Santa Fe Baldy is a prominent

summit A summit is a point on a surface that is higher in elevation than all points immediately adjacent to it. The topography, topographic terms acme, apex, peak (mountain peak), and zenith are synonymous. The term (mountain top) is generally used ...

in the

Sangre de Cristo Mountains ) , country= United States , subdivision1_type= States , subdivision1= , parent= Rocky Mountains , geology= , orogeny= , area_mi2= 17193 , range_coordinates= , length_mi= 242 , length_orientation= north-south , width_mi= 120 , w ...

New Mexico ) , population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano) , seat = Santa Fe , LargestCity = Albuquerque , LargestMetro = Tiguex , OfficialLang = None , Languages = English, Spanish ( New Mexican), Navajo, Ker ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, located 15 mi (24 km) northeast of Santa Fe. There are no higher mountains in New Mexico south of Santa Fe Baldy. It is prominent as seen from Los Alamos and communities along the

Rio Grande The Rio Grande ( and ), known in Mexico as the Río Bravo del Norte or simply the Río Bravo, is one of the principal rivers (along with the Colorado River) in the southwestern United States and in northern Mexico. The length of the Rio G ...

in northern New Mexico, but is relatively inconspicuous from Santa Fe, as its north-south trending main ridge line is seen nearly end-on, disguising the size of the mountain.

Tree line The tree line is the edge of the habitat at which trees are capable of growing. It is found at high elevations and high latitudes. Beyond the tree line, trees cannot tolerate the environmental conditions (usually cold temperatures, extreme snowp ...

in the Sangre de Cristos is unusually high (exceeding in places) and only the top of the mountain is perpetually free of trees, but several severe

forest fire A wildfire, forest fire, bushfire, wildland fire or rural fire is an unplanned, uncontrolled and unpredictable fire in an area of Combustibility and flammability, combustible vegetation. Depending on the type of vegetation present, a wildfire ...

s have created bare spots extending to lower elevations. An extensive region of

aspen Aspen is a common name for certain tree species; some, but not all, are classified by botanists in the section ''Populus'', of the ''Populus'' genus. Species These species are called aspens: *'' Populus adenopoda'' – Chinese aspen (China ...

trees on its flanks produces spectacular orange-yellow coloration during the fall that is the subject of many photographic studies. Santa Fe Baldy rises in the

Pecos Wilderness The Pecos Wilderness is a protected wilderness area within the Santa Fe National Forest and Carson National Forest. The Pecos Wilderness lies within the Camino Real Ranger District of the Carson National Forest, and the Pecos Ranger District and Es ...

within the

Santa Fe National Forest The Santa Fe National Forest is a protected United States National Forest, national forest in northern New Mexico in the Southwestern United States. It was established in 1915 and covers . Elevations range from 5,300 feet (1600 m) to 13,103 ...

, on the

water divide A drainage divide, water divide, ridgeline, watershed, water parting or height of land is elevated terrain that separates neighboring drainage basins. On rugged land, the divide lies along topographical ridges, and may be in the form of a singl ...

between the

and the

Pecos River The Pecos River ( es, Río Pecos) originates in north-central New Mexico and flows into Texas, emptying into the Rio Grande. Its headwaters are on the eastern slope of the Sangre de Cristo mountain range in Mora County north of Pecos, New Mexico ...

. The western slopes are drained by the Rio Capulin and the Rio Nambe, both flowing to the Rio Grande. The eastern side of the mountain consists of two small

cirque A (; from the Latin word ') is an amphitheatre-like valley formed by glacial erosion. Alternative names for this landform are corrie (from Scottish Gaelic , meaning a pot or cauldron) and (; ). A cirque may also be a similarly shaped landform ...

s, one containing ''Lake Katherine'', one of the highest lakes in New Mexico at elevation . Contrary to popular belief, Lake Katherine was not given its name by

theoretical physicist Theoretical physics is a branch of physics that employs mathematical models and abstractions of physical objects and systems to rationalize, explain and predict natural phenomena. This is in contrast to experimental physics, which uses experimen ...

