Order of Visit: High Point #18
Date Visited: March 9, 2020
Route Taken: Guadalupe Peak Trail from Pine Springs Campground – 8.4 miles roundtrip
Type of Terrain: A challenging, but well-defined trail that gains 3,000 feet in 4.2 miles. The steepest section of the hike occurs in the first 1.5 miles, as the trail switchbacks upward, but there’s also plenty of rockier terrain during the final mile.
Elevation: 8,751 feet
Ancestral Lands: Lipan Apache, Mescarlero Apache, Chiricahua Apache, and Sumas
What’s in a name?
Prior to the arrival of Spanish conquistadors in what is now modern-day West Texas, the region was inhabited by indigenous Apache tribes.
The Spanish occupied the region while administering the colony of Mexico for 300 years, and they began referring to this mountain range as Sierra de Guadalupe (or “Guadalupe Mountains”), with the tallest point in the range simply referred to as Guadalupe Peak.
The name Guadalupe has a long and storied past in Mexico and usually refers back to Our Lady of Guadalupe, which is a Roman Catholic title for the Mary, mother of Jesus.
In 1531, an indigenous man of Aztec descent, claimed the Virgin Mary appeared to him asking him to build a church in Mexico in her honor.
Over the following centuries, her popularity grew and she became a hallmark of Mexican identity and faith. Our Lady of Guadalupe was proclaimed a patroness of Mexico City (and much of Latin America), and was a national symbol in Mexico’s revolt against Spanish rule in 1810.
Trip Summary
Our trip to the summit of Guadalupe Peak occurred during a 5-day visit to nearby Carlsbad, New Mexico, in early March 2020 (just before the Covid-19 pandemic). As we drove east from El Paso toward Carlsbad, we could see the Guadalupe Mountains rising out of the desert in the distance. And, even though it was March, there was still a dusting of snow covering the top of the higher peaks.
We made a quick stop at the Guadalupe Mountains National Park visitor center for a picnic lunch as we passed by, and the parking lot was nearly empty. Our stopover allowed us to grab a brochure and ask the rangers about the trail conditions.
The rangers informed us there was definitely some snow and ice near the summit and recommended we use trekking poles and bring micro-spikes if we had them. Unfortunately, we didn’t have any with us. But, what we did have was time. We weren’t in any sort of rush, and could return to hike to the summit in a few days.
Driving back to the park a few days later, we approached the mountains from the east and got completely different views of our destination. The last few days had been warm and sunny, so we assumed there wouldn’t be any issues getting up and back down the trail from the snow or ice.
Our biggest concern now was the wind. A storm blew in the day before, bringing rain and steady, strong winds to West Texas. The rain ended overnight, but the wind was still blowing 15-20 mph as we drove there, and we’d read there could be much strong gusts up high on Guadalupe Peak.
As it turns out, the real obstacle of our day turned out to be something else entirely though. It was our quest to find parking! When we stopped by the visitor center on Thursday (three days earlier), there was only had a handful of cars in the parking lot. But, as we pulled in on Monday morning, signs at the park’s entrance announced the RV campground was completely full along with the hiker parking area up near the campground.
That was unexpected!
After making a lap through the overflow lot at the visitor center, we luckily snagged the last free parking spot. Looking around, we could see there had to be nearly 100 cars parked there! We didn’t expect such a crowd on a Monday in March, but after asking around (and seeing lots of families), we soon learned we’d arrived during Spring Break in Texas.
I knew from my research that the first 1.5 miles of the trail would be the steepest, and would include lots of switchbacks. This was true, but the trail is pretty well maintained and the ascent went quickly. We passed lots of college students and families with kids on the trail, and felt like we moving pretty fast by comparison.
As we rapidly gained elevation, the views of the mountain range were awesome. Given their location in the Chihuahuan Desert, the Guadalupe Mountains seem to abruptly rise from nowhere. They also lack a lot of the vegetation you might expect to see on other peaks. But that doesn’t make the views any less spectacular as you look out across them on the way up.
About two miles into the hike, the trail flattened out quite a bit and transitioned from exposed desert to a small pine forest. This is where we started to see some evidence of snow, but never enough to impede the trail or require micro-spikes. So perhaps letting the weather warm up the past few days (or yesterday’s rainfall) diminished the prior hazards on trail. Soon, we encountered a park ranger climbing up toward the campground who told us the trail seemed clear ahead today, but warned us to expect even more wind.
