WestTexas

Well, I hit paydirt with the help of a very nice guy who had hiked it relatively recently and had saved the GPS route.

With that, I can download it to both my latest set up USGS topo maps as well as my Garmin eTrex.

Thanks all!
WestTexas

toejam

Good to hear it! It stinks that the ranger wouldn't send you anything. If you had called the other place or called back after a few hours it probably would have been different. You never know what you are going to get from park/forest help anymore. They can't legally give you any good info because of liability concerns. When I filled out the solo permit to hike the trail I had to say I was carrying four days worth of water. The rangers have to tell you that you can't rely on the springs even though they are completely reliable.

I'm attempting to scan my map and get it posted somewhere.

WestTexas

Well, my spring-time hiking plans for Rancherias got eaten' up with kid's spring break, work, etc.

But now we're looking forward to a fall hike.

Quick question for those in the know......

Not that I'm adamant about a camp fire, and I know the park rules I've seen online restrict camp fires to self-contained fire pans (and no gathering of wood), so I'm curious if others who've done the loop have had camp fires, and if so, what was your planning / implementation for it?

tnx a bunch in advance!
WestTexas

copuswalker

They do not allow fires as far as I know.
I have never seen evidence of anyone having burned? I suppose if someone were in an emergency situation then a small fire could be lit from gathered wood?
I am sure they wouldn't be happy but?????

I am trying to get my brother back to hike the trail with me this fall again. I really love the trail and the area!!

__________________
There are those that hike and those that don't and those that say they will but won't.

toejam

I'd wait until after dark. How do you have a fire if you can't gather wood?

I've never had a fire in Big Bend camps. And I don't recall seeing any fire rings on the Rancherias Trail. You should skip it and stay out of trouble. Consider bringing a backpacking lantern.

WestTexas

Thanks !

That's pretty much what I expected. I mean, heck, who's gonna pack in firewood !

I usually pack my little Coleman Xtreme lantern, which I can refuel from my coleman PowerMax bottle(s) if needed, though one charge usually lasts two or three evenings.

Just the nostalgic side of me always wanting a campfire when allowed (and possible).

tnx,
WestTexas

Neville

I figured this thread would be as good as any to suggest this...


There's a couple of us from backpacker.com who will be hitting the loop from the 15th to the 18th of March for a hike and some trail maintenance. Any and all are welcome.

ridgescrambler

Neville - will see you there along with Pack Dad for Rancherias Loop in March 07

Neville

I'll just keep this thread going rather than start a new one....

We got back from the trail Saturday night (03/17) having not completed the whole route. It's wise to say that the hiking season for this trail is December through February as temps hit 107 degrees on the way out. The worked through the trail from the East trailhead and Panther Springs before having to call it off due to heat exhaustion. The good news is that the trail has been cleaned of a lot of overgrowth up to Panther Springs and the park service has installed some blazes in areas where navigation is troublesome.

A trip report has been posted on backpacker.com for those interested:
http://forums.backpacker.com/eve/for...9/m/3581054852


Pictures of the hike between the east trailhead and Panther Springs are here:

toejam

I just did my fourth trip around the Rancherias Loop. It was different than the previous trips because I was not the only one out there this time. I brought a couple of guys with me and I saw the trail through their eyes, which was a different view.

On my previous trips I was escaping the holiday madness and stress. I started the hike almost running and never felt my feet until the last long climb to the saddle between Acebuches and Panther Canyons. Then I had lots of time to lounge around the springs at the adobe houses and sip tequila.

On this trip we parked at the west trailhead and hiked down the road to the east trailhead, taking in Closed Canyon on the way. It was about an hour before we got to the trailhead and actually started the hike. We stopped for lunch as we neared the foot of the mountains and one of the fellas was starting to show some wear. As we climbed out of the creek bed and through the rock fence to cross over to Acebuches Canyon, this guy was gassed. I had not noticed how much climbing we had done, since I’m always jazzed about starting the hike. But through the eyes of my friends I saw that we had gained quite a bit of elevation since leaving the car.

