June Backpacking in the Pecos Wilderness

We, were a group of three including my son, a friend of his, and myself, began our adventure in Cowles, NM from the Winsor Trailhead. A sign posted at the beginning of the trail mentioned a bit of history about the trail and how it got named. Apparently, it was named for the Winsor family that homesteaded in Cowles in 1892 and built a resort. The family operated the Winsor Resort until 1949. The trail was used by travelers, and the Winsor Family to transport game and goods to and from Santa Fe by horseback in the early 1900’s.

The trail took us gradually uphill through a lush, aspen dotted canyon with a roaring stream. We passed grassy hillsides filled with flowering plants such as wild strawberries and irises. Soon we came across the sign designating the boundary of the Pecos Wilderness. At approximately one-mile up the trail, we crossed the creek on a double plank bridge hewed from two twelve-inch diameter fir trees. Not far past the crossing, we came to our trail junction. We took the unmaintained, shortcut trail that leads along the creek further up the canyon. We were on the north aspect of the ridge, and therefor the forest became even more lush. We passed countless red columbine flowers blooming right next to the trail. After climbing over and under numerous deadfalls across the moderately difficult trail, we came across a beautiful find. It was a Fairy Slipper Orchid. We were now in a mixed forest of spruce, douglas fir and aspen. We arrived at the next junction that completed the shortcut with the Winsor Trail. Soon, we arrived at our campsite 3.3 miles from the trailhead.

At the campsite, we set up our tents, rolled out our sleeping gear, ate some snacks, and set up our bear bag. I packed some more snacks, water and supplies in a backpack and we were ready to proceed to our first major destination, Stewart Lake.

The only major obstacle was the stream crossing near camp. My Son’s friend had never been backpacking before let alone crossing a cold, snow melt stream in knee deep water, but he made it through like a trooper. He carried the go-pro camera on his head so that I could get his point of view on the trail. A half a mile later, we arrived at the lake.

The lake was magnificent. The weather was sunny and beautiful. Marsh marigolds were blooming along the shores. The water was clear and cold, and there was still snow covering much of the peak on the far side of the lake. In fact, there was still a small patch of snow near the outlet creek of the lake. We just hung out and enjoyed the beauty of the location for an hour or more. Much too soon, it was time to return to camp.

Back at our base camp, we boiled water to re-hydrate our chicken and dumpling dinners. The kids had fun roasting marshmallows and discussing video game strategies after we ate dinner. The sky began to darken, and a brilliant pink and red sunset filled the sky behind the treetops. The waxing half-moon came out at the same time. The setting was serene and idyllic. Around 9:00 we are turned in for bed. I slept well that night and woke up around 6:00 am.

I boiled water for coffee and enjoyed the golden early morning light hitting the treetops and hillsides above me. The mocha late was delicious. Soon, the kids were awake, and we made a breakfast of oatmeal and raisins. We packed a fairly heavy pack for the day hike in which I carried, and by 8:30 we were off exploring a new trail. The trail switch-backed up the side of a large ridge. Sometimes it came within close proximity to Winsor Creek. The water from the creek seemed to be cascading in numerous falls strait down the mountain. After a good climb, we made it to the top of a ridge where we began to encounter patches of snow. We kept climbing up and up until we made it to a steep slope where there were a couple of sketchy traverses over snowbanks. Finally, the trail dropped down a bit into a small basin where there was a rocky pond. We were only a little way from Lake Katherine now.

We hung out at the pond for a while and enjoyed the snow-covered scene. Rocky cliffs and roaring streams surrounded us. A marmot ran across our path just before we sat down on a log to drink some water and have a snack. I scouted ahead a little on the path that we were following. There was a dangerous stream crossing just ahead. I discussed it with the boys, and we all decided that we shouldn’t go that way. It was a snow overhang that we had to jump onto from a rock over a deep hole in the stream. I did test it out, and it held my weight, but if it did break through when one of the kids was on it, they could get sucked under the snow and drown. Of course, I did not want to put their lives at risk. We checked out one more crossing, and the kids still didn’t feel comfortable with it, so we turned around to go back down the mountain and check out Spirit Lake.

By the time we got back down the mountain, and hiked up the trail towards Spirit Lake, we were all pretty tired. The creek crossing looked like a long jump for the kids, so once again we turned back. It was discouraging that we didn’t make it to two of the three objectives that I wanted to see. At least along the way back to camp, we came across another orchid. Then we came across a patch of three orchids. That was great to see. So, after about five hours of hiking, we returned to base camp.

At camp, we boiled more water for a dinner of Idahoan Mashed Potatoes and Summer Sausage. The kids loved it. Again, they discussed video game strategies, and they began to talk about designs for their new VR game that they are planning to invent. Meanwhile, I began to get a headache and realized that I had not been drinking enough water. I was dehydrated. I took some Ibuprofen and drank lots of water, but it was too late, and the headache didn’t go away. I took a couple of short naps, and they helped a bit, but my head was still throbbing. The weather was threatening to rain, so I hung a tarp over the campsite. Too many clouds came over us for a good sunset. It would have been a bad evening for me if a deer had not made its way along the edge of camp for our viewing pleasure.

I did not have a good night’s sleep, either. I tossed and turned, and my neck kinked which gave me even more of a headache. Finally, after taking another large dose of Ibuprofen the next morning, I found some relief.

I continued to perpetuate my usual morning routine of coffee and oatmeal. After breakfast, we took our time packing up camp for the journey home. We left around 9:30 and proceeded to take the Winsor Trail back to the trailhead. This time, we did not take the unmaintained shortcut. This saved us from climbing over approximately fifty logs. The scenery on the main trail was magnificent. It was the kind of forest that you picture in your head when you think of a wilderness area. Beautiful open spacing between the trees with a grassy and lush forest floor. The stands of aspen were like paradise. Wallflowers lined the path, as well as some irises and paintbrushes. The views to the south down the Pecos River Canyon were splendid. We got a glimpse through the trees of several snow-covered peaks in the area including Pecos Baldy and Santa Fe Baldy. We even saw a horny toad, a butterfly, and some bear scat. After six miles of hiking, we arrived tired, but safe and sound back at the trailhead.

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