The Dallas Sierra Club invites you to Red, Gold, Wild and Wheeler Backpacking in Northern New Mexico Friday, September 4 – Tuesday, September 8, 2015 Trip Coordinator: Stephen Fleischman [email protected], 972 689-7317 Where: Backpack in the Questa Ranger District, Sangre de Cristo Mountains of Northern New Mexico, near the Taos Ski Valley and the town of Red River, weaving in and out of the 19,661 acre Wheeler Peak Wilderness. One trip option is in the beautiful Rio Grande del Norte National Monument and the Rio Grande Gorge. This is, in part, a service trip and the activities involved will be interesting and fun as well as helpful. To the extent feasible, each trip will do one or more of the following: Record GPS tracks of the trails. The trails as shown on existing maps are very inaccurate, so the collected data will be used to update maps. Don’t worry -- the trip leaders will have accurate maps. Photograph and record locations of existing trail signs and record coordinates for recommended additional signs. Record campsites, noting condition, availability of water, existence and number of fire rings, etc. Tally visitors encountered on the trail. Identify and record the locations of noxious weeds. Departure: The bus will depart the Walmart parking lot (northwest quadrant of I-635 and Midway Road) at 7:30 PM on Friday, September 4. Arrive by 7:00 PM to load your gear. We’ve chartered a sleeper bus that converts from aircraft seating to bunks. Leave a car at Walmart if you wish. Neither the Sierra Club nor Wal-Mart assumes responsibility for your car or its contents, but Walmart is open 24 hours, the lot is lighted nor have we experienced a problem with parked vehicles. We’ll return by 6:00 AM on Tuesday September 8. Cost is $275 per person if your check and forms are received by Friday, August 14. The price includes transportation, hike leadership by trained, experienced Sierra Club volunteers, and beverages on the bus. Registration after Friday, August 14 is $305. Any receipts in excess of actual expenses will be applied to leader training and other Dallas Sierra Club activities. Checks payable to “Dallas Sierra Club” should be mailed with the signed liability waiver, medical information form and trip preferences form to Stephen Fleischman, 3805 Dutton Drive, Plano, TX 75023. Bring cash for breakfast on the outbound trip and dinner on the return trip. Wheeler Peak Wilderness and Wild River Trip, Sept. 4-8, 2015, page 2 of 16 Cancellation Policy: Notify the Bus Trip Coordinator if you must cancel. There is a $30 fee for cancellations through August 14, 2015. There will be no refunds for cancellation after that date. See the “Travel Insurance” paragraph below. On rare occasions the Dallas Sierra Club must cancel or change trips. If this occurs, our responsibility is limited to a refund of any trip fees you have already paid. The Dallas Sierra Club is not responsible for airfares or other payments you incur that are a consequence of a trip cancellation or change. Travel Insurance: We strongly encourage you to purchase travel insurance to cover non-refundable expenses in the event you or the Dallas Sierra Club cancels a trip, medical expenses incurred on a trip and possible medical evacuation from a trip. The Sierra Club has made arrangements with USI Travel Insurance Services for you to purchase a comprehensive travel insurance plan. Visit http://www.travelinsure.com/what/selecthigh.asp for details. Feel free to contact USI Travel Insurance Services if you have any questions on policy options or coverages. Dallas Sierra Club is not equipped to answer questions about travel insurance. Other trip insurance companies are available. Hike options: There are five hike options, also called “trips.” Participants choose a first and second preference when registering. In general, higher trip numbers imply more strenuous trips. Backpackers who exercise regularly, can run a couple miles or walk briskly for several miles and have recent overnight backpacking experience should find the trips highly rewarding if they pack sensibly, drink plenty of water and eat sensibly. Read, reread and heed the advice on subsequent pages, particularly regarding altitude. Trip preferences will be honored in the order registrations are received, although acceptances to the bus trip and a hike option are complete only after both the trip coordinator and trip