Victorio Mountains HP

Overview

The Victorio Mountains High Point is an unnamed peak 5,382 feet in elevation with a prominence of 817 feet. The Victorio Mountains run about four miles northwest to southeast and are located about 20 miles west of Deming in southwestern New Mexico. This obscure range is named after the famed 19th century Mimbres Apache Chief, Victorio, and is just several miles from the even more obscure town of Gage. Gage was once an actual town that had over 100 residents in 1930. Today, not much remains and it is basically a truck stop, gas station, restaurant, and RV park off Interstate 10.

The summit register, which was placed there in December of 2000 and had 22 entries as of February 2008, is testimony to the unpopularity of this peak. There are simply too many other summits in the region that garner attention. But the views are surprisingly nice for the little effort required to gain the summit. Numerous mountain ranges in virtually every direction can be seen, including the Chiricahuas to the west in Arizona and the Organs to the east.

NW summit view.

SSW summit view.

N summit view.

Getting There

Exit Interstate 10 at Gage, New Mexico (about 19 miles west of Deming) and proceed south on County Road C-020 for 1.4 miles. Be careful to slow down for the cattle guard just past the gas station on the county road as it acts as an inverse speed bump! Turn right onto the 4WD road and proceed west for 0.9 miles where the road will end in a clearing near the east base of the Victorio Mountains.

Route to Summit

True to form, getting to the summit is not quite as easy as it first appears, due in large part to two false summits. Even so, this is a very easy summit. From the end of the 4WD road, pick your route up the northeast slope and work your way southwest towards the first false summit, then west to the second false summit and beyond to the actual summit. I didn’t notice any trails until somewhere between the second false summit and the actual summit, where I came across a faint trail. Regardless, the cacti vegetation is sparse and your route-finding abilities will not be put to the test on this mountain.

The lower slope is low grade and then becomes steeper on the middle and upper slope. Much of this terrain from mid-slope up to the crest is loose rock and dirt and warrants due caution.

Route is 0.65 miles one way with 820 feet of elevation gain.

False summit #1.

False summit #2.

Actual summit.

Red Tape

None. No fees and permits required. 24-hour access.

Food & Lodging

The small city of Deming is about 20 miles to the east just off of Interstate 10. Food and gas, in addition to an RV park, are available at Gage, about two miles to the northeast.

Images

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