Hiked the Pino Trail in the Sandia Mountains Wilderness northeast of Albuquerque today. The City of Albuquerque open space adjoins the Cibola National Forestountains Wilderness (part of the Cibola National Forest); need to pay a fee ($2 per day on weekends) to get through the open space to access the Wilderness. Given the proximity to Albuquerque (a 15 minute drive from the KOA where I stayed) and the relatively easy hike, the Pino is heavily used. According to the FS, Pino Trail is 4.72 miles one-way with an elevation gain of 2,798 feet. Lots of people and dogs off leash (which surprised me given the Wilderness status); however, once the Pino connects to the Crest at the saddle, human trail traffic declines. I hiked the Crest for awhile without seeing another person. There was a bit of snow cover on the upper Pino and the Crest. The elevation at the top of the Pino and along the Crest varies but is generally only 9,000-10,000 feet.
The Pino starts out arid but with elevation the cacti are replaced by scrub oak and later with Ponderosa Pine. Beautiful area but it is a different kind of "Wilderness". Given the number of people (and dogs off leash) and proximity to the City, it is not your typical Wilderness. While on the Crest, I saw/heard two airplanes and heard what must have been a very loud motorcycle, truck, or car.
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