3Rz

In mid-Sept 2015, I climbed Little Costilla Peak in the Valle Vidal Unit of the Kit Carson NF.  I had watched the weather and carefully packed all my gear the night before. Since it was late Summer and almost Fall there wasn't much chance of an afternoon thunderstorm, but it was early enough to get caught in a snowstorm.  Buddy (my dog) and I left the house a few miles east of Trinidad, CO a little after 6 AM ( I can see Little Costilla Peak from my house).  We stopped in town for some fuel and we each had a sausage biscuit from McDonald's (remember this detail for later) before heading over Raton Pass to NM. It was cloudy at the top of the pass and remained that way until we turned off the pavement on US Hwy 64 near Cimarron, NM.  The Valle Vidal Unit is located 22 miles off the pavement and the parking area at the Clayton Corrals is another 15-20 miles beyond that.

  

We arrived at the parking area just after 0830.  Most of the clouds had burned off and I snapped a few pics and got my gear ready.  I placed all our food and the water bottles along with Buddy's water bowl into his dog pack and then we started up the trail at about 0900.  Not more than 100 yds up the trail my legs were already screaming in pain and my breathing was labored (the corrals are approximately 10000 ft and I live at 6000 ft. on the plains).  The internet said to follow the fence, but I decided to follow the topo map and blaze my own trail based on the contours and what appeared to be an easier route since the fence went straight up  (Its worth noting that the internet also said there was no clearly defined trail and you have to bushwhack your way to the treeline at 11000 ft.)  

About 15 min into the hike we were humping through boulders and downed timber.  I would stop every so often to catch my breath and then continue clawing my way upwards.  About 30 min into the hike we were still working our way through the boulder field and I looked down at Buddy and noticed he didn't have his pack on anymore!  I had last checked on him about 100 yds down the slope and he still had it then.  Great.  He must have gotten stuck in some rocks or downed trees and pulled himself free of the pack.  Regrettably, I turned around and headed down slope on what I thought had been my route up to look for the pack.  However, all the boulders and trees looked the same and in all likelihood Buddy hadn't followed my exact footsteps to get over the rocks and logs.  The search was fruitless and now we had no food for either of us and no water for Buddy.  The only water we had now was in my water bladder in my pack, but no way for Buddy to drink cause you have to suck it through a tube.

We continued up and finally hit a ridge line.  We walked along this ridge for a while and then sadly had to go down again to cross over to the main ridge to get to the peak.  Down we went through some really dense forest to the bottom of a ravine with flowing water.  A quick check of the map indicated that the best way to the ridge-line was to follow the ravine up.  This was good since Buddy now had a water source.  However, I soon discovered that Buddy must be a city dog or something cause he didn't know how to drink out of a stream.  Additionally, he is a border collie and has a natural aversion to water.  It took some coaxing, but I finally l got him to drink (Later on, I would sip water from my bladder and spit it out into my cupped hands so he could drink).

We continued up the drainage and after about an hour or more (with frequent stops to catch my breath) we finally made it to the treeline and the saddle. In a way I was glad to leave the trees because I discovered I don't like walking by myself in dense forest with no trail, but it had also been cool in the timber.  There was a little bit of a breeze above the treeline and I had prepared for that by bringing lots clothing for colder and windier weather.  However, the breeze wasn't bad and the weather stayed warm so I pressed on.  It was still slow going even though the slope wasn't near as bad as going straight up the side of the mountain.  At least for the time being, there was a clearly defined trail headed in the right direction. Now it was just the elevation and the soreness in my legs that were reeking havoc on this flatlander.   Pretty soon, the trail disappeared so I began picking out rocks, bushes, whatever and walking to them and then stopping to rest for a moment before continuing on toward the summit.

  

After another hour walking above the treeline on the ridge, I could finally see the marker on the top.  It was a tree branch shaped like a shepherds crook.  After 4 hours of hiking, I finally made it (12584 ft)!  I unloaded my pack (wt 35 lbs) and took some pics in all directions while Buddy took a dump and battled the biting flies.  I then signed my name to the hikers log and enjoyed the 360 degree views and quite solitude.  According to the log book, the last person to hike the peak was nearly a month before and most hikers seemed to be staffers or campers from the nearby Philmont Scout Ranch in Cimarron, NM.

After about 30 min on top, I decided it was time to head down.  I guessed it would take about 1/2 the time it took to go up.  Buddy was all about leaving the biting flies and stayed ahead of me until we got to the treeline.  After a quick consult with the map, I decided there was no way I was going back the same way and would follow the ridge all the way down. I knew this would dump me out on the road, but I would be about 1/2 to 3/4 of a mile from the corrals and the vehicle.  As we descended through the trees, I immediately hit the fence-line and began following it assuming it would go to the road (I was correct).  There was a semblance of a trail beside the fence so I knew I was on the right track. The fence pretty much went straight down and so did the "trail".  There were no switchbacks so my toes got mashed up into the front of my boots and it became very painful to walk.  Additionally, the back of my legs were like rubber bands at this point.  

Nearly 2 hrs after leaving the top, we made it to the road.  There was a small herd of cows loafing in the shade on the road and I proceeded to walk through them.  I made it through, but Buddy wasn't having any of that.  About this time, a truck with horse trailer came down the road and the cows parted.  I asked the driver if she would please give us a lift to the corrals.  She gladly gave us a ride and saved me from any more walking (especially since it was all up hill and my feet were killing me).  When we got to the corrals, I asked if she would take a pic of me and Buddy.  She was the only person I saw the entire day.

I then unloaded my gear, gave Buddy some water I had in the car and took off my boots & socks.  Relief at last!  We then loaded up and drove to Raton for something to eat.  Both of us had hamburgers.  We arrived home 12.5 hrs after leaving.

For me, this had to be one the worst hikes I've ever done mainly because there was no clearly defined trail up or down.  Although I have a very good sense of direction and I did have a topo map, compass and GPS, I would rather stick to well defined trails instead of making my own when hiking alone. However, I will say that once on top, the views in all directions were spectacular!