We woke up to a beautiful morning with a very heavy dew.  I got up at 5:20am, stowed  my gear, and then walked down to the Fishing Lodge for water to heat for breakfast.  On my way back to camp, I ran into Hampton and we talked for a while.  I started heating the water, and then got the boys up at 6:00am – that’s sleeping in at Philmont.  Our hike today was to be our second shortest of the trek, so we took it easy this morning.  We broke camp, and then had breakfast.  After we cleaned up and compacted our trash, everyone needing water went to the Fishing Lodge to fill up, and the trash man took our trash and extra food to the cabin.

We began hiking about 7:30am.  The hike to Aqua Fria was beautiful, following the Aqua Fria Creek along a long meadow.  At Aqua Fria, we made a right turn to go to Bear Canyon Camp, but we made the “wrong” right.  The trail we were supposed to take was not very clear at Aqua Fria, but another trail leading uphill in the general direction looked good  so we took it assuming it was the right trail.  We ended up bushwhacking up to the summit of a 9,200-foot high ridge.  The “trail” was very steep, and made up mostly of loose  soil and gravel.  The trail might have been wrong, but the views were worth the hard hike up.  I earned two giant blisters on this hike, one on each heel.  I did not lace my boots tight enough before beginning the climb.  We took some crew pictures on the summit and did some foot first aid, then took a 223-degree heading to the reservoir below Bear Canyon Camp, and continued our bushwhack towards the trail we should have taken. 

We came out just below the reservoir, and continued on the trail a ways.  Everyone assumed the camp was to the left of the trail, and we spent about 45 minutes trying to find camp.  I walked up the meadow, down the trail to Apache Springs, and finally back up the meadow and located the camp at the head of the meadow we were originally in – right where the map said it should be.  Thank goodness we were carrying the radios because we were all spread out looking for camp.  I called Hampton, and he rounded everyone up and sent them on the right way.

We set up camp, hung the bear bags, Polar Pure'd  water from the reservoir, and had lunch rather quickly.  After lunch, we emptied all of the boys’ packs into their tents, and set off for Apache Springs to pick up food and participate in the 3D Archery program.  The walk to Apache Springs took about 30 minutes, mostly uphill, and passed through a beautiful meadow with a couple of shallow ponds.  As we walked into Apache Springs at 1:00pm, we saw the small Indian village they had re-created complete with teepees, and cooking areas in the huge meadow.  Campsites were located all around the edge of the meadow.

We checked in at the cabin, and were told the next opening for program was at 3:00pm.  We were also told there were two campers in the cabin waiting for us – Chad and Jan were back!  Nathan Tacha had accompanied them to Apache Springs in case they had to hike in to Bear Canyon Camp.  Chad was elated to be reunited with the group.  We went around to  the container that the staff used as the commissary and picked up another four days worth of food that we put in the empty backpacks. Jan brought a stuff sack full of candy bars – Snickers, Reese’s, Three Musketeers, Milky Way, etc. – and both crews jumped on them like starving animals with many smiles.  We sat around the cabin resting and drinking lots of water while we waited for program.  At 3:00pm, a staffer took us up to the top of the archery range where we started shooting arrows at different animal targets – bears, cougars, deer, boar, javalina, etc.  The group spent two hours shooting, ending up by shooting at some of the crewmember’s hats.

We left Apache Springs at 5:30pm, backtracking our way back to Bear Canyon Camp.  I lagged  behind the group to take some pictures and enjoy a little solitude in the beauty God had provided.  We got back to camp at 6:00pm.  The boys went right to work, needing no direction, and dinner was on at 7:00pm.  KP and crew gear clean up were quick as usual.  The boys started working on nicknames as they finished bear bag preparation.  All were in bed by 9:00pm.

This was a PERFECT Philmont day. The bushwhack to the top of the ridge, the return of our crew members, the program at Apache Springs, and the way the crew worked together to get everything done before dark all made the day great.