Lincoln National Forest: Salado Canyon Trail

Noelle and I decided to beat the heat by hitting the trail early. We drove down Fresnal Canyon Road to the Salado Canyon Trailhead.

We parked, ate a banana, and then hit the trail. It was a nice easy, level walk on the old bed of the Alamogordo and Sacramento Mountains Railroad. Almost immediately we could see a little bit of water down in the bottom of Salado Canyon. We could also see the reconstructed Salado Canyon Trestle.

We continued on up-canyon, eventually passing through some private land,

until we could hear the sound of rushing water. There were some desert willow trees around and we enjoyed their shade and beautiful flowers.

Then we enjoyed the sight, sound and cool feel of Bridal Veil Falls.

Parker waded right in as usual. Even Eric had to dip his toes in.

All three of us enjoyed the the cool moist air, and the spectacle of water in the desert.

From the falls we backtracked towards the trailhead, but kept following the rail/trail to the Salado canyon Trestle that we had seen earlier from a distance.

We rested again in the shade of the trestle and Parker waded into the water again. After our break it was a hot, though short hike back to the car.

We headed back to the campground, packed up our gear, and then hit the road. Since it was still early in the day, we decided to enjoy the cool mountain air for a little while longer we would be forced down to the heat of the desert. We opted to drive through the forest to Bluff Springs.

Bluff Springs

We got out of the car there and walked around the interesting site. I told Noelle that it reminded me of a mini Mammoth Hot Springs without the hot water. After enjoying the scene we went back into Cloudcroft, got some lunch, and then drove back to Carlsbad.