Guadalupe Mountains National Park – McKittrick Canyon - November 11, 2016 - Member Trip Report
| Hike Name: | Guadalupe Mountains National Park – McKittrick Canyon |
|---|---|
| Country: | United States |
| State: | Texas |
| Trip Rating: |  |
| Trip Date: | November 11, 2016 |
| Duration: | 1 day |
| Trail Conditions: | Good |
| Trail Traffic: | Light |
| Trip Weather: | Partly Cloudy, Cloudy |
| Trip Winds: | Moderate |
| Trip Precipitation: | Rain, Showers, Hail |
| Trip Temperature: | High: 41-50, Low: 31-40 degrees Fahrenheit |
| Trip Report: | The original plan was to hike to the McKittrick Ridge Campground, spend the night, and return to the McKittrick Canyon Contact Station the following day. However, the best-laid plans of mice and men often go awry. The day started out with nice enough weather, beautifully pleasant in fact, but the higher in elevation we got, the more nasty things turned. First, a light rain, then steady showers, then an outright downpour, and for the grand finale, a hail storm. With the exception of Steve, the remainder of us have hiked in pretty nasty weather before, and for the most part, consider it part of the experience. However, this time, for whatever reason, despite a final break in the weather, and some fairly spectacular views of the surrounding prehistoric-like landscape, and some wonderful rainbows, this one got the better of us. It’s not that we couldn’t have continued on for another mile or so to the campground, but the sound of an ice cold IPA, some local barbecue, and a nice warm bed sounded awful comforting. As such, we made the not-so-difficult decision to turn tail and head back down the mountain. The problem; with the exception of those planning to overnight at the McKittrick Ridge Campground, McKittrick Canyon is a day-use area and the gates close at 4:30 pm in the winter and 6:00 pm in the summer. We knew this, but were still willing to take our chances. At the same time, we wasted no time, and probably made it back down the mountain in half the time it took us to get up. In the end, it wasn’t fast enough, and we found ourselves, along with another lone hiker who wasn’t aware of the day-use regulation, locked in. We contemplated multiple options on how to get out, but nothing seemed very realistic. We had a four-wheel drive truck, but the landscape surrounding the exit road was way too intimidating, and the gate itself was more than foolproof for jailbreaking amateurs like ourselves. Ultimately, we had to call the number on the sign to the local state highway patrol. We waited for about 45 minutes until the patrolman came and freed us. After he warned us we might end up receiving a fine in the mail, we said our embarrassing thankyous and goodbyes, and with our heads hung low, headed back to Carlsbad. Boy, did that IPA taste good. |
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