Sandia Mountain Two Nighter

“(Some of you have seen this at OAN Backpacking forum.)

Friday I left right after work and headed to Elena Gallegos, 15 minutes from home and 15 minutes from work. I was on the trail at 6:30 and headed up the Pino Trail, (6700ft to 9200 ft)into the Sandia Mountains above Albuquerque, more details of which are in my previous explorations.
http://www.oanoutdoors.com/ubb/Forum1/HTML/000018.html

I reach the spring ok, but I'm tired. The problem is that there is no place to pitch a tent and thunderstorms are swirling around, never over. I decide to push on, and reach the top in about three and a half hours.I'm dying, but I certainly can't sleep at the top, so I continue on, this time steeply downhill on the Cienega trail dropping down the east face of the Sandias. Always looking for a good camping spot. I can't see anything though, I've been following the trail for an hour with the Photo II, but it doesn't penetrate far. I reach the Wilderness boundry above Cienega Spring, and head north. Finally I am so tired I think I'm gonna puke and I set up for the night after 5 hours of hiking. Hang the food, try to sleep without the tent, get too many mosquitoes, set up the tent..ZZZZZ......


I wake up feeling pretty good the next morning. I sure don't feel like cooking so I have a cold breakfast. I have not seen but one person when I was still near Elena Gallegos, but now a couple jogging and another walking pass along the trail. I am on the edge of the wilderness, but close enough to civilization that locals and tourists use this trail.

My goal is to reach Media Spring, about 4 miles north as the crow flies, but I didn't see a crow all day.
Overall map: http://www.topozone.com/map.asp?z=13&n=3899546&e=368862&s=200

Following Faulty Trail, I filtered water at Wolf Spring, a muddy large puddle. Having a relatively easy time, closely following the map contours, and along Oso Corridor to Tree Spring Trail. I didn't take time to check the spring.

Things were going to change. I had to gain altitude, and here I did it.
http://www.topozone.com/map.asp?lat=35.191202096144515&lon=-106.41307317435787&s=25&symshow=n

Up the Tree Spring trail where I see a number of dayhikers, locals and tourists, most coming down. A couple of mountain bikers, too, always pleasant. Ugh. But I did it, now I again needed to traverse the mountain northward without significant elevation change. It was mid afternoon by now.

10K on the 10K Trail, and I would be at Media Spring.
http://www.topozone.com/map.asp?z=13&n=3896055&e=370007&s=50

I needed to find water there too, or I was going to have a very, very long day, either backtracking to water or going an north to Tunnel Spring, near Placita.

The trail is a pretty easy one, but it threw me for a loop. It is used by mountain bikers as well. It crosses the ski slopes, and there the number of mountain bikers increases. The ski area runs the chair lifts for tourist and mountain bikers in the summer. Several are on the trail. At one run the trail suddenly heads down hill. OK, but it keeps running down hill. hmmmm. And it keeps running down hill. This isn't the 10K trail and its not on the map. It even has mileage markers. Hopefully it will run into the road, but doesn't. I have decided to take this trail to an intersection and make my decision what to do from there.

Finally I see a mountain biker who informs me I am on the King of the Mountain Trail, a mountain biking trail that runs from the bottom of the ski area, to the top of the Sandias, seven miles and 1800 feet below the crest.
http://www.topozone.com/map.asp?z=13&n=3896055&e=370007&s=25

The bike trail really meanders, in and out of the ski trails, so occassionally I go down the ski trail in knee deep grass. It seems like forever, but finally I reach the base of the ski area. I AM BUSHED. I have about a quart of water left. I need water and rest, I've been going for seven hours of so at this point. I had made a big U on the trip and could close the loop if I wanted. I could hitch to the top, but no water. I could bail out and call home. No way. Finally I have a plan.

I hoof it up the road (ugh, up a steep incline) a mile or so to Balsam Grade picnic area.
http://www.topozone.com/map.asp?lat=35.2119393350913&lon=-106.40227095387546&s=25&symshow=n

No water, but I didn't expect it, then along a closed road to Capulin Picnic ground with Capulin Spring. My map also says the picnic area has drinking water, but if so, I never found it. I do find the spring though, a trickle out of a pipe right now, but it looks like at times if flows strongly. It looks like I can collect enough to filter, though. I had ditched my pack a half mile below in a decent camping spot. Went back got my platypus container, and head back up to collect some water. I had already had a cold dinner and hung my food. Filter was with the food and I was too tired to filter anyway. I had a half quart of water left. I know, I'll have a picnic breakfast at the spot nearest the spring in the morning.

