Holly and I were up first for our early morning coffee. It was cold and we were bundled up in wintergear. We waited for Nina, who was awake two hours later. That gave me a chance to walk around the campground and walk up a game trail that took me up a hillside overlooking the campsite. I could see the many burned trees, but also new growth.
We had many trails to chose from. I picked hiking part of the Rim Trail, New Mexico's first National Recreation trail. It's 30.6 miles long and follows NM130 from Cloudcroft to Sunspot, starting in the high country and ending in the desert. It's open to hikers, equestrians and mountain bikers. I suggested a section along the northern part in Section 1 that offers views of the basin to the west, with White Sands National Monument in the background. Elevation is minimal and would not be too exhausting for Nina. Everyone agreed to hiking the Rim Trail. We just had to agree on where to start, as there are so many starting points and parking areas.
We stopped at the Lincoln National Forest Ranger Station on NM130, only a mile from the first trailhead. Maps are available for day hikes, as well as a water pump for campers. We parked across the street from Deerwood campground, a fee area, and started our hike heading southwest, walking through a tunnel under NM130 to get started.
The Rim trail here hugs the road and you never get away from traffic noise. Parts of the trail are old railroad grade, others are old logging or Indian trails. The forest is healthy here, but I was hoping to hike among the aspen! It was all Douglas fir. We took our time, slowing down for Nina and at times stopping for Zeke, but we kept a steady pace. We met other backpackers and a few mountain bikers. Woodpeckers and Stellar Jays were the two birds we kept hearing
We passed a second campground a mile on the trail, the Slide Campground. This was a group campsite occupied by one huge tractor-trailer camper. Once we got past this campground, the trail veered away from the trail and onto a ridgeline, and then the trail opened up to breathtaking views of the Tularosa valley basin to the west and the White Sands. The trail finally had a rural feel to it. The trail was rocky and narrow and was slowly descending. We agreed to hike just a little bit farther before turning around. We didn't want to have to hike up a steep ascent on our return hike. The trail was also more exposed here, which quickly warmed Zeke. I came across a horned toad that flitted across the trail and into the low brush. Its markings were much darker than the horned toads in southern Arizona, but I couldn't get a good enough photo of it.
We found our perfect turn-around point. The Rim Trail hooks back on the ridge to continue on that ridge before dropping in elevation. We had hiked 2.4 miles to this point. A young man came by and took our picture, before continuing on the trail and disappearing from sight.
Weather was near perfect for today's hike. It was in the 70s with little breeze. Most of the hike was in forested land, keeping us and Zeke cool. We stopped at a parking area at a picnic table for water, then discovered a tombstone off the trail in honor of Rebecca S. Zacniewski (1944-2005), "Wife, Mom, Grandma". How did that tombstone manage to be placed on national forest land?
We walked back the way we came, diverting only briefly to explore a logging trail that followed a ridgeline. We were back in town by 3pm, again hungry for a meal that didn't require us to yell at each other. The brewpub was out of the question, so we settled for Dave's Cafe. I had eaten here two months ago on my drive back to Arizona from Indiana. The meal was OK (nothing to rave about), but at least it was quiet inside. I took a risk coming back here a second time.
A lot of other people had the same idea we did. There are only four eateries in Cloudcroft, and on a midday early autumn weekend, surely all are busy. But we waited a long time for everything. From getting seated, to giving our drink order, then getting our drinks, to finally taking our food order. It took another hour to get our food, and then Nina's order was not correct, as she specified gluten-free and got fried corn chips with her order. By the time she got her food, Holly and I were done with ours. We had spent over two hours in Dave's Cafe. I don't think I want to give up any more hours of my life there. I could tell that Holly and Nina were disappointed, too.
It was now early evening and we headed back to the campsite. Nina drove with Holly and they stopped at the town's Family Dollar store, where Nina found some gluten-free soup. I arrived at the campsite first and walked around a bit. They arrived 20 minutes later.
What a day. We finished off with a lovely campfire. Holly is quite adept at making fire. Her husband Doug had cut up wood for her to use and that came in handy. Zeke was apprehensive of the fire and wanted to stay in the car, so I let him. It was warm and safe there for him and he didn't mind my hours-long chat with the others, talking about our time in Alaska and Texas, two states all of us have lived in or traveled to. Holly and Doug left Alaska this past January to return to Texas where they plan on retiring when he's 59 years old. He's got three years left before he can leave the National Park Service. He is finishing off his time at Guadalupe National Park. I will someday visit them there.
Drivers on US82 pulled into the campsite all night long to use the vault toilet, and one car with Alaska plates pulled in for the night. We didn't get to talk to them until the next morning.
It was another cool night, dipping down to 44F, but no rain this time.
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