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Recreational Activities
Home : Ranger
Districts : Española Ranger District
: Trails
Trail 351, Joe Vigil Trail
 
Length: 1 mile
Difficulty: Difficult
Use: Light
Seasons: Summer and mid-fall
Lowest and Highest Points: 9,600 feet to 11,4254 feet
Trail Access: This trail is accessed from the Rio
Medio Trail 155, and offers the most direct route from the western
slope of the Pecos to the high country areas of Trailrider’s
Wall and the base of the Truchas Peaks. The Rio Medio Trail is reached
by following State Highway 503 just north of the village of Cundiyo;
turn east on Forest Road 306 and follow it 9 miles to Forest Road
435 and the Borrego Mesa Campground.
The Rio Medio Trailhead begins just beyond and above the campground,
and is shown as Trailhead 6 on the 2003 Pecos Wilderness Map. Follow
the Rio Medio Trail about 7 miles upstream, past the Capulin
Trail 158 junction, to the junction with the Joe Vigil Trail
351.
USGS Maps: USGS Truchas Peak and Pecos Wilderness Map (2003 edition)
Description:
Trail 351 leaves the Rio Medio
Trail 155 and turns to the north, following the north
fork of the Rio Medio upstream and to the northeast. After
another mile and a half up the canyon, at a flat grassy plateau
the junction with the Vigil Lake Trail 352 is encountered,
which would take the visitor up to Vigil Lake, set in a high
glacial cirque. Trail 351 continues east up the canyon, climbing
steeply at times to a couple of small boggy lakes called the
Twin Lakes, which sit just below Trailrider’s Wall.
Trail 351 climbs up past the Twin Lakes and gains the top
of the ridge, with Trailrider’s Wall to the south and
the flanks of the Truchas Peaks to the north. |
Notes:
 This
is a very busy trail and is used primarily with Trail
170 to either create a short easy loop in the foothills,
or to continue on Trail 170 to the summit of Atalaya Mountain.
it
offers a larger parking area that can always accommodate vehicles,
even when the smaller parking lot for Trail 170 is full. No
horses allowed. |
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