On Walkabout On: The Road to the Organ Mountains

Just a short distance from the summit of San Augustin Pass, which crosses New Mexico’s Organ Mountains, is the turn off to the Aguirre Springs Campground.  The drive to the campground is quite scenic considering the sweeping views of the Organ Mountains that are offered:

Behind me is San Augustin Peak, which right below it passes US 70 where the summit of San Augustin Pass is located:

Looking down into the desert valley below the famous White Sands Missile Range can be seen:

As I continued to drive down the road the “Rabbit Ears” of the Organ Mountains became more visible:

Here is a closer look at these “Rabbit Ears”:

Another prominent terrain feature is Sugarloaf Peak:

Here is a closer look at the Sugarloaf:

However, Sugarloaf Peak cannot compare with how strikingly beautiful “Rabbit Ears” are:

Here is the main ridgeline of the Organ Mountains known as “The Needles”:

The highest peak of these mountains, Organ Needle reaches a maximum altitude of 8,980 feet (2,737 meters).

The Pine Tree Trail that I planned on hiking leads into the heart of The Needles.  The road eventually came to the campground and the start of the trail up into the mountains.  Here was the view of the “Rabbit Ears” as viewed from the campground:

That is a pretty nice sight for campers to wake up in the morning I’m sure.  Anyway if the drive up to these mountains was this scenic I couldn’t wait to see what kind of sights I was going to experience once I hiked into these rugged mountains.

Next Posting: The Hike Up Pine Tree Trail