Hiking Trails

October may be the best month of the year at the Wild Rivers Recreation Area, north of Questa. Summer heat has left the gorge, the light is low and clear, and the trails that drop 800 feet from the rim to the Rio Grande are far more forgiving than they are in July. The recreation area, managed by the Bureau of Land Management within the Rio Grande del Norte National Monument, protects the place where the Red River joins the Rio Grande in a deep canyon cut through dark volcanic rock.

Not every good October hike in Carson country has to end on a summit. Williams Lake Trail No. 62, above Taos Ski Valley, offers a shorter high-country outing with a real alpine payoff: a natural lake at 11,040 feet, tucked in a basin below Wheeler Peak in the Wheeler Peak Wilderness.

Some hikes earn their lake. The Middle Fork Lake Trail, Trail 487 in the Carson National Forest above Red River, is one of them — a difficult two miles one way that climbs from 9,650 feet to a quiet alpine lake sitting at 10,845 feet. Mid-October is close to the last comfortable window to make the climb before winter takes the high country back, and for hikers who like their trails steep, wooded and uncrowded, it is one of the finest short backpacks-or-day-hikes left on the fall calendar.

High above Questa, Cabresto Lake offers one of the quietest corners of the Carson National Forest in October. The Forest Service lists the small campground there as open, with four semi-dispersed campsites at 9,500 feet on a level ridge overlooking the lake, surrounded by high peaks. It is a simple, high-country base for anglers and hikers who prefer fewer crowds to full facilities, and mid-October is a fine time to see it before winter weather settles into the Sangre de Cristo Mountains.

Mid-October is the sweet spot for the South Boundary Trail, and also the warning bell. The aspens along this high-country route between Angel Fire and Taos are at their brightest right now, and the window before snow closes the upper trail is getting short. For hikers, riders and mountain bikers who have been putting it off all summer, this is the week to go.

Two northern New Mexico mountain towns that have long been linked by a winding highway will soon be linked by trail as well. The Carson National Forest has approved the Questa to Red River Trail, an approximately 11.9-mile unpaved, multi-use pathway between the Village of Questa and the Town of Red River.

Mid-October is the shoulder season on Wheeler Peak, and the window for a straightforward hike to the top of New Mexico is closing. Snowfall typically begins in the Wheeler Peak Wilderness in early October, and every calm, clear fall day from here on is a gift. Hikers who want the 13,161-foot summit — the highest point in the state — without snowshoes or skis should be watching the forecast and picking their day now.

Every state has a rooftop, and New Mexico's sits deep in the Carson National Forest. Wheeler Peak rises to 13,161 feet, the highest ground in the state, and the most popular way to stand on it is the Wheeler Peak Trail via Williams Lake — about eight miles round trip with roughly 3,000 feet of elevation gain, starting near Taos Ski Valley.