A trail with excellent views of the Sangre de Cristo, Jemez, Sandia,
San Pedro, and Ortiz mountains (i.e. views in most all directions).
This trail gains 855 ft (261 m) in the first 0.94 mi (1.5km). However,
the climb is worth it for the views.
Hyde Park Circle Trail
A trail with excellent views of the Sangre de Cristo, Jemez, Sandia,
San Pedro, and Ortiz mountains (i.e. views in most all directions).
This trail gains 855 ft (261 m) in the first 0.94 mi (1.5km). However,
the climb is worth it for the views.
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Hike data:
| Controlling agency: | New Mexico State Parks; hike web site | ||||||||
| Location in the state: | North-central; Sangre de Cristo Mountains | ||||||||
| Trailhead waypoint(s): | HMPLP | ||||||||
| Elevation: |
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| Elevation gain/loss: | 1246 ft; 380 m | ||||||||
| Length: | 3.91 mi; 6.29 km. The actual length will vary depending on the route you take through the campground. | ||||||||
| How long it took us (HH:MM): | 03:00. | ||||||||
| Cleanliness: | 9/10 | ||||||||
| Trail usage: | 2.67 people/hour. Most of the people are on the trail behind the campground. 8/11/02: I only saw two people on the ridge portion of the trail. 8/28/04: I saw nobody on the ridge. Both times, I could hear people in the park as well as the traffic on the road for much of the hike. The park gets heavy use due to its proximity to Santa Fe. | ||||||||
| Trail Condition: | Narrow and rocky in places. Never hard to follow. | ||||||||
| Fee: | $5.00. | ||||||||
| When we hiked it: | 2004-08-28. 8/11/02 | ||||||||
| Trailhead facilities: | Water, trash cans, toilets, picnic area. Water, restrooms, and trash cans are available at the visitor center near the trailhead, as well as on the part of the hike that goes behind the campground. | ||||||||
| Special features of the hike: | Wildflowers, wildlife, scenery, exercise. | ||||||||
| When to hike: | All year. This hike can be quite hot with the elevation gain. Be sure to take sufficient water. Winter is hikable only if we are in a drought. Snow damage to the trees on the ridge shows winter may require cross-country skis. Check with the park before trying this trail in winter. | ||||||||
| General comments: | This hike is near both the Hyde Memorial State Park and the Black Canyon campgrounds. If you stay at Black Canyon, a trail crosses the meadow from behind the fenced area behind site 41 (near the highway). |
Maps:
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Getting to the trailhead:
The hike:
 | You start by crossing a bridge over the Little Tesuque Creek. You can
barely see it in the photo. While this trail's elevation is not
large compared to many hikes we have done, the elevation gain happens
in a much shorter distance. You get to start climbing as soon as you
cross the creek, and you will be climbing almost non-stop for the first
third of the hike. The initial part of the hike is in and out of shade,
and as a result, the sun can be hot. Make sure that you take enough
water on this hike.
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Here is an early view south, with some of the trail in it. As you are climbing, the trail at times has some level parts. Enjoy these---they are a welcome respite. |  |
 | As you climb, you can see Black Canyon, where the campground is, however, you cannot see the campground itself. As you continue to climb, take regular stops to view the scenery; the views on this hike are great, and at one time or another, you get views off in all directions. This view is to the SSE. |
When you have been hiking around 40 minutes or so, you reach a ridge line where you may get more breeze. I certainly appreciated the cooling air. The trail is on granite and decomposed granite. Granite is made of feldspar, quartz, and mica. Sometimes you will see a bunch of only one of these minerals, or rocks which a preponderance of one. For example the rock in the picture has a lot of mica in it. Another reason to look for the micaceous rocks is that they indicate that you are nearing the top. |  |
 | When we first hiked this trail, New Mexico had been in a serious drought
for a while. As a result, there were few wildflowers. However, this
Scarlet Gilia (also known as a Scarlet Skyrocket) was making a go at it.
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When you start getting views off to the southwest (Santa Fe, the San Pedro Mountains, the Sandia Mountains) and west (Jemez mountains), you can be happy for many reasons. One is for the views. Another is because you are nearly at the top of the hike. This view is to the WNW, and you can see the Jemez in the distance. |  |
 | When you start to see trees down all around you from winter damage, you
have reached the end of the big climb. Take a break, smell the forest,
and drink some water.
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I shared the trail with this granite-colored horned lizard. He or she
was gracious enough to allow me to take this photo.
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 | Enjoy the views of the Sangre de Cristo mountains. When the trail heads down, this is not really the beginning of the trek down. |
Right after a short climb, you reach a pair of picnic tables. These
always strike me as odd, because normally I expect tables to be near a
road. I wonder how they got up here. They make a nice rest before
heading downhill.
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 | From the picnic tables, the trail used to have two branches. You could go past the picnic tables, or start down here. If you have older guidebooks, they will mention this. I took this older branch the first time. The park has changed the trail; you should take the trail that goes down. They indicate it with tree trunks on either side of the trail. When I took this photo, I was standing near the second picnic table. |
The forest is different on the way down. You are walking through more shade. The second time we hiked this trail, the Oregon Grape were getting ripe. The turning leaves and ripening berries indicated that autumn was on its way. |  |
 | The trail heads down, steeply at times (hiking poles may be useful).
You also go around several switchbacks (such as this one). Please do not
cut across the area between the switchbacks; doing so is even steeper,
and it can cause erosion problems on the trail.
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When you get near the bottom of the hill, you will reach a junction.
This is the Girl Scout Joe M. Clark memorial nature trail.
The two paths will both take you to the trailhead for the nature trail.
I took the lower branch. You will know you are on this trail when
the trail is rock-edged.
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 | When you reach the trailhead for the nature trail, you have several
options. You could walk along the highway back to the trailhead.
However, a better choice is to cross the highway, and go uphill just past
the ice skating pond. You will find this bridge. Cross it, and on the
other side, go up and to the left.
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When the trail gets to the gravel road, you should see this trailhead across the road. If you have a GPS, it is HPLP2. This trail runs behind the campgrounds. Actually, it is one of several. All should eventually take you to the visitor center. A ranger warned me that this trail goes through a couple of campsites. If you continue in the direction you were heading, you will find the trail picks up again. This was good advice, as I would have been quite confused has he not mentioned it. You go right through campsites 17 and 15. The trail takes up again on the other side of the road, on the right side of site 15. Also, one time I obviously made a wrong turn and the trail I was on died out. I headed downhill and found the real trail again. |  |
Plants we saw along the trail:
Animals we saw along the trail:
Reader comments about this hike:
On Sat Jul 2 18:39:47 2005 Duane Costa from Albuquerque, NM said:Add your comments about the Hyde Park Circle Trail hike.
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