1/25-27/2008: Columbine Hondo WSA, NM

Friday- The boys and I left Dimmitt around 6:00, bound for Red River. We arrived in Red River around 11:30 and spent the night at the Best Western. My dad arrived a little past midnight.

Saturday- We awoke, ate breakfast at the hotel and headed out to the trailhead for the Columbine Trail in the Columbine-Hondo Wilderness Study Area. The morning was sunny and clear and the temperature was hovering around 14 degrees.

Between arriving at the hotel late, being excited about seeing "G-pa" and Colter running fever most of the night, neither boy was well rested. The combination of being tired, irritable and cold conspired to cause a revolt among the boys. Between the crying and shouts of "I just want to go home" I suggested that my Dad take the boys back into town for some hot chocolate while I head back up the trail and set up the tent.

I met my dad and the boys back at the trailhead around 11:30. Their mood had improved remarkably. I loaded the boys up in the sled and dragged them the half mile up to where I had set up the tent.

We made it to our campsite without incident. Colter decided he was interested in taking a nap while Wyatt wanted to to "hike around". The temperature had warmed to the upper 30's and the sun felt nice. Wyatt and my dad decided to try out the sled on the trail. The trail made a great sled run, and we spent part of the afternoon on endless sled runs. We capped off the day with a short hike further up the trail.

The temperature began dropping as the afternoon wore on. We fixed freeze dried lasagna for dinner and built a small fire. The temperature had dropped to about 15 degrees by the time we climbed into the tent around 7:30. We read a few chapters from The Magician's Nephew by C.S. Lewis before falling asleep.

Sunday dawned to still, cloudless skies and a temperature of 3 degrees, much colder than the forecasted low of 12. My dad and I got out of the tent to fix breakfast while the boys stayed buried in the sleeping bags.



The temperature had warmed up to about 10 degrees by the time we started taking down camp. The boys were not interested in snowshoeing out, so I loaded them back in the sled, wrapped them in sleeping bags and dragged them out.


We made it back to the trailhead around noon. After a quick lunch we parted ways and began the trek back to Dimmitt. It marked Colter's first snowshoe trip, Wyatt's third and set a temperature record for each boy.