So this weekend Sarah flew into Albuquerque, and since we hadn't gone hiking together in a while, we decided to throw together a trip to a local peak. Since three of us hiked in the Sandias the weekend before, I suggested we head up toward Santa Fe to do one of those peaks. Sarah and I have previously done Santa Fe Baldy, so we decided to hike Penitente Peak near the Santa Fe Ski Resort. We end up departing the trial head around 9:30am and start our 14 mile trek, with our dogs, Bella and Taboo in tow.
The trail starts out in a pine forest, but as you quickly gain altitude, the pines give way to aspen forests. Eventually we make it to the saddle between Santa Fe Baldy and Penitente Peak. After a short break we turn onto trail 251 and start the climb. The views from the top were incredible. There is a clear view of Lake peak to the south, Santa Fe Baldy to the North West, and far to the north you can see the Truchas Peaks and Pecos Baldy.
The trip down the mountain goes quickly and me make it back to the car at 4pm. All in all we did around 14 miles and 2500 ft of elevation gain. What was most impressive about this hike though was the energy level of Bella. Even carrying her backpack, she was constantly running ahead of us and then back again. She easily did well over 20 miles, all while carrying 2 liters of water. Pretty impressive for a 35 pound dog.
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