The Jemez Mountains form the southernmost tip of the Rocky
Mountains and are quite arguably the most beautiful area in the
entire state of New Mexico. The Jemez consists of mostly
undisturbed forested wilderness with rocky peaks, meadows, mountain
streams, lakes and waterfalls, and only occasional houses and
villages. Past volcanic activity has resulted in some interesting
geological formations such as multiple hot springs, sulphurous
vents and a picturesque caldera (a ring of hills comprising the
remains of several long-extinct volcanoes).
Much of the region is now a National Recreation Area with many
opportunities for hiking, fishing, camping, cross-country skiing,
or visiting a natural hot spring. This mountain trail takes
travelers from Albuquerque to Santa Fe via Bernalillo, past the
remainders of the area's logging, mining and ranching heritage, a
variety of Spanish and Indian ruins, the Coronado and Jemez State
Monuments, Los Alamos and neighboring city of White Rock, and the
Bandelier National Monument.
All the caches that we have placed along the JMNSB are at areas
that DO NOT require a day use fee. Additional waypoints have been
added to certain cache descriptions where extra help might be
required to find parking, a trailhead, etc. There are bathrooms
along the entire scenic byway, some of which are in day fee areas.
Use of the toilet facilities does not require you to pay, but if
you are planning to stay longer, then the noted fees will apply.
Please keep in mind that you will find both forest and desert
environments along this trip. You may encounter the typical
animals, poisonous plants, and insects that make these habitats
their home. Please come properly dressed and prepared. For maps and
additional information on this scenic byway, visit The Jemez
Mountain National Scenic Byway Website.
Sunset on MayDay
Purpose of this cache: Memories of a fun get together and pretty
views of the ski hill!
The cache is at Camp May in Los Alamos. The name comes from the
fact that it was originally placed as a FTF 'race' at sunset for
the 1st Meet, Greet, and Eat at Camp May. Make sure that you check
out the beautiful views at the included waypoint (even better with
the fall colors). Also, there are several hiking trails in the area
for a nice afternoon walk.
This cache is placed along the Mayday Trail. It's just a short
distance from the trailhead (a parking spot is available), and also
just a short distance from the main pavilion at Camp May. We gave
it a 3/2.5 rating due to the short walk from parking being a little
rocky and uneven, and a couple deep ruts to traverse in the car on
the way. The difficulty is due to the not so perfect GPS signal as
you near the cache (the best that we could do was 30ft accuracy).
Parking coordinates at the Pavilion are included in an additional
waypoint. There are other places that you can park, but because of
washout in the roadway, you may need a high clearance vehicle to
access them. We were told by the staff at Camp May that the road
does not close for thru traffic over the winter (although camping
ends on Nov. 1st). However, the road is blocked by a large mound of
snow that they removed from the parking area. It appears that this
is the norm for the winter months on this road and would therefore,
in our opinion, not be accessible by vehicle during the snow
season. You can still park at the ski lift area and snowshoe
in.
The cache container is a medium sized lock-n-lock, with the
following original contents:
- 3 CITO-micro
- Coyote, Prairie Dog, and Quail’s (our kids)
compasses
- Coyote, Prairie Dog, and Quail’s penny experiment
kit
- 4 Marble necklaces and 2 marble earrings
- 3 Foreign coins and wheat penny
- Patch
- 2 keychains
- Eraser
- Zipper lanyard
- Watch