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Ascent of Thompson Peak on 2012-07-19

Climber: Richard Oestreicher

Other People:

Solo Ascent

Date:

Thursday, July 19, 2012

Ascent Type:

Successful Summit Attained

Peak:

Thompson Peak

Location:

USA-New Mexico

Elevation:

3216 m / 10554 ft

Ascent Trip Report

Perhaps the hardest part of this trip is the drive up. The 11.8 mi. up dirt roads from highway 50 took me slightly over an hour; the climb up Thompson Peak took 55 minutes. From the Glorieta exit on I-25 I took 50 east to County 63a (a good gravel road) which turns into a forest road in about 4 1/2 miles. It gets rougher pretty quickly but not really terrible until the last 3 mi. Don't try it without an appropriate vehicle. At one point my route was blocked by some fallen trees. Fortunately, a motorcyclist came up behind me as I pondered what to do, and we collaborated on clearing out the debris. Deep ruts, rocks, and mud slides for much of the last three miles.

The road ends at a down-at-the heels picnic area, probably not maintained for quite some time but still has a functioning table and out house. The trail from the picnic area to the peak appears well-used, and has gotten some maintenance; a few downed trees not cleared, but not many. It follows an undulating ridgeline; hence the total elevation gain for the trip is more than double the net difference between the picnic ground and the peak. At 1.15 mi. out, according to GPS, my elevation was exactly the same as at my start point although there had been more than 250 feet elevation gain. Somebody erected a giant rock cairn at the top--more like a monument. I signed in the register in a plastic can; recognized quite a few names. Nice views, especially to the North.

Summary Total Data

Elevation Gain:

329 m / 1083 ft

Distance:

6 km / 3.7 mi

Route Conditions:

Maintained Trail

Gear Used:

Ski Poles

Weather:

Partly Cloudy

Ascent Statistics

Elevation Gain:

234 m / 770 ft

Extra Loss:

85 m / 279 ft

Distance:

3.1 km / 1.9 mi

Route:

trail

Trailhead:

Glorieta picnic area 3067 m / 10063 ft

Time Up:

55 Minutes

Descent Statistics

Extra Gain:

95 m / 313 ft

Distance:

2.9 km / 1.8 mi

Time Down:

44 Minutes

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