Philmont Trek: 701-7B
After a year-long training programme the boys and three fat old men (F.O.M.) were finally ready to head west. Below is a day-by-day overview of our New Mexico adventure.
Day One:
We all met at the airport at 5 a.m. for our 7 a.m. flight to Denver. Everything went surprisingly smoothly and when we got to Denver we found our way to the train station and headed into downtown. Our hotel was just over a mile away from the station so what better way to start the trip than a gentle walk with all our gear. Oh and did we huff and puff!! After we arrived at the hotel we popped across the road for a burrito. The boys couldn’t believe how cheap they were, $3.49 each!
We then headed into the center of town – about 2 miles – where we visited the Capitol building and sat on the step marking 5,280 ft above sea level. After a photo op we headed to the 16th Street Mall, had ice cream and then found a park to play frisbee and nap. After walking back to the hotel we ate dinner and headed to bed. A good first day.
Day Two:
We had booked our Denver to Philmont travel with a company called Blue Sky Adventures. They picked us up sharply at 8 a.m. and we headed to Red Rocks Park about 45 minutes outside Denver. It was a beautiful spot with a natural amphitheater that the crazy locals used as an outdoor gym! I could barely walk up the steps let alone hop, run or jump!
We then got back on the bus and drove through the Garden of the Gods (more red rocks) and then headed south to the Air Force Academy. We toured the campus and had a great time in the beautiful chapel. Our afternoon was then spent meandering our way to the base of Pikes Peak. We had a 2:40 p.m. cog rail trip organized and headed up to the top of the 14,110 ft mountain. I’m not a 100% sure I enjoyed the top – the views were stunning but the disconnect between my brain and feet was very disconcerting as we all experienced serious altitude for the first time. Down in the foot hills the temperature was in the mid 80s, up top of the mountain it was in the mid 30s!!!
After the mountain we headed into Colorado Springs and stayed in a Marriott, which was way too posh for a bunch of boy scouts, but very welcome.
Day Three:
We were up at 5:15 a.m. (there’s a theme here), had breakfast and then headed south for three hours into New Mexico and to Philmont. When we arrived we did the normal “arrive-at-boy-scout-camp” stuff, paperwork checks, medical checks, gear checks and met our ranger. At Philmont you get assigned a ranger (which Mr. Forrer was 50 years ago) and ours, Fordham, just so happened to be from Oakton!!
He helped steer us through the check-in process and find our lovely tents for the night. We attended an opening camp fire and then headed to bed around 9 p.m. as we had an early start!!!
Day Four:
And now it begins. We got up at 5:15 a.m. (notice a pattern yet?) had breakfast and packed up our gear. I could tell the guys were excited but there was also an air of cautiousness about them. Fordham was going to be with us for the next two days and his job was to make sure we did things the Philmont way, keep us safe and truly appreciated where we were.
The Philmont way is not just about doing things in a certain way because they want you to, it’s about doing things that will keep you safe and preserve the ranch for future generations to enjoy. It was enforced time and again and clearly means a lot to all who work and love Philmont.
We hopped on a bus for a short 20 minute drive to the start of our trek. Our first day was just a three mile hike, but that proved enough. The main aim of the day was to learn how to set up camp, what the bearmuda triangle was, how to cook using the two-pot method and the all-important topic of how to poo in the woods!
On the trail you would simply dig a cat hole and do your business, at camp there were two options – use an open latrine or if you’re lucky the camp would have a red roof. The open latrine was simply a typical latrine sans walls, roof and privacy! A red roof was a luxuriousaffair with a roof (red!), walls and a door. The latrines had a further twist – they were normally two seaters, either back-to-back (pilot-bombardier) or side-by-side (pilot-co-pilot). I’ll let you picture how the activity would take place in either scenario.
We ate well that night and then headed to bed for our first night on the trail.
Day Five:
You guessed it – we were up at 5 a.m. and headed to our first staffed camp. This is where we get to do the funs things on the trail. This camp was shot gun shooting. We learned to re-load old cartridges and then headed to the range. After varying success shooting the little orange frisbees we had lunch and headed just up the trail a little way to do our three hours of conservation work (all crews do this on their treks).
We met up with Gillian and Bryan (who just so happened to be Missouri’s champion green bean picker – ask the boys about that) who led us in some trail building. Hard work digging and smashing rocks followed but it was for a worthwhile cause. After that we headed to Deer Lake for our next camp. A stunning spot with a pretty lake and yes, some deer!
Here we had our final evening with Fordham and after we had cleaned up we went out into the middle of the meadow and sat in a circle. Here he explained the Philmont Wilderness Pledge – in short, do whatever you can to keep Philmont for future generations. The stars were out and it was a pretty special moment as we just sat there thinking in silence. Certainly puts things in perspective for me and I think it did for the boys as well.
Day Six:
Our first Fordham-less day. After breakfast we said goodbye to Fordham, he headed back to base camp and we headed off to Upper Sawmill via the commissary (where you pick up more food and anything else you might need!).