Once in the canyon, my other friend started to wear out. Hiking in the sand on the creek bed was getting to him. I didn’t expect this since he does a lot of hiking in Big Bend and is a tough old codger. We hiked slowly and took a lot of breaks, and with much resolve and ibuprofen, we made it to the top of the saddle and dropped into Panther Canyon as the sun dropped below the mountains.

There was a couple setting up a tent near the springs and I said hi as I scouted for a camping spot. They had missed the jeep road to Rancherias Springs and had followed the road up the north fork of Rancherias Creek, past the new Rancherias camp site towards Oso Peak. So not finding Rancherias Springs, they had returned to Panther Canyon. Part of their problem was that they were off the trail map almost as soon as they took the wrong turn, so they went quite a way before figuring out they were off the trail.

Another couple showed up from the south, saying they had started from the east trailhead around 1:00 p.m. My friends were amazed, but I pointed out that we were at that trailhead about 11:00 and they arrived almost an hour after us, so not a big deal for 6 miles. My tired friends were ready to crash on the floor of the adobe houses, but I was afraid of getting a citation in the mail, so we set up camp in a legal spot.

The next day I tried to keep the pace easy and we took a lot of breaks, enjoying the more open desert views. The intersection where the jeep road goes north seemed obvious enough, although at least 2 parties had gone north and missed Rancherias Springs. We set up a couple of cairns where the trail crossed the creek bed, just to make it a little more obvious. One of my friends had a pronounced limp, but we made it to the springs around 3:00 p.m. We went a way down stream and set up on a flat spot near where the water flowed pretty well. The burros had been all the way down there, leaving manure all over and mucking up the water. This problem appears to be getting worse every year. My friend with the limp enjoyed sprawling on a rock watching the cottonwood leaves dance for a long time.

I ran into a party of about a half dozen while scouting a short cut to the trail from our camp. They had climbed up from the west trailhead and looked pretty beat. I’ve never seen another soul on this loop before and always hiked it the same time of year. I guess the word is getting out. The good part is the trail was much easier to follow this time.

We limped out without incident the next day and got to the car around 3:00. My limping friend had never been to Big Bend before and was as impressed by the area as I’d hoped he’d be. The other guy has spent lots of time in the national park and was happy to be introduced to the state park. He said his next trip will be driving around the old roads in his truck. The solitude and history of the Rancherias Loop are what I’ve loved about this hike. It doesn’t have the extremes in elevation of the Chisos, Guadalupes or Rockies where I’ve often hiked, and the mileage is easy enough, but for those who don’t have a runner’s legs it’s a pretty tough hike. I thought these guys could do it easily, and I’m glad a couple of other guys I invited couldn’t make it.

Neville

Nice TR. I'm shooting for late February to hit this loop again. How were the temps out there? Was the water flowing pretty good at the two springs?

WestTexas

Hey Toejam, many thanks for the update!

Quick question, about a year ago, we ran into some pretty thick, nettly brush about a mile north of the adobe house as we passed through Panther Springs (about 3/4 mile south of the jeep road intersection). Is it still like that? Neville posted back last March '07 that some clearing had been done up to Panther Springs.

Of course, we mighta been off course there. We were down low through Panther Springs, mighta been off trail? First time through it.

Many thanks in advance!
WT

toejam

WestTexas - I made the same mistake my first time through. I got off the trail and pretty much bushwhacked all the way from the houses to north of the spring. The trail crosses to the east side of the creek bed and climbs pretty high to get around some cliffs. By the time you are near the old stock tank, fence and first cottonwood trees you should be looking down on them from up the east side of the canyon. Then you climb way up over the cliffs and get back down to the creek bed just north of the spring by the indian cave. This is described in the park's trail guide, which I didn't have on my first trip.

The trail will be easier to follow next time.

toejam

Neville - temps were typical - high 20's at night and 60's in the afternoon. Not too windy. There was lots of water flowing.

WestTexas

Yep, that sounds exactly like what happened. Coulda used a machete! Next time it will be on the trail !

Thanks a bunch!
WT