SF2T Thru-Hike – Day 4

by | Oct 5, 2025 | Santa Fe to Taos, Southwest US, Trail Journals | 0 comments

Sunday, October 5, 2025

  • Start: Truchas Lake (mile 55)
  • End:  Agua Piedra Creek (mile 77.4)
  • Distance hiked:  22.3 miles
  • Gain/loss:  12,168 vertical feet 
  • Detours: Santa Barbara Divide Cut-off (-1.5 miles)

Day 4 of my SF2T thru-hike was like two different hikes. The first half was lovely and scenic, with a long descent to the river valley and Santa Barbara Campground. The second half was a ridiculous Sisyphean task that mentally broke me. I nearly quit the trail out of sheer frustration.

I departed Truchas Lake (12,632 feet) in freezing temperatures and quickly climbed up to the Santa Barbara Divide via the “cut-off” trail, which cut 1.5 miles off my route. The remainder of the morning was filled with fantastic scenery and easy hiking as I dropped down to the river valley and passed lots of leaf-peeping day hikers on a crisp, sunny Sunday morning.

After 12 miles, I arrived at Santa Barbara Campground (elevation 8,824 feet) and located my food cache, which was still tied to my covert spot, unmolested by mice or other critters.

After a late lunch at the campground, resupplying, and dumping my trash, it was time to take on my least favorite part of this entire SF2T route. The next 5 miles were a steep ascent back up to ~12,000 feet elevation at Ripley Point, and it wasn’t worth the effort. The ridge was covered with fallen and uprooted trees, but had absolutely NO views.

I’d initially planned to camp at Los Esteros (on the back side of Ripley Point), but this boggy pond near 11,000 feet elevation was equally unimpressive. So I pressed on, hiking past the 22-mile mark and until just past dusk, when I finally reached the field beside Agua Piedras Creek. On the bright side, at least I would get to camp back down at 8,982 feet elevation. 

A lovely morning hike up the Skyline Trail toward the Santa Barbara Divide
Over the Divide and heading back down
Hiking through the pretty fall colors
Scenic valley views near Rio Santa Barbara
The V-shaped wooden bridge over the middle fork of Rio Santa Barbara
Selfie with the stunning aspens
Hiking through aspens and passing lots of day hikers
Wilderness boundary sign as I approach Santa Barbara Campground (and a smaller sign about the Red Chile Water, which refers to special catch and release and tackle rules for trout in New Mexico)
Wilderness preservation signs at Santa Fe Campground about local wildlife
I easily locate my food cache at the campground and sit down for a hour-long lunch and resupply
Three cheers for a campground with a dumpster so I don’t have to carry my trash to Taos
Post-lunch, it’s time to cross the Rio Santa Barbara on logs and begin what would become a very crappy afternoon on my way up to Ripley Point
But first, I’d come face-to-face in a showdown with a stubborn cow who decided it needed to cross the creek at the exact same time as me.
Staring up at the sky wondering who I karmically wronged to deserve this steep AF climb up the Indian Creek Trail
Taking a brief breather before heading uphill again
The lack of trail maintenance might be a sign that this section of steep trail isn’t worth hiking
I finally struggle to the crest of Ripley Point, and this is my reward. Just gross!
Seriously. There were NO views at 12,000 feet elevation.
After the lackluster summit, I had to find my way through a maze of downed trees to start the journey back down Trail 22
More blah trail as I blew right past Los Esteros (a wildlife pond) and continue racing the sun down toward lower elevations
Down, down, down through high grass toward Agua Piedra Creek (not pictured). I arrived near dark to set up camp, and couldn’t help but feel this 22-mile day with 12,168 vertical feet of elevation gain/loss nearly forced me to quit this thru-hike.

HIGHLIGHTS

  • The hike down from Santa Barbara Divide to the campground was so pretty. It was the perfect autumn day to take in the fall colors. Plus, 11 miles of downhill or flat hiking was just what my body needed after summiting Santa Fe Baldy and Truchas Peak over the past two days.
  • I made it to the halfway point of the SF2T thru-hike!
  • I was elated to see my food cache intact and waiting for me at Santa Barbara Campground. What’s more, there was an empty dumpster nearby where I could offload the past 3.5 days of trash before I added all this new food weight to my pack.

CHALLENGES

  • The climb up Ripley Point was an incredible waste of effort. The trail was super steep, and there were zero views. This section has 100% my least favorite of the entire thru-hike.
  • I bit off way more than I could chew with such a big mileage day and a tremendous amount of vert. But by the time I got up to the top of Ripley Point, my camping options were limited. I could stop at Los Esteros (which was a crummy pond just above 11,000 feet) or drag myself down another long descent to lower elevation and a running creek.
  • The vault toilets, which were in fine shape four days earlier when I cached my food, were super gross. The hordes of day hikers used up all the TP and someone had a really bad interaction with the toilet seat. It was too disgusting to describe.
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SF2T Day 5 >>

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