leader have reviewed your experience and medical history and determined a trip appears suitable for you. We want to steer you to a trip likely to prove appropriate and fun for you. Trip 1: Wild Rivers – Rating - Moderate. Descend with packs to a two-night camp on the Rio Grande near Little Arsenic Spring. Day hike a northern loop via the Big Arsenic Spring petroglyphs. Day 2, day hike a south loop via the River and La Junta Trails, with an optional day hike to the confluence of the Rio Grande and Red River. Third morning day hikes up or down river are options before packing out. Leader: Jim Oursler, [email protected], 972 849-8279. Trailhead: Little Arsenic Springs Primitive Camping Rating: Moderate Miles Feet Min. Day Backpack Day Hike Total Camp Max. Elev. Sleep Elev. Elev. 1 0.75 4.10 4.85 Little Arsenic Spring 6,700 7,500 6,700 2 0.00 4.32 4.32 Little Arsenic Spring 6,700 7,500 6,700 3 0.75 0.00 0.75 6,700 7,500 Total 1.5 8.4 9.9 Wheeler Peak Wilderness and Wild River Trip, Sept. 4-8, 2015, page 3 of 16 Trip 2: Sawmill Park – Rating - Moderately Strenuous. Day1: Start from a road near the confluence of the East Fork and Middle Fork of the Red River. Follow the jeep road to the East Fork Trail (also shown on maps as Wheeler Peak Road – go figure). Pass the Ditch Cabin ruins and a sign describing the 41-mile long Big Ditch which was used to transport water to the gold fields in Moreno Valley. At the Sawmill Creek Trail junction at about 2.6 miles, you will turn north for approximately one more mile and arrive at the start of a huge linear meadow by Sawmill Creek for a two-night camp. Day 2 features an out-and-back day hike upstream into Sawmill Park to the Wilderness Boundary. On Day 3 you will reverse the route from Day 1 to return to the original trailhead. Leader: Lynn Marple [email protected], 972-345-5528. Trailhead: East Fork / Middle Fork road junction Rating: Moderately Strenuous Miles Feet Day Backpack Day Hike Total Camp Min. Elev. Max. Elev. Sleep Elev. 1 3.85 0.00 3.85 Sawmill Park 9,445 10,500 10,500 2 0.00 5.00* 5.00 Sawmill Park 10,500 10,500 10,500 3 3.85 0.00 3.85 9,445 10,500 Total 7.70 5.00* 12.70 *Day hike length is flexible. Trip 3: Bull of the Woods Meadow and Gold Hill. Trip 3 starts at the Twining trailhead at the north end of the Taos Ski Valley parking lot. The trail to Bull of the Woods meadow is only 2 miles and a steady climb of about 1,600 feet. We have reserved the yurt in Bull of the Woods Meadow and will be residing in uncommon comfort for the two nights of this trip. There are two possible day hikes on the first day: to Bull of the Woods Mountain or continuing further to climb Frazer Mountain. On Day 2 we will climb about 1,800 feet to the potentially windy summit of Gold Hill for fantastic views. Cold weather gear and a hat are a must. We will reverse direction and head back down to the Taos Ski Valley on Day 3. If time permits we will repast at Taos Cow fine purveyors of homemade ice cream, decent coffee and great sandwiches. Leader: Stephen Fleischman, [email protected] 972 689 7317 Trailhead: Twining Rating: Moderately Strenuous Miles Feet Back- Day Hike Day Hike Total Backpack Min. Day Camp Max. Elev. Sleep Elev. pack Option 1 Option 2 + Day Hike Elev. 1 2.0 2.44* 4.52** 2.0 | 4.4 | 6.5*** The Yurt BotW 9,500 10,900 | 11,500 | 12,112*** 10,900 2 0.0 7.1 7.1 The Yurt BotW 10,900 12,711 10,900 3 2.0 2.0 9,500 10,900 Total 4.0 4.0 | 6.4 | 8.5*** *Optional day hike to Bull of the Woods Mountain. **Alternative optional day hike to Frazer Mountain. ***Depends on choice of day hike. Wheeler Peak Wilderness and Wild River Trip, Sept. 4-8, 2015, page 4 of 16 Trip 4: Bull of the Woods Meadow to Gold Hill and the Columbine Basin. Rating - Strenuous Trip 4 starts at the Twining trailhead at the north end of the Taos Ski Valley parking lot. The trail to Bull of the Woods Meadow is only 2 miles and a steady climb of about 1,600 feet (same as Trip 3). We’ll sleep in or near the yurt with Trip 3 on this first night. If time permits, we have the same optional day hikes to Bull of the Woods Mountain and/or Frazer Mountain as Trip 3 (see above). Next day, backpack toward Gold Hill, drop packs and walk up Gold Hill for its 360-degree views. Recovering our packs, we’ll head west on Hondo Ridge (Lobo Peak Trail) before an optional spur hike to a ridgetop viewpoint before descending the Willow Fork Trail to camp.