I had to figure out how to get to the top of the mountain, because I had at least a five hour hike from there, back to the truck at Elena Gallegos. I needed to be there by five Hike up? Not likely to make it. Chairlifts? Now there is an idea. I could even take the tram down and hike to the truck. That seemed like bailing out, but sounded soooo.... good. I decided to see how I felt in the morning... I tumble into the bad dead tired, after a long, long day.

I had a fitful sleep. It was muggy and threatened to rain a couple of times. When I finally decide to get up rather than tumble in the bag, it's 0600 and I am shaky. I need water and calories. Taking the tram down the other side sounds pretty good right now. I've run out of juice.

I forgot to mention, that I have also had some intermittent knee pain. Well, it flared up during the Tree Spring Climb. During the day I learn the hard way that it seems to be helped by periodic rest and I learned what aggravated it and how to climb or go downhill without problems. That did slow me down some.

The Tram runs every day except for two week long maintenance periods, one in November and the other in April or so. What I didn't know, was whether the chair lift ran on Sunday. I had to wait to find that out. Everything was closed and nothing posted outside the building the previous evening to indicate days or hours of summer operation.
I wouldn't want you to think this was all drudgery. The sunset and light of Albuquerque were superb. The Corridor trails was one of the most beautiful Ponderosa Pine forests I have seen. A great camping spot (no water) under a nearly pure stand of Ponderosa's, little undergrowth and a soft bed of long Pondersa needles.

Lunch was spent near Tree Spring before the ascent. I sat in a wildflower meadow eating my cheese, crackers, dried fruit and cereal bar. I noticed an empty nest in the six foot stump in front of me. Surprise! When I stood up, it had 4 blue eggs in it. Wildflowers galore, everywhere during the trip.

Wonderful sections of trail with a cobblestone of limestone, others with classic red sandstone or once a yellow sandstone with coarse quartz in it.

Oaks, Doug fir, Ponderosa, blue spruce, aspen.

Nights, I had the mountain to myself. No campgrounds, primitive or otherwise. For all the people I saw, I was the only one spending the night.

So there I was, pretty strung out. I packed everything up. Stuffing that wonderful fluffy bag seemed a great chore. Hauled everything up to the picnic ground. Just one couple up there at 0700. They seemed as shocked to see me as I was them.

I had easily collected 1.5 quarts of water the previous night, and quickly collected another 2 to boil for breakfast and coffee. I'm starting to feel better already. While the water is boiling I collected more. By the time I finished I had my 4 quarts for the day and enough for breakfast. Sorting through my food I settle on a Noodles Alfredo mix. I poorly measure and it ends up soupy so I eat all the noodles and most of the sauce-the whole package. mmmmmm.... Still some leftover smoked, braided Mozarella. mmmmm

This definitely pepped me up. Still, I had to get to the top of the mountain. I didn't really have the time to hike up, but if I had to, I had to. Getting to Media Spring and Placitas was out of the question after loosing so much time and territory yesterday. My best hope was the chair lift up. Once at the top, I had about 5 hours back to the trailhead. First I had a mile hike to the ski area.

Well, things were hopping on this side of the mountain. I come across obvious spectators behind a barrier at one of the curves in the road. Downhill skateboarding "and here they come!!!". Two skaters fly down the road in helmets and leathers. A few minutes later, two more in their best Rastafarian duds. Along the way, I see somebody from the Forest Service, and yes, the chair runs today, starting at 10:00! Yea!! This is working out.

At the ski area things are happening too. Tourists showing up to rent bikes and ride the trails on the ski area, most taking the chair up. They are disappointed, though, there is a race up then down and weren't allowed on the trails till the race was over.

10:00 sharp and I am loaded onto a chair with my pack and head up. The weather is ideal. In shorts, short sleeves with sun and a breeze, I'm perfectly comfortable. That won't last all day. It should be in the mid nineties at my truck. Along the way I see a couple of mountain bikers, including one wipe out.