The trail climbed above the pine forest as the trees quickly thinned out, and soon we were at the false summit near mile 3. A small side trail to the Guadalupe Peak campground forked off and we saw several hikers heading that way. The backcountry sites up here allow hikers to tent below the true summit if they want a multi-day hike, while providing a little break from the brisk wind that was now really beginning to pick up.
Finally, we hit the last push to the top. The trail changed from a dirt path to more rocky terrain. Although there wasn’t anything serious enough to require rock scrambling, it’s easy to see why there’s such a concern about snow. Walking on these rocks wa challenging when they were completely dry, so I can’t imagine trying to navigate over them when covered by slick ice or snow. After we crossed the small bridge, the temperature dropped and wind also began to picked up significantly, so we all stopped to don our rain jackets and gloves to stay warm.
Thanks to the good trail conditions, we made it to the summit in 1 hour, 44 minutes. That’s a much quicker pace than we actually expected. (Note: the National Park Service estimates the hike will take most people 6-8 hours round-trip). So even with lots of hiking groups on trail and some solid wind, it was much easier than last October’s high point adventure in New Mexico.
The views at the top were pretty darn good too. It was such a clear day, we could probably see at least 100 miles across the flat expanse of west Texas. After getting our standard summit photos – 90% of which got photo bombed by the same oblivious woman who was signing the summit log – we decided to head down to get out of the biting wind. Just about 100 meters below the summit, we found a perfect sunny spot for lunch where we could sit and congratulate all the younger kids making their final push to the top. What a bunch of troopers!
The hike back down to the visitor center was an equally quick journey. The rockier terrain near the top of the hike was still fairly difficult to walk across as we dodged more and more groups heading up. But, soon we were back on soft dirt heading through the pine forest and then back out on the exposed dirt trail. The switchbacks on the final mile and a half felt a bit steeper on the descent than I remembered on the way up. But, I guess we had so much energy early in the hike that we didn’t really notice.
All told, bagging Guadalupe Peak took us just under 3.5 hours (including our break for lunch). It’s a respectable day hike that makes you feel like you earned it without taking everything out of you. Tacking this high point in springtime seems like an ideal time of year, though I’d definitely recommend checking to see when the Texas schools are on Spring Break if you want a little more solitude on trail.
Details
When to Visit: Located in West Texas, this summit can be hiked year-round. However, special care should be taken during the winter months. High winds can occur at the summit, reaching up to 80 mph! Hikers who summit in the summer months should also keep a close eye on the weather to avoid lightening storms while on this exposed peak.
Getting There: The Guadalupe Peak trailhead is located in Guadalupe Mountains Mountains National Park, 55 miles southwest of Carlsbad, NM and 110 miles east of El Paso, TX. Once you arrive in the park, follow the signs to Pine Springs Visitor Center. The trailhead is located at the end of the RV section of the Pine Springs Campground.
Entrance Fees: The entrance fee for this National Park is $10 per person (age 16 or older) and the fee is good for visits of up to 7 days. Payment can be made by cash or credit card at the Pine Springs Visitor Center. After business hours, visitors may also use the green envelopes at the trailheads to make a cash payment. There is no cost if you possess an America the Beautiful National Park Pass or are you are visiting on these five FREE days.
Parking: Hikers can park at the top of the Pine Springs RV campground near the trailhead. Make sure to avoid the numbered spots. These are for campers and cost $15 per day. If the day hiker parking area is full, there’s also overflow parking at the Visitor Center and a 0.4 mile trail back to the trailhead. Restrooms with flush toilets are located at the end of the hiker parking area and outside the visitor center.
Accessibility: This is an challenging hike with 2,906 feet of elevation gain over 4.2 miles. There is a horse trail that bypasses some of the steep switchbacks at the beginning of the hike, but this alternate trail will add an additional mile to the trip.
Bonus: Guadalupe Peak is only 32 miles southeast of a second national park – Carlsbad Caverns. Visitors can hike more than 750 feet below the Chihuahuan Desert into giant subterranean chambers and view the spectacular cave formations. So, why not double the adventure by hiking to the top of the Guadalupe Mountains, then venturing below the desert surrounding them?
Resources:
- Guadalupe Peak Hike (NPS)
- Map of Guadalupe Mountains Natl Park (NPS)
- Why Climb Guadalupe Peak? (Texas Monthly magazine)