A Glorious Day from Chamisa to Saddleback Trail

On a warm, winter day, we headed up to Chamisa Trail near Hyde Park on the way to the Santa Fe ski basin. This is a nice, easy hike with a fair amount of elevation gain for a decent workout and views of the valley below. This is a beautiful hike in late spring when the wildflowers bloom and in the fall when the aspens turn gold. It's a perfect option if you only have a few hours to explore. The trail is a great escape from the city and you feel deep in the mountains in a matter of minutes.

I smell doggy pee!

From the trailhead, you have two options for the Chamisa trail. You can go right, which winds up the mountain ridge, beginning with a 700 ft elevation gain to get the blood pumping, and rolls along the ridge with views of the canyon below. The other option is to take the left trail which follows a dry river canyon below the ridge trail. The trail is fairly flat until right before the two trails intersect, the trail becomes quite steep to reach the meeting point. We usually take the right route up and enjoy hiking deeper in the woods to begin our trek. 

This trail is fairly shaded, so we ran into many snow patches, including some ice and slush! It was a warm 50 degree day, so I was thankful for the shade and snow. When it's cool out, I'm much better at hiking and completed the 6 mile trek by myself. And I wasn't the only one loving the snow! When Roxie would see patches of snow, she'd go nuts!

Time for a quick pose with my human!

We like to follow this hike up to Saddleback Trail which follows a mountain ridge and offers a great lookout point to view the Santa Fe valley. Another option, and great for summer hikes, is to follow the trail down to Tesuque creek, where the trail connects to the lower part of Winsor trail. Today we chose the Saddleback trail and enjoyed the beautiful vistas along this trail. 

Looking a little bald up there? Come on, New Mexico, we need more snow!

Hurry up, humans, we're almost to the lookout!

The Saddleback trail continues on and connects with the Juan Trail for a full looped hike, but we usually turn around at our favorite lookout spot for an out-and-back hike. The lookout offers beautiful views of the Santa Fe valley and marks the 3 miles point hiking up. 

Admiring the view!

When we returned to the Chamisa trail, we decided to take the right route down. It begins with a steep decline to the dry river valley below, and then the trail flattens out and slowly winds its way down the canyon. This is my favorite part of the hike, where you can relax and continue down to the trailhead. 

-Rosie

An afternoon at the Bosque

We took a weekend retreat from the fridged weather in Santa Fe –we hadn't seen a day over 20 degrees all week –and traveled south to stay with our grandpawrents in Albuquerque. We took advantage of a warm, clear afternoon and walked to the Bosque along the Rio Grande.

The Bosque in New Mexico is a treasured gem. Spanish for woodlands, the Bosque is a unique ecosystem of riparian forests and floodplains that surround the river. This ecosystem is specific to the Southwest's arid landscape and found mostly along the Rio Grande. The combination of the river and the forest makes the Bosque a haven for an unusual variety of flora and fauna and an oasis of vegetation and biodiversity. The Bosque is home to a variety of shrubs, grasses, and deciduous trees. Desert hackberry, blue palo verde, graythorn, Mexican elder, "virgin's bower" and "Indian root" all flourish here in the Bosque. A recently published field guide lists more than 500 different species of animals living in New Mexico’s Bosque as well.

Since we had the riverbank to ourselves and no one was around, our pawrents let us play for a bit along the riverbank and the shallow streams. It was a balmy 40-degree day with the warm sunshine beaming down, so we had a blast playing in the cool water and running along the shore. 

Little sis was quite the athlete running through the sand and leaping across the shallow waters. She was having a blast! Sometimes I am amazed how fast her little stubby legs can carry her. What a wonderful afternoon at the Bosque!

Happy tails, happy trails!

-Roxie

A Winter Wonderland Hike

This past holiday weekend, Northern New Mexico got hit with another snow storm! We took advantage of the new snow on Sunday, and headed up to Sun Mountain for a winter wonderland hike. My pawrents bundled me up in my hot pink jacket and we hit the trail. It snowed the entire time we hiked, adding to the enchanted feeling of the winter scene and forest.

Sun Mountain is a great regular hike for local Santa Feans. It is easy to get to, only around 5 miles roundtrip, and roughly 700 feet in vertical elevation gain; but in the end, you get to stand on top of a small foothill and admire 360 degree views from the top!

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Look at all that snow!

Back in 2010, Sun Mountain was saved by a citizen's movement to purchase and protect 22 acres along the foothills (including the iconic Sun Mountain) through the Trust from Public Land. The City of Santa Fe then completed the trailhead amenities, and many volunteers and the Trails Alliance of Santa Fe worked to define the path and open the trail to the general public. It is thanks to everyone's hard work and dedication that we are able to enjoy the trail and Sun Mountain today! Thanks, furrends! Woof, woof!

This was the very first hike I went on with my pawrents when they adopted me last February. Having such short, stubby legs, I have always enjoyed this hike as it is only a short sprint to the top. Roxie, being a winter lioness on the trail, loves to sprint past us and explore off the beaten path following the many forest scents.

There is something magical about being in the mountain forest while it is softly snowing. The forest is so quiet and calm. Oh, the magical wonders of wintertime in New Mexico!

-Rosie

First Snow Hike of the Year

Our first hike after the new year was a snow hike! After a warm and dry November, we are finally getting snow here in New Mexico. My paws have been missing the feeling of running through fresh powder - until now! Sunday was a beautiful sunny, bluebird day here in Santa Fe, so we headed up to our old faithful, Atalaya Mountain, to test our snow legs. This was little sis's first snow hike, so we bundled her up in her hot pink jacket and brought her shoes just in case her paws got too cold. She was a trooper and did the whole hike by herself!

Rosie loves posing for the camera!

Our pawrents let me lead the way through the forest. I love this forest - it always reminds me of the Narnia novels, especially in wintertime. It's amazing how much the forest changes throughout the seasons. This trail looks so different from when we last saw it in November. On our hike up, the trail was still cool and the snow soft with plenty of fresh powder to explore. I love scouting and looking for bunny tracks in the forest. 

By the time we had reached the trail's intersection between the steep and easy route, the sun was bright and shining down on the trail, softening the snow and warming our backs. Lil sis wanted to try the easier route, but our pawrents were ready for the steep route once again. Our pawrents, even with their crampons, were slipping and sliding all over the trail. But lil sis and I climbed up the trail like pros - thanks to our claws and four legs!

After the slippery switchbacks, we made it to the top of Atalaya Mountain. The views from the top never cease to amaze me and always take my breath away! It was a wee bit windy at the top, so we all took our token family hiking pictures at the top, got our fill of fresh water, and headed back down the mountain. 

Coming down was an adventure in itself! The sun had melted the snow into slush, so we all had a good time sliding down the trail, trying not to fall! Atalaya Mountain has been, and continues to be, one of my favorite hikes in New Mexico! Woof woof!

-Roxie

Merry Christmas, Furrends!

Merry Christmas, Furrends! 

Click here to view our Christmas morning video opening our stockings!

Lots of licks, 

Roxie and Rosie