En routeto the camp we had our one and only bear encounter. Pretty cool but also a bit scary. We followed protocol and all was well. We arrived at the camp, set up, ate dinner, had a small fire, played frisbee and a little cribbage. We hit the sack early as our next day was going to be hard.
Day Seven:
We got up as the sun was poking its nose over the ridges to our east and started our days hiking, about 8 miles topping out at 10,400 feet. This was a real grind. Long straight stretches uphill at altitude. Lordy did the boys do well. Once we reached our summit we had a nice stroll into a camp for lunch. We dined on some standard trail nibbles and then headed down to Cyphers Mine Camp for an afternoon of mine touring, forging and music.
We got to stay in a trail hut (much like the ones on the AT) which really helped dissipate some of the ripenessthat was beginning to emanate from the boys (and F.O.M.s) boots and bodies!
Our mine tour was awesome – we got to go into an old gold mine and learned about the geology and the history of the mine. Now imagine you are 450 feet from the mine entrance and your flashlight fails. We simulated what it was like when their lamps run out of fuel and they had to make their way back to the entrance in the darkest dark you can ever imagine. We put one hand on the left shoulder of the guy in front and the other on the mine wall, crouched down and headed out of the mine. To say it was unnerving would be an understatement – it was really really freaky. But we survived, got out of the mine and headed off to the forge.
At the forge the boys got the chance to make a butter knife – it wasn’t the prettiest thing ever made but they got the idea and decided to use it later on the trip (more about that coming!).
That night we were treated to a musical show by the staff – the Stomp! They played a blend of mountain music with a touch of bluegrass with some contemporary stuff mixed in. All we really good but the violin player may have been the best I’ve ever heard – he was amazing. This evening is something I know the boys will remember for a long time.
Day Eight:
If the boys ever tell you they can’t get up early – don’t believe them! We were again up at 5 a.m. and hiked down a beautiful gauge to Waite Phillips’ (the chap that donated the ranch to the boy scouts in 1938) hunting lodge. We had a brief tour and then headed off to Clarks Fork for an afternoon of horse riding. Because of the 200 lb tonnage limit on the geegees, Charlie had to sit out with the adults. We napped and Charlie played cards some of the staff whilst the rest of the crew went off on their various steeds (with names like Rocket, Mouse and Will!) for a ride around the valley. Most enjoyed it, but it was a really hot afternoon and a little sun burn was acquired by some.
We ate a chuckwagon dinner that night (a big vat of beef stew and dutch oven peach cobbler!!!) which was a real treat. After dinner we had a mile climb up a vertical cliff (a little exaggeration here) to our camp. We did our usual set up and turned in for our last day on the trail.
Day Nine:
Up even earlier than usual (4:30 a.m.) as we needed to make good time along Tooth Ridge before it got too hot. To say the views from the top were stunning would be an understatement. If you’ve ever been up Old Rag, imagine that view on steroids. Something I will never forget.
We hiked along the ridge on a trail that was mainly boulders (great for the F.O.M.s ankles and knees!) and reached the base of the Tooth of Time around 8:30 a.m. The Tooth is the famous Philmont Mountain you see in the all the pictures. The rock scramble to the top was like a vertical version of Billy Goat A with no available oxygen! Once at the top the payoff was amazing.
Now about that butter knife – for some reason Nino decided he wanted some of his hair cut at the top. Charlie duly obliged and hacked away until some hair was removed. It was a pretty barbaric scene but gave us all a giggle.
Once we came back down we headed on our final journey down the mountain into base camp. We needed to drop 3,000 feet in three miles and boy did they make the hike draining. Most of the trails around the ranch are amazingly well graded and this was no exception. Only issue was that it kept switch-backing and you seemed to make no progress towards base camp which was visible for most of the decent. Then take away any shade and the trail really did live up to its name – the Trail of Tears!
The sense of relief when we came of the ridge and walked into base camp was visible on all the guys faces. We headed to the gear hut to turn in all the crew gear we’d been given and then headed for the shower house! A much need wash was followed by visits to the Trading post to buy t shirts, belt buckles and other Philmont memorabilia. The final camp fire was followed by a great nights sleep in amazingly comfortable camp cots.
Day Ten:
Our final up-early day meant an early breakfast before we got on our bus back to Denver airport. En route the bus decided it had had enough and broke down, we got a new one and arrived at the airport in plenty of time for our plane. It was then our planes turn to have had enough and decided to arrive three hours late! We eventually arrived back in DC at 1 a.m.!
Trying to put into words what this trip was all about is hard. We spent a year preparing and I think every moment and every step on the trails paid huge dividends once at Philmont. My hope is that the time the boys spent in Philmont will mean as much to them as I know it did to Mike, David and I. It wasn’t just about hiking, it was much more than that. It was about team work, pushing yourself both mentally and physically and about something that was greater than any individual – preserving a special place for future generations of scout to enjoy. One day the boys will hopefully go back to Philmont with their sons or daughters (like Mike and Ian did this trip) and build a new set of memories and bonds that will last a life time.
MWS