Oct 07, 2019 — "Why are you here?" I was just coming out of the pit toilet when I was accosted. "To hike!" I exclaim with my regular over-excitedness for everything. "No, but why are you here?" I stare blankly. "...because I want to hike all the things?" She nodded toward my NJ license plate. "You people come up here (here referring to anything pretty in nature, I assume) and then it's all ruined. Good thing my time's almost over. You being here is a sign that it's the end for this beautiful place." I look around and note the horse poo everywhere and NM-plated hunter trucks lining the parking lot, but inquire further. She's clearly very upset. She let me know she was also upset about the (and these are certainly not my words) "fat b****es who wipe their snatches and leave toilet paper everywhere. I know because it's the way the paper is folded. It's from their snatches and the f***ing millenials who come up here just to pose for their friends". I suppose since she moved to the area 20 years ago, she thinks she claim ownership of this trail. Eventually I was able to escape the angry lady and start out from the Jacks Creek Trailhead.
My route today consisted of East Pecos Baldy, Pecos Baldy, and Truchas Peak (aka South Truchas Peak). The approach from the Jacks Creek Trailhead is long enough that I wanted to get them all in one swoop so I didn't have to repeat the forested and not particularly interesting approach, despite the fairly long mileage and my still-recovering injury. Last spring, I did North Truchas Peak from the north and the remoteness of the area and somewhat relative obscurity of the peak cluster beckoned me back.
The Jacks Creek Trail was in great shape, switchbacking a few times before wandering through the forest and entering a wide meadow. The surrounding views were lovely, Lake Peak visible to the west and Pecos Baldy to the north, humps of rock amongst the otherwise lightly rolling landscape. The trail continued through the meadow and entered the forest again, only following the actual Jacks Creek for a short time, but the short-lived water sounds were a nice addition. The trail continues through a burned area before eventually making it to Pecos Baldy Lake. This was a bit over 7 miles in, and I was feeling really great. I briefly debated skipping the Pecos Baldy Peaks, but was determined to hit all my goals for the day. A nice trail leads to the summit of East Pecos Baldy (the taller of the two), and a short Class 2 scramble leads across the ridge to Pecos Baldy (the shorter of the two). This ridgeline was probably the highlight of the day: great views and a mini scramble.
Back at Pecos Baldy Lake, I located the well-marked Skyline Trail and followed it through wide open winding meadows and up and over a couple of big humps before making it down to the south ridge of Truchas Peak. Cairns marked a route through the meadow as I gained elevation and I eventually stumbled onto a social trail that led through some trees and up to the rocky base of the peak. I decided to head up and over Little South Truchas Peak, a small hump before Truchas. On the return, I followed a social trail that circumnavigated this little hump. I continued up to the summit, Class 2 scrambling with the occasional semblance of a trail leading to a final steep section up the slope past where the trail seemed to wander off. The views were incredible. I returned the way I came.
Please consider helping me out if you find my site useful. I'm not sponsored, so all site fees are out-of-pocket and my time preparing these trip reports is unpaid. You can also hire me as a web developer. I really appreciate it!
If you find my site helpful, please help me replace my many broken cameras, fund my website fees (hosting, APIs, security), or just support my countless hours of work. I pay for all expenses myself, and all trip reports I post are unpaid and unsponsored, so any support is really appreciated!
If using PayPal, please select their option for "Sending to a friend" so they don't take out fees, thank you.
My site is free to use, but consider sending me a few bucks to help keep it running. Thanks in advance!