A winning gamble
A change of plans on a winter hike in the Sandias leads to an unexpected and memorable moment
Sometimes taking a chance on the unknown yields the unexpected — a memory for a lifetime. Such was the case when we nixed all the tried-and-true snowshoe options on the way to Sandia Peak Ski Area and stopped at the Capulin Snow Play Area.
It was the weekend and there were many cars in the parking lot; kids and adults twirling down the steeps. I remembered years back when I did the same thing with my own little girls.
We entered the area, stayed right and kept driving until the road began to curve round. Hardly visible, a sign near the area’s vault toilets read: Capulin Peak Trail. I knew it would be a gamble. Capulin means “chokecherry,” and the little bushes clump around the spring which flows in spring and summer. Ancients used it to make remedies for coughs and colds. At one point, there was a fire lookout on its peak that burned in the late 1940s.
In a matter of moments, we were on the Capulin Peak Trail; the snow was perfect. The amber oak leaves were still holding on, streaming gracefully on the wind, casting their shadows onto the white blanket. I stopped and filled my lungs, looked up through the spruce and fir into that New Mexico cloudless blue.
The trail is wide and easy to follow. A quarter mile in, stay left and follow the blue rectangles nailed to the big spruces. There are two large downed trees along this stretch.
A last one is ahead, but the trail goes round it. Shortly after comes a nice ascent and then a break-out into the open. A bit further and you’ve climbed the 9,375 ft. Capulin Peak with a stunning view south to Sandia Peak Ski Area, the eastern slopes, and beyond.
Looking to the left, another wide trail heads towards the forest. Take it, because here is where your surprise waits. Another mile through the green and white breaks out onto a ridge that ends abruptly with a steep, rocky drop on its three sides and a big cairn.
Time to take off your snowshoes and hike in your boots.
The view takes you to it now. A careful walk near the edge reveals a brown thread of a road way below that winds towards the East mountain homes.
The fabled Ortiz Mountains, in full dress, are to the north and east.
The old stories say that much gold was hidden in them by robbers who disappeared in their deep folds foiling hunting sheriffs and marshals. Santa Fe Baldy, Jemez and beyond to Truchas spread before your eyes, propped like beautiful, white-brushed paintings against a sapphire blue sky.
We all fall in love with our New Mexico again, so glad we took a chance.