Grand Enchantment Trail

GET Topo CD v1.4

Ah, July: another month, another version of the GET topo map set CD… or so sometimes it may seem!

Yes, map set v1.4 – in fact its 5th incarnation since v1.0 debuted in 2006 – is now available. (We don’t revise because we want to, but because we have to. Change is progress in the decidedly not-for-profit trailblazing business.)

Find the new CD here:
http://simblissity.net/get-topo-cd.htm

Existing map set owners will note a special Add to Cart button intended just for them, which will charge precisely one penny (plus shipping) to the credit card of their choice, in exchange for all the love and promise in the world… or at least as much as the CD would hold. So if you’re thinking of heading out anytime soon – perhaps this fall, what with promising monsoon rains currently about – this virtually-free upgrade could be just the thing.

Don’t own a prior version of the map CD? That’s okay, we hope you’ll agree the purchase price isn’t too outrageous. And then, just like that, you’re in the free upgrade club.

PSA: I’ll be leaving on a little trip in about a week, returning in early August, so CD’s will ship both before and after but not during.

So what’s new this time?

+ The route keeps getting better. A number of noteworthy changes to the individual segment maps reflect these latest changes, especially in AZ. These include the eastbound descent from the Pinaleno Mountains toward the Gila Valley, which now uses Ash Creek Trail and also includes Cluff Ranch wildlife area. This is a vast improvement over the old route through the burn zone of Frye Creek, both in terms of navigability and scenery. (The old route here should now be considered “closed” for GET-related purposes.)

+ Other changes to the route layout reflected on the new maps include portions of the following areas: Superstition Wilderness (Segment 1), Picketpost Mountain to the Gila River (Seg 3), Aravaipa Wash (Seg 6), Santa Teresa Wilderness (Seg 8), Santa Teresa – Pinalenos connector (Seg 9), Pinaleno Mountains (Seg 10), Gila Valley South (Seg 11), Coronado Trail to the Blue River (Segs 15-16), Black Range / CDT (Segs 25-26), Rio Grande to US 60 (Seg 33), and Cedro – Otero area (Seg 37). Collectively, these changes are contributing to a “year 2008 GET” which is undoubtedly the strongest route layout ever, and with any luck, won’t require any major modification for the foreseeable future.

+ Improved / updated GPS waypoint data for some segments, much of it field-recorded, and reflecting both current and recent changes to the route.

+ GPS TRACKS for all segments and alternate routes of the GET – a new feature for version 1.4. Track files can be uploaded to GPS and used in addition to the guidebook and CD map printouts for navigating along the suggested route. Unlike individual spot waypoints, GPS tracks show the whole route line in addition to your location along it, in a sense “putting the hiker on the map.” Tracks are available in GPS eXchange format (gpx) for strong compatibility with most GPS receivers, and may be especially useful when exploring segments of the GET that lack corresponding guidebook chapters as of yet.

+ Updated overview maps of the trail: area maps, maps that show the route and elevation profiles between resupply points, and more. These are the same maps available for viewing on the website, only in high-resolution for printing.

+ New Lightscribe direct-disc labeling makes GET topo map set CD v1.4 a veritable feast for the senses, so visually appealing you may just decide to order an extra copy for display wherever fine artwork is appreciated in your home or office.

Next up…

Online guidebook edits for the existing 18 chapters (all of Arizona), bringing them up to date alongside the new map CD.

Water chart and town guide updates – ditto. All of this should take a couple of weeks at most, so anyone heading out this fall would probably do best to wait before printing any relevant materials.

Also…

Now online at the GET website ( www.grandenchantmenttrail.org ) – updated interactive Google Map as well as downloadable Google Earth file for 3D fun while checking out all the new stuff in GET land.

Now back to enjoying summer!

- Brett

Cedro meadow

Changes are afoot in Segment 37 of the GET, located just south of I-40 – east of Albuquerque, south of Tijeras. This segment passes through the extreme southernmost part of the Cibola National Forest, Sandia Ranger District. It’s located off of Sandia Crest itself, in the lower-elevation Manzanita Mountains, with 7700-foot Cedro Peak as its highest near-trail point, and scenic Otero Canyon en route. This is an intriguing area of dense pinyon-juniper woods interspersed with scenic wildflower meadows. An extensive network of hiking and riding trails thread the rolling terrain in this region, offering many potential route options that the GET might select from. As such, this segment (along with the northern part of Segment 36 to its south) continues to evolve. The current incarnation of the route here hasn’t been fully explored as of yet.

Here’s the beta:

Segment 37 – Cedro Peak

Maps:
http://simblissity.net/images/GET/cedro1.JPG
http://simblissity.net/images/GET/cedro2.JPG

GPX files (right click, save link as):
http://simblissity.net/gpx/seg37-cedro.gpx
http://simblissity.net/gpx/seg37-cedro.gpx

Anyone with an older version of the mapset will note that the Segment 37 has migrated westward, now spending more time on the west side of Highway 337, before crossing it at Cedro Creek, continuing over a height-of-land on Cedro Peak, then north to a rejoining of 337 near Tijeras. (Segment 38 then enters the Sandia Mountain Wilderness not long after the route crosses beneath I-40.)

The big advantages to this proposed routing over previous are:

1) It avoids 3 miles of high-grade roadwalking in the Tranquillo Pine residential community and along Oak Flat Road.

2) It’s also 3 miles shorter, purely by coincidence.

3) The new route follows the Cedro Creek Riparian Interpretive Trail for about a mile, with perennial water. (Thanks to Forest Service for this bit of useful if belated info.) This is a huge advantage over the old route, which had only one developed source at Oak Flat Campground, which was subject to being seasonally turned off.

4) Potentially, the new route will be less complex to follow, with fewer intersecting trails. The old route east and south of Cedro Peak featured trail junctions every mile or less it seemed, most of them signed, but still a lot of map consultation required to select the right one.

I intend to walk the proposed route this fall, but if anyone happens to be in the area this summer and is looking for an interesting and diverse section of GET to explore, this one might just be the ticket. Any feedback – either here on the forum or directly by email – would be greatly appreciated.

The maps linked above will be part of the upcoming version of the GET map CD, due out sometime later this month, we hope. Actual CD maps are high-resolution bitmap images and together cover the entire route of the GET from Phoenix to Albuquerque.

PS – A note about the “military withdrawal” shown on the maps around Cedro Canyon. According to the FS, this is in fact FS land – at least by every outward appearance – but has been “withdrawn” by the DOE and Kirtland Air Base in recent years, meaning no public access across portions of Otero Canyon at present. This has proven to be a contentious and emotional issue, as Otero is a much-enjoyed region for Albuquerque-area residents. The reason for the withdrawal concerns – of all things – unexploded ordnance! Apparently this area was once a bombing range, and hazards – perceived and/or real – still remain. Post-9/11 security-related paranoia may also have contributed to the desire by the feds to post the area off-limits to hikers and riders – to protect Kirtland Air Base itself with a buffer zone of sorts. But in any case, the military withdrawal at Otero DOES NOT AFFECT the new route of the GET, which uses trails that skirt around the closure area. Such is life on the outskirts of a large metropolitan area and “military town.” Frankly, I continue to be more amazed by how little influence the big ABQ actually holds over these nearby lands, quiet and pristine as they generally seem to remain.

- blisterfree