Caldera Rim Trip Report Camp May Saddle

East Rim

Date: July 1, 2007 Purpose: Check the tree line on the Camp May Saddle and Cerro Bonito to see if there are any notable views into the caldera. USGS Topographic Map: Valle Toledo Participants: Dorothy Hoard, Bill Johnson, Peter Johnson Equipment: Garmin Global Positioning System Model GPS 12; digital camera Olympus Camedia C-3000; notebooks. Methodology: Recheck the Camp May Saddle to see if there are any good views into the Valle Grande. We had been on Camp May Saddle before, but had a long trip ahead of us then, so did not investigate the saddle carefully for views. Conclusions: In summary, the forest is heavily wooded on the rim at the Camp May Saddle from the base of Pajarito Mountain to the knoll that I call Cerro Bonito. The Camp May saddle has fine views to the east of the Rio Grande Valley and of the ski area to the south. Near the top of the knoll, the southeast rim comes into view. There are pocket views only of the Valle Grande. Los Alamos people would appreciate access to the saddle to enjoy the views, especially into the Valle Grande. However, they would have to walk up near the tree line of Cerro Bonito to access the views. This is actually an enjoyable walk because the views east and south are quite nice. the caldera; the forest effectively forms a wall just below the crown of the ridge. Aspen and spruce are invading parts of the saddle. The east side of the ridge has scattered trees but a fine view of the ski hill and east across the Rio Grande Valley to the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. The views improve and expand higher on the side of Cerro Bonito until the southeast corner of the caldera rim is in view around to Rabbit Mountain. A small section of the Valle Grande also comes into view. We parked at Camp May and hiked up an abandoned road that went to a small saddle between the summit of Cerro Bonito and its east ridge. From there we followed a logging road toward the summit of the knoll. The road ended and the knoll became rocky, We crossed the VCNP boundary fence. The summit is rather broad and presented no further obstacles except for deadfall. We trended to the southwestward side of the knoll to look for views into the caldera. But we found no more than we had found on previous visits. We went to the tree line on the west side of the knoll where the slope descended steeply westward. The forest here is very dense with much deadfall. We could not see through the forest, nor did we find any openings as we walked down toward the Camp May Saddle. (My camera malfunctioned, but there was not much to photograph.)

Trip Report: Introduction: The Tschicoma Formation forms the bulk of the east side of the Valles Caldera, including Pajarito Mountain and Cerro Bonito Knoll. Both are rounded lumps with steep sides, heavily wooded on the north. The slopes down to the Valle Grande are very steep and also very heavily wooded. Camp May Saddle is a typical Jemez grassland, currently being invaded with some aspen groves and spruce. This saddle was long a destination for Los Alamos hikers when Pat Dunigan owned the caldera and the view of the Valle Grande was not blocked by forest incursion. There was a gate at the rim that was not locked, so access was never restricted. Thirty or forty years ago, one had a good view into the Valle Grande, but the forest has spread significantly since that time. The fire road still leads to the saddle. There is a stout fence at the rim, but no gate. It divides the land owned by the Pajarito Mountain Ski Club, Camp May owned by the U.S. Forest Service on lease to Los Alamos County, and the VCNP, which owns all the area west of the rim. Description: Camp May saddle is a long, fairly narrow ridge extending between the north flank of Pajarito Mountain and Cerro Bonito. The saddle has a good stand of large bunch grasses typical of the south-facing slopes of the Jemez, primarily Thurber fescue and Parry oatgrass. The west side of the saddle is densely forested, blocking any view directly into

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East Rim

Dense forest on the west slope of Cerro Bonito.

Grassy incursions into the forest did not reveal any views.

We did not go down to the lowest point on the saddle, but descended eastward straight down the grassy slope toward our parked vehicle. The boundary fence had been rerouted by the sale of some of the Baca land to the Ski Club, but the old fence never removed. The old fence had fallen, but the new fence was tight. On the descent, Peter flushed two pigeons, which startled us all.

Access: A paved road off State Road 501 just uphill from the Los Alamos National Laboratory security gate leads to the Pajarito Mountain Ski Area. Ample parking is available except during snow season when the ski area is open three days a week plus holidays. A dirt road continues uphill to a county recreation area called Camp May with picnic tables and limited car camping by permit. Informant: Dorothy Hoard. Time – 10:00 to 12:15.

Red = rim, purple = Camp May Road, dark green = ex-road - now trail, bright green = our route. This is at Pajarito Mountain Ski Area. 2