Day 4 – 7-8-99 – Thursday

The crew was up at 5:30 this morning. We packed our gear, bid a found farewell to Rob, and hit the trail at 7. First, we had to climb out of the Middle Ponil Creek canyon, and we used an old railroad grading to do this. The views back towards Rich Cabins, with Baldy in the background, were superb. Near the top of the canyon we stopped and had breakfast. Eating breakfast on the trail allowed us to get on the trail early in the morning while it was still cool, and the break an hour or so after we started was nice. We would follow this schedule for the rest of the trek.

As we were coming into an area that had no trails, we spent a bit of time studying the map. This part of the Val is rather flat and timber covered, so there were not any good landmarks to use as reference points. Our first point that we needed to hit was a windmill, about 2 miles from Rich Cabins. We used the map and the GPS that I’d brought, and the guys came out right at the windmill! The only problem was, we had planned to get water there. Alas, the pump rod was broken, and the tank was dry. So we pressed on to the Beatty Lakes area, about 3 miles north. We hand an old road to walk upon, and this made the going easy. Along the road we ran into several crews that where heading south, and they told us that our destination that evening, Whitman Vega, was a good 10 hours away. This seemed a bit extreme to us.

At 12:30, we stopped for lunch next to the largest of the lakes. Several of the guys went to get water from the lake, but were turned back by a quagmire along the shore caused by cattle. Here was another case of cows destroying pristine country. We see this far too often in New Mexico. It’s too bad that the ranching industry can’t utilize the feed yards more, and keep the cows out of the National forests and wilderness.

After lunch, we did more map and compass work. We needed to hit an old road in upper Seally Canyon. But to get there, we had to cross several small hills. The guys found a cow trail that went in the right direction, and we followed that up into the hills. This worked out well, as it lead us to within sight of the road. Seally Canyon, (a deep arroyo at this point) had a clear stream in it, so we stopped to filter water. There were several old ruins of buildings there, and something we thought might be an old sawmill. Soon we had all of the water we needed, and we set off along the old road.

We wound North through several small hills, and then went through a gate and entered a "park" or large open meadow. The trail ran through the center of the park, passing 2 small lakes along the way. The northern lake had a small, perfectly round island in the center. Past the lake, down a hill, and we could finally see Ring Place, our next stop.

Ring Place is an old ranch homestead, which the park service and Philmont are teaming to rejuvenate. There is a small house that the staff stays in, several outbuildings, and a large barn. A staff member met us on the porch of the house, and pointed out a water buffalo where we could fill our bottles. We also got directions to Whitman Vega. He told us that we had a choice of bushwhacking to Whitman, or following the forest service road for about a mile, and then heading North to Whitman. We choose the road. After what seemed like 5 miles, we came to the turnoff. Walking along that hard-packed road had done a number on our feet!

At 5:45, we finally stumbled into Whitman Vega, which is located on the edge of a huge park area. The distinguishing feature of Whitman is the "yurt" that the staff lives in. It’s a round structure about 30 – 35 feet in diameter, with a conical roof. At the peek of the roof is a large "bubble" or skylight. The yurt is made of a plastic-coated fabric that hangs on a wooden lattice frame. The roof is fabric, and is supported by aluminum poles. There are 3 large windows, and a wooden door for entry. The entire structure sits on a raised wooden deck. The space inside the yurt is amazing! A staff member told us that the yurt is built by a company I Colorado, and cost Philmont about $8500. They will have to dismantle it at the end of the season. Quite something!

The staff assigned us a camping site in a grove of trees, and we limped off to it. Chris F. was really having problems with an ingrown toenail, and was in a great deal of pain. We set up camp, letting Chris sit and rest, and cooked dinner. We were pretty well worn out after our 11-½ hour, 13-mile trip, so we all hit the sack early that evening.