Willie White Spur Trail #112 • Hike • New Mexico • All Triplogs • HikeArizona.COM

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May 04 2022

markthurman53

Guides 187
Routes 990
Photos 12,079
Triplogs 865

72 male

Joined Jun 27 2015
Tucson, Arizona

Willie White Willis Canyon Loop, NM

Hiking		May 04 2022
		markthurman53 • Triplogs 865

Hiking	11.91 Miles	1,543 AEG

Hiking	11.91 Miles	5 Hrs 52 Mns	2.04 mph
	1,543 ft AEG	1 Min Break

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Willie White Spur Trail #112

Willie White Trail #113

Wills Canyon Trail #5008

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mamakatt22

On our second day in Cloudcroft we headed down the Sun Spot Highway past Uranus (see photos) and took the Rio Penasco Road to Bluff Spring. The Willie White Trail Head is about a half mile past the spring or you can take the Willie White Spur Trail that starts at the spring. This loop hike is along old logging rails that traverse the ridge between Rio Penasco and Wills canyons.

We did the hike in a CCW direction along the Willie White then Wills Canyon in the CCW direction. the majority of the climb is on the way in and downhill on the way back. The Willie White Trail has a gradual climb the whole way with it being a little steeper as you approach the summit but nothing what I would call steep. Very scenic hike up Willie White Creek from its start at the Rio Penasco to the summit on the crest of the ridge. The Willie White and the Wills Canyon Trail junction is on the crest of the ridge. The Willie White Trail continues on down Telephone Canyon to the Waters Canyon Road to its western trail Head, we didn’t do that portion. The Wills Canyon Trail heads down the ridge toward Hubbell and Wills Canyons which is at 1.25 miles. It is little bit steep and rocky along this section of the trail making the going a little slower. There were at least two springs along this section with a light flow. At the junction of the Hubbell and Wills Canyons the Upper Wills Canyon Trail heads off to the west and the Wills Canyon Trail heads east at a fairly level rate and makes its way along the side of the ridge to connect back up with the Willie White Trail. Nice views over Wills Canyon along this trail but they are limited by the trees.

I thought this was a very nice trail that typifies the forest around Cloudcroft, Pine fir forest with lush green meadows along the creeks. The grasses are nicely manicured by the elk and deer. I believe from the amount of elk I have seen around Cloudcroft that the elk population in this forest is over populated. I’m not an expert on this though. We didn’t see any elk along this hike but it was mid day, to see more wildlife it is best early morning late afternoon. On the drive in for this hike we believe we saw a wolf along the Rio Penasco Road, was too big for a coyote and had a lot more fir. On a side note Ginny and I saw a Young Mountain Lion near my house in vail, probably coming in to the area to get easy picking breakfast, cats and small dogs.

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Jul 30 2018

rwstorm

Guides 1
Routes 136
Photos 22,415
Triplogs 1,041

77 male

Joined Feb 28 2003
Tucson, AZ

Bluff Springs Waterfall, NM

Scenic Drive		Jul 30 2018
		rwstorm • Triplogs 1,041

Scenic Drive

Scenic Drive

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Willie White Spur Trail #112

Bluff Spring Trail - Lincoln NF

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I started my trip to the Cloudcroft, New Mexico area by spending the first night at the Quality Inn in Deming (220 miles from home) on July 29th. This cut the drive over to Cloudcroft down to about 150 miles the next day. Stopped at the excellent Lowe's Signature Market on 10th Street in Alamogordo for supplies for 3 nights of camping at Cloudcroft on my way. I have been shopping there for years when in the area...just a wonderful grocery store!

I arrived in Cloudcroft with plenty of time to do a little exploring, so I stopped at the ranger station and picked up some info on hikes and purchased a new trail guide book for the area. Then drove down the Sunspot Highway and turned off on Upper Rio Penasco Road (C17). This was my first time on that road and it follows the beginnings of the Penasco River downhill to the junction with NM 130. From there I continued on to Mayhill along the river, then headed back up to Cloudcroft on US 82. From there it was a short drive south of town to pick a camp site at Sleepy Grass Campground.

The high point for the day was a stop at Bluff Springs Waterfall which feeds into the Rio Penasco just a few miles down the road from the Sunspot Highway turnoff. There is dispersed camping at various places along the road, along with many sections of private property. Overall, a pleasant scenic drive. One of the many trails in the area starts here and follows an old logging railroad bed to connect with another trail nearby. The elevation at the waterfall is about 8150 feet.

Lots of the trails in this part of the mountains follow old logging railroad routes. Some fascinating history indeed, with ties to Arizona:
foresthistory.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/Logging-Railroads-of-the-Lincoln-National-Forest.pdf

The Penasco River continues down the mountain to the east (roughly along US 82 past Hope), finally reaching the Roswell Artesian Basin and the Pecos River south of Artesia. It is one of the major streams in the southern Sacramento Mountains.

It was a fine first day up in the cool mountain air.

Flora

Flora [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Harebell

Named place

Named place [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Bluff Springs

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7 archives

WARNING! Hiking and outdoor related sports can be dangerous. Be responsible and prepare for the trip. Study the area you are entering and plan accordingly. Dress for the current and unexpected weather changes. Take plenty of water. Never go alone. Make an itinerary with your plan(s), route(s), destination(s) and expected return time. Give your itinerary to trusted family and/or friends.

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