Less than a mile off of the Tijeras exit from Interstate 40, within a community known as Canyon Estates, is a trailhead that will eventually lead you over the ridge of Sandia Crest. Half a mile from that trailhead lies Travertine Falls.
Trail Stats
AllTrails rates this as an easy 1.1 mile out and back hike with a 249 foot elevation gain. Keep in mind, an out and back trail is just over half a mile each way, so that 249 foot elevation happens pretty quick. There are grades as high as 23% and a few over 20% along the way.
Early Start
Because I had other errands to run after the hike, I made sure to leave early. Additionally, I wanted to try and beat the midday sun and mess with the Pro settings for the camera on my phone. I was hoping to arrive at the trailhead no later than 6:30.
Due to a cascade in my sleeping schedule, I wound up in bed asleep at 8:30 Friday night. As a result of such an early bedtime, I was up at 3:00. I made some coffee, took a shower, got dressed and was ready with plenty of time to spare. Because it was a little on the chilly side this morning, I wore shorts and a t-shirt, but put on a long sleeved Henley over that, and packed a flannel just in case.
I finally left just after 6:00 and stopped at Blake’s Lotaburger for a breakfast burrito. I didn’t eat it right away though. I was saving it for when I arrived at the falls on the hike. Which is fine, the burritos from Blake’s are always WAY too hot to eat when you first get them anyway, this would give it a chance to cool down before digging in. After the interminable wait that Blake’s is so proud of, I finally started heading down Central into Tijeras.
The Hike
I pulled into the parking lot at the trailhead at around 6:45, extended my trekking poles, strapped on my hydration pack (Blake’s burrito strapped to it with the integrated bungee cords), started the navigation on AllTrails (or so I thought…) and set out.
Immediately on the left, I came across a formation of rocks- four concentric circles of rocks carefully set out in a clearing in the trees. I’m not sure if this was some sort of ritual site or just some kids playing around, but I found it interesting enough to take a photo.
The trail is uphill the entire way to the falls, and is steepest at the beginning. I took advantage of the many breaks I had to take to snap some pictures along the way.
The Sandia Wilderness is just starting to see new life now in the early spring. Most of the foliage is green making for a beautiful early morning hike.
My trekking poles most certainly came in handy on this trek. I found myself almost PULLING myself up the hill with them and helping find balance on some of the unsteady areas I encountered.
When I was about a third of the way to the falls, I checked the AllTrails app to see how I was doing, checking time, distance, make sure I was on the right path, and so on. It turns out it hadn’t been recording. D’oh! So, I (re)started the recording and continued on my way.
There was a fairly deep ravine immediately to my left and some portions of the trail narrowed making the hike a little worrisome at times. I plowed forward though, using my poles to ensure I didn’t tumble into the ditch.
The last 10 or 20 yards leading to the falls were pretty steep. I decided to take advantage of the foam lower handles on the poles to carry me to the top. As I drew nearer to the falls, I was faced with a large tree that had fallen right across the trail. I had three options: go over, under or around. I opted for the latter.
I shimmied through a semi-clear area around the trunk of the fallen tree where I finally made it to the falls. They towered above, about 20 feet tall. There are a couple of natural caves in the base of the falls where I stopped and took some more photos. I continued up and around the rock face where there was a slight trickle of water that really couldn’t even be seen but was heard. The trail I was on continued up and over the falls but I chose to turn back around and have my breakfast back on the other side of the fallen tree.
I took my time eating, enjoying the warming but still cool air and the sound of the water trickling down the travertine face of the falls. When I was done, I packed out my trash and headed back down the hill.
I discovered on my hike through Carlsbad Caverns that steep declines force your feet into the fronts of your shoes. Two of my toenails are still black from that discovery back in March. This is where my trekking poles once more came in handy. I held them from the tops and used them as kind of brakes to decrease the push that I would have otherwise felt. I really only did this on the steepest parts, or when I was stepping down from obstacles like roots or rocks.
I got back to my car just around 8:00 or so then headed off to run some errands, including take a tour of the model of the apartment I’m moving into this week.
Conclusion
The hike was a little strenuous for me, but that’s kind of the point, isn’t it? To get myself into better shape to be able to handle these type of trails, then move on to something even more strenuous?
It was beautiful and I certainly picked the right time of day to go, early in the morning. It’s supposed to get pretty warm today. I’d hate to try that hike when it’s 78 degrees out.
I can definitely see myself doing this trail again, and perhaps hiking up to the top of the falls, and perhaps beyond at some point. Until then though, I’ll always have today.
As always, thanks for visiting this little corner of the internet, I appreciate you!
Here are some photos from my trek today, with adjustments to the ISO settings in pro mode on my phone camera. I think I’m finally starting to get the hang of it; now I just need to find a way to better compose my photos.
Until next time!
-Phil
