When we stopped at the ranger station to see what there was to see and inquire about casual hiking, the ranger steered us to Monjeau Peak and also to Bonita Lake area of the White Mountains. The drive to Monjeau Peak was on a forest road which meant dirt packed, sometimes wash board, but doable in our vehicle. The drive was pretty, but the first couple of miles on the forest service road we passed through a major burn area (2012) that looked like it was really devastated. Vegetation is rebounding, and we came up on a pack of wild horses. Very cool. All were marked the same and when we stopped to take pictures, we did not know there was a group on the right side of our vehicle and the left side bunch were calling to the right side to "git over here now". Very loud. The group on the right side quickly passed behind us and they were gone out of sight. And they all had the same coloring and markings.
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| Not a bad road - dirt, hard packed |
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| The burn area from 2012, looked like a very major fire |
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| Wild horses |
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| This group to our right quickly passed behind us and disappeared |
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| Lots of them! |
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| Homes 3/4 way up - small community called La Madonna |
Up the road we traveled, climbing higher and higher, into tundra area. Soon we saw the fire tower lookout (stone) on top of the mountain and that is where the Peak road ends. Impressive.
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| Looking for elk, only saw 2 deer |
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| Stone tower lookout on peak to left |
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| Wondered how far we could see |
Desolate, pretty in its own way, dramatic. We even saw a tent set up for camping. Brrr, with the temperatures dropping into the low 30s, got to be freezing. But to see the stars from on top of the peak, amazing.
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| We were at 9,641 feet and felt it |
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| Very rugged terrain |
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| Trails off from the Peak - lead to camp sites |
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| A couple of camp sites right on the Peak |
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| A tent set up - cheese |
From Monjeau Peak we then traveled back down and went to an area called Bonita Meadows where we could hike. We were told that Bonita Lake was closed for dredging but we had no idea what that meant. Oh boy, what a project. Seems that they are dredging the lake to make it double the capacity of what it usually is, have diverted Bonita River elsewhere, re-doing the roads so it is better access into the lake and camping/hiking area. But we were stopped right after the lake, too much construction going on and with the recent rains, the roads that were there are flooded out. Oh well.
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| The forest service road to Bonita Lake area |
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| Homes right up against road |
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| Bonita River being captured and diverted |
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| Dredging of Bonita Lake - what a project |
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| 2 huge excavators digging away with big dump trucks being loaded |
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| Sludge being trucked out to who knows where |
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