Looking like something Van Gogh painted these sunflowers are either Mule’s Ears (Wyethia arizonica) or Arrow Leaf Balsamroot (Balsamorhiza sagittata)
20 JUNE 2026 W5N/SE-012
| Elevation: | 10,118′ |
| Route: | 4WD track and good use trail |
| Hike Distance: | 4.0 miles round trip |
| Elevation Gain: | 930′ (includes both summits) |
| Navigation: | Easy |
| Steepness: | Mostly gentle |
| Vehicle: | Passenger car* |
| Road: | Good dirt road* |
| Cell Coverage: | Good Verizon |
Cassie KG6MZS got a last minute call to go mule riding on Saturday, so this left me free to wander the hills. I got a pretty early start and the sun rose as I passed through Los Alamos on my way up the Valle Caldera. Highway 4 had some paving going on two weeks ago when I did Peralta Ridge, so I drove up through Los Alamos to avoid the flagmen.
There are quite a few road options to get to the jump off point for Los Griegos. I opted for the shortest route, but this is not the smoothest road.
This is the driving route I would suggest.. Longer, but faster on better road. Lots of elk and mule deer along the road at this early hour.
At the bend in FS Road 270 indicated as the trailhead, there is a 4wd track that goes up the canyon. This road was actually passable all the way up to the saddle between Los Griegos and Cerro Pelado and beyond. There are some rocks that need to be negotiated but after the track leaves the canyon, all the deadfall has been cut, and the driving would be pretty easy. My 4wd skills are beginner, at best, so I opted to leave Whitedog the Tacoma at the bottom. A skilled driver could’ve done it, but, for me, discretion is the sensible part of valor. Besides, it was a lovely morning for a walk up a shaded canyon.
While much of the area had burned in the 2017 Cerro Pelada Fire, this route is entirely in an unburned section. The 4wd track wends its way nicely through the brush and deadfall up into park-like sections of mature Ponderosa Pine in alpine meadows. There were a lot of wildflowers despite the poor rainfall so far this season. Scarlett Bugler, Richardson’s Geranium, Indian Paintbrush, Elkweed or Deer’s Ears the above Arizona Mule’s Ears and many others dotted the forest.
I was initially going to give this hike a solid Two Stars, but after I walked out on the meadow the flanks the northeast slope and took in the magnificent view, I upped it to Three Stars. I suggest that if you have never done this one, visit both summits and walk out into this meadow. The dip between the two summits sinks about 70′ keeping both in the activation zone.
The actual summit has a register that went back to June 18, 2017 from a crew working the Cerro Pelada Fire.
Radio conditions were pretty good and this was a fun activation with 6 summit-to-summit contacts. Scotty NM5SW was full quieting from Albuequrque and helped me get spotted and alerted to the crew over on Elk Mountain. Thanks Scotty!
After hiking back, I decided to drive over to Cerro Pleada and visit the Fire Lookout tower. Ranger Courtney was an active lookout for several of the fires in the area – especially one over by Cuba and The Paliza Fire off FS Road 10. I saw a half dozen or so wild turkeys near the top.
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