The following is an excerpt from Zoe Yeaton’s trek journal titled “Day six: Climbing Mount Baldy.”
The crew woke up that day at Miranda, knowing what lay ahead of us. Today was our layover day. A layover day means that the crew stays all day at their camp, with no need to hike and stay the night at another camp. It was basically like a day off from the regular routine of hiking. For us, though, it was far from a day of rest. Today, we would be hiking an estimated nine miles to the top of Mt. Baldy and back. Baldy was prestigious for being the tallest mountain in Philmont’s Scout ranch, peaking at 12,000 ft. in elevation. It was a day we anticipated to be challenging but rewarding.
We got ready that morning, packing daypacks with water and warm clothing, as Baldy was expected to be cold. Many of us left our tents sporting shorts-over-long johns. Silly looking as we were, it was a sensible way to dress. We were taking our time to get out of camp; we would find out later we should have hurried instead. The crew leader and I were to navigate that day; it was my first time navigating the trek. Before we started out on our hike, everyone was sure to drink at least half a Nalgene full of water.
Once our hike began, we proceeded at a comfortable pace to Baldy Camp. It was all up hill, with few downhill spots. As we were heading towards a mountain, what should we expect? We arrived fairly soon at Baldy Camp. This camp had been the original Baldy Town, a gold-mining town that harbored miners and businesses profiting from the miners. We couldn’t stay there very long; it was close to 9:30, and hikers had to be off the mountain once noon arrived. At noon, there were usually storms and there was the possibility of lightning strikes.
We left shortly after arriving, and began to climb the actual mountain. The trail went towards the mountain, and very quickly turned into a switchback. Switchbacks are a trail that zigzags up a mountain instead of going straight up, which made the hiking easier. Unfortunately, even with only a daypack and a trail with switchbacks, the trail very quickly became tough. The trail was rock covered, and only went up.
After so many switchbacks, we finally arrived at a sign pointing to the rest of the trail up the mountain. It felt like we were finally nearing the top, but we were still far from it. We continued on this new trail, which had no switchbacks, but less rocks. It was past 11 o’ clock, but we still had no clue how much further there was to go. The trees seemed scarcer and we seemed to be getting closer to the clouds. Soon, it was 11:30, and we were still hiking on this trail. We decided then that one advisor would stay where we were on the trail, everyone would drop daypacks, and we would continue as fast as we comfortably could to the top. We needed to be off by noon. So, we dropped packs, and much of the crew, faster than I was, hurried up the trail. I continued hiking with the rest of the crew.
Soon, we came to a part of the trail where the trees were shorter and we could see the sky above us. We knew that we were much closer now. Excited, we continued hiking, until the trail turned all to rocks. We were in the clouds now, and we had passed the tree line. The second advisor decided to stop at the tree line. The rest of us continued up, but at a painstakingly slow pace. The angle that we were hiking was much steeper, the trail was much less stable, and there was less oxygen. We would walk maybe 15 steps, then stop to catch our breath. We felt like giving up, but we didn’t. We continued up.
Then, someone heading down the mountain told us we were five minutes from the top. Disbelieving, we still continued on. Soon, though, we saw the top of the mountain. Filled suddenly with energy, we continued walking till we finally came up over the ridge, and saw the other side of the mountain. It was unbelievable. No mountain in Pennsylvania had such a scenic view as this one did. We saw the other mountains of Philmont, we saw the trails, we saw the grassy plains, we saw the lakes, and we even saw the top of the clouds. It was such a rush, taking in the view, and knowing that the climb up had finally ended.
The rest of the crew had made it to the top ahead of us, and we greeted each other happily. It was now noon, but since another crew was still on top of Baldy, we decided we could stay and enjoy the top. Everyone who had a camera took pictures of the view. Then, we posed for a group picture while the other crew took pictures of us. We then walked around the top, taking in all the view. Some of us ate our lunch up there, some wrote postcards, some of the guys peed off the edge of the mountain, and some took rocks as souvenirs.
Close to 12:30, some of us started back down the mountain again. It was much easier, now that the whole hike ahead of us was downhill. We picked up our second advisor, and continued down to where our daypacks were. Once there, those who hadn’t eaten ate while we waited for the rest of the crew. By the time they got down to where we were, it was starting to rain. Once everyone had eaten, we started back down the mountain.
The switchbacks were easier going downhill, but by the time we got to Baldy Camp, my legs felt like Jell-O. We took a break there, and got our food for the next few days from the commissary there. After receiving a porch talk from the staff there, we were free to check out their mini-museum, their general store, and their shower house. Those that could, took showers. We left around 4 o’ clock, and started hiking down to Miranda again. Soon, our legs were feeling weak, and we were becoming tired and hungry.
Once back down at Miranda, though we had stopped hiking, we continued to work as we cooked dinner in the rain, and hauled up our food-filled bear bags on the bear-bag line. As the rain poured on and nighttime approached, everyone welcomed the chance to crawl into his or her sleeping bags and sleep. That day had been a very difficult yet rewarding day. It was one of my two most challenging days on the trail. My crew had hoped for a successful climb of Baldy, and for memories to last a lifetime. I think we all got what we wanted.