I was surprised when I saw the biggest, darkest Irish Setter I had ever seen in my life. Wait, that's not a dog, it's a black bear with a deep reddish undertone! And two similar colored cubs scurring after. By the time I get my camera up and get a shot they are disappearing into the woods. I appear to be the only person to see them. Big grin on my face while I pass over the many switchbacks from my previous misadventure. Oh well, I got water, I got to ride the chair lift, saw some bears and only had to go downhill from there. A mere 3,800 down, that is.

At the top, I don't even consider the Tram down. It would still leave me with an hour hike down there in the heat, juniper and cactus. I'd rather do the longer hike, staying cool as long as possbile and getting in as much of my planned hike as possible.

From the Tram terminal (I also supress the desire to stick around for lunch at the restaurant) I head south on the South Crest Trail, dropping from 10,600 to 9,200 along and just below the crest with views of Albqueruque to the west and the east mountain communities. http://www.topozone.com/map.asp?z=13&n=3895060&e=370505&s=50


The trail alternates between oak groves, conifer forests, exposed meadows and fields of limestone blocks. I reach the intersection with the Pino Trail, my route down to the truck, uneventfully. The knee is doing pretty good by stepping up good knee first and bad knee first down hill. It seems climbing uphill is what gets it going. Once hurting weight bearing extension or flexion beyond a limit hurts. Resting still helps alot when it gets too uncomfortable. Gotta start the Chondroitin Sulfate and Glucosamine!

I'm feeling good at the trail intersection, where I stop for lunch. The conditions are still perfect. Light breeze, sunny, warm but not too warm. I've got a steep 9,200 to 6,700 decline ahead. Much of the trail is rough and rocky, especially at the top. My feet have a couple of hot spots, but doing well considering. No blisters.

Going down is not very eventful. Great views, but pounding down the mountain. Those hot spots are hot now!! At the spring, I can't resist. Off come my boots and I cool my heels in the runnoff from the spring pool. This little spring is the second best spring on the trip. Only Cienega is better. No blisters. Fresh socks and I'm ready for the last two hours down. Boom, boom boom. Into the sun, its getting hotter. I'm thankful most of the trail is on the shady side of the canyon. Finally, I'm into the juniper and cholla of the Albuquerque open space. Another mile and I'm at the truck.

I could have cut some more weight. Before I took off I went through the pack once more and took out my rain pants (substitute-rain jacket with gaiters), long sleeve shirt, some duplications in my cook gear, a little bit of food. I should have taken out more food. I calculated my food need with the NOLS formula which indicated 3.2 pounds of food for two days. I should have listened to it. I packed from the cupboard and ended up with about 5 lbs. I didn't believe the NOLS book. I had about 2 lbs of food left when I got home. Now I believe. I also don't eat nearly as much with hot weather and exertion as I would predict. I'm leaning towards non cook lunch and dinner, bigger breakfast when I have more of an appetite.

I took a sleeping bag for colder temps than I encountered, so I could have save weight there too. However, my midweight bag weighs significantly more than my cold weather bag. Must mean I need a better midweight bag!
On this trip I could have done with my 40+ bag, but that is chancy in the mountains here.

I hiked in nylon shorts and shirt the whole way and never needed to change (peeyew!). That white shirt for sunny hot weather was one dirty shirt. I needed a jacket once during the first night setting up camp. My Saloman Backcountry Classic 8 boot performed heroically. My Osprey Motherload worked well and was comfortable, but is heavy and prone to overload. I have to outsmart the pack and decide whether 7.5 lbs is worth it. For the comfort under load, some of my gear "comfort" preferences that will probably keep me in the 35-45 lbs. range, and not needing to by ANOTHER backpack, I think I will focus on trimming the pack ala Mary Phyl, refining my pack list and not overpacking food. (Although, in emergency I had enough to last a day or more!)

I'd completed the loop, with a little diversion requiring an adjustment. I found some of the springs; had the mountain to my self at night; viewed some great scenery and most of all had some awesome, yet rugged hiking. One thing is certain-I'll do it again! Film goes in tomorrow.”

“Photos:

(Pino Trail ascent was mostly dark, so no pics)

Sandia Two Nighter Photo Album

Thanks for the html Violin!”