Facing Our Nemesis: Chamisa Trail

Everyone’s got one. For Superman, it was Lex Luthor. For the PowerPuff Girls, it was Mojo Jojo. For right-wing extremists, it’s the existence of people with melanin. You get the idea. Well, Chamisa was ours.

When we first moved to Santa Fe a year ago, this was one of our first hikes. Up to 8,500 feet of elevation and over 800 feet of climb in the first mile. It kicked our butts. We made it to the top of the trail about a mile and a half in, but we were done. We high-tailed it out of there (downhill, thankfully) and licked our wounds.

It’s become a benchmark of sorts since then. Every hike we’ve done has been relative to that one. “Oh, that’s a 400-foot elevation gain? That’s only half a Chamisa.”

Today we went back, determined to make it through and back with smiles on our faces. And we did! In fact, we extended out another 2.5 miles onto the Winsor Trail to bring today’s hike to 6.7 miles and over 1,300 feet of total ascent. We didn’t even let a minor rain shower and small hail (pea-sized) turn us back.

Pro tip: always keep an emergency poncho in your pack, even when the forecast is clear. Mountains make their own weather.

The wildflowers were blooming and the Little Tesuque Creek was positively rowdy!

Little Tesuque Creek running along the Winsor Trail in the Santa Fe National Forest

All in all, it was a great day on the trail, made better by a great meal at Betterday Coffee. Be sure to check out the full gallery (includes shots from both hikes)