J. Robert Oppenheimer J. Robert Oppenheimer (; April 22, 1904 – February 18, 1967) was an American theoretical physicist. A professor of physics at the University of California, Berkeley, Oppenheimer was the wartime head of the Los Alamos Laboratory and is often ...

, in reference to his wife Katherine "Kitty" Oppenheimer. This naming convention predates their meeting by at least a decade, and the lake is instead named after Katherine Chaves Page Kavanaugh, owner of the Los Pinos Guest Ranch on the Pecos River. The attribution of the name to J. Robert Oppenheimer may be influenced by his known connection to Katherine Chaves Page Kavanaugh, as he was a frequent guest at the Ranch. The peak is accessed by Trail 251, the Skyline Trail, which climbs to a saddle about below the summit; the remaining distance is covered by a steep unofficial trail along the ridgeline. Under good conditions the summit is a simple "walk-up" climb, but the Sangre de Cristos are unusually prone to

lightning Lightning is a naturally occurring electrostatic discharge during which two electric charge, electrically charged regions, both in the atmosphere or with one on the land, ground, temporarily neutralize themselves, causing the instantaneous ...

, and during the summer months, the wise hiker is off Santa Fe Baldy and other high summits in the range by noon, to avoid afternoon

thunderstorm A thunderstorm, also known as an electrical storm or a lightning storm, is a storm characterized by the presence of lightning and its acoustic effect on the Earth's atmosphere, known as thunder. Relatively weak thunderstorms are someti ...

s. Nearby peaks include ''Lake Peak'', and ''Tesuque Peak'', , both located about to the south of Santa Fe Baldy. Santa Fe

Ski A ski is a narrow strip of semi-rigid material worn underfoot to glide over snow. Substantially longer than wide and characteristically employed in pairs, skis are attached to ski boots with ski bindings, with either a free, lockable, or partial ...

Basin is on the western slopes of Tesuque Peak. On 11 June 2009, Santa Fe Baldy was the scene of a helicopter accident that claimed the lives of

New Mexico State Police New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, ...

Sergeant Andrew Tingwall and

University of New Mexico The University of New Mexico (UNM; es, Universidad de Nuevo México) is a public research university in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Founded in 1889, it is the state's flagship academic institution and the largest by enrollment, with over 25,400 ...

graduate student Megumi Yamamoto. The helicopter crashed after Tingwall rescued Yamamoto. Yamamoto had been hiking with her boyfriend, but had become lost.

Gallery

File:Santa Fe Baldy, 2010.jpg, With fresh snow, January 2010 File:Pecos Baldy Santa Fe Baldy.jpg, From

Truchas Peak Truchas Peak (more precisely, South Truchas Peak) is the second highest peak in the U.S. State of New Mexico behind Wheeler Peak. It is in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains northeast of Santa Fe. It lies within the Pecos Wilderness, part of the S ...

, with Pecos Baldy in the foreground File:Looking down on Lake Katherine from near the peak of Sante Fe Baldy Mountain.jpg, Looking down on Lake Katherine from near the peak of Santa Fe Baldy File:Looking north-northeast from the switch-backed section of the trail to Lake Katherine towards the Sante Fe Baldy summit.jpg, Looking north-northeast from the switch-backed section of the trail to Lake Katherine summit

References

External links

* * {{Mountains of New Mexico Mountains of New Mexico Sangre de Cristo Mountains

Baldy Baldy refers to a person with hair loss. Baldy may also refer to: People *Baldy (nickname) *Pen name of Clifford H. Baldowski (1917–1999), American editorial cartoonist * Daniel Baldy (born 1994), German politician * Leonard Baldy (1927-1960), ...

Santa Fe National Forest Mountains of Santa Fe County, New Mexico