadeless field of black lava is not highly recommended in the summer. Crawling around underneath it is. El Malpais National Monument is loaded with caves, but only four are open to exploration without a permit. Xenolith and Junction caves, near the trailhead for three-mile El Calderon loop, are the easiest to access. Get complete details from the El Malpais Information Center before visiting so you don’t stray into a nearby bat cave.
Getting there:
From I-40 west, take Exit 81 and drive 20 miles south on N.M. 53. Entrance for the El Calderon Area is on the left. The info center is just another 2.5 miles ahead on the left.
El Malpais BLM Ranger Station
N.M. 177, 505.280.2918
blm.gov/nm/st/en/prog/recreation/rio_puerco.html
You’ll find a few off-lava trails on the near side of El Malpais. Start with a 1.5-mile loop from the El Malpais Ranger Station on N.M. 117 (about 9 miles south of I-40). Nearby options include short walks at Sandstone Bluffs Overlook and La Ventana Natural Arch, and a moderate eight-mile out-and-back from the South Narrows Picnic Area.
Camping:
Joe Skeen Campground
It’s still a work in progress but right now there is a vault toilet, a chip access road and sites with picnic tables and shelters, plus 11 sandy campsites. It’s located about 2.5 miles south of the BLM Ranger Station.
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