Page 40 - Volume 3 - Walks In The Black Range

12. Hillsboro Peak
See also the Hillsboro Lake Trail which is the same as this one, at least until you reach the lake at the base of Hillsboro Peak.
This trail starts at the Emory Pass Overlook just off of NM-152 and proceeds north (NNW) for 5.4 miles. Elevation gain over 5+ miles is minimal, from 8,067’ to 10,020’. This is an improved trail so the walk is straightforward and easy to follow, water - if any - is limited along the trail (seasonal). The usual suspects are on-the-scene; rattlesnakes (only Western Diamond-Back and Black-tailed that I know of), Black Bear, Coyote, and Cougar are all possible - but not likely.
Following the Silver Fire there were reports that the trail was devastated by the fire. It now appears that many large trees, including Aspen and Douglas Fir survived the fire and that there is substantial multi-species tree growth (regeneration) occurring. In a year or two the Mountain Locust along this trail (and the Sawyers Peak Trail, immediately south of here) will be spectacular. Wildflowers in the higher reaches of the Black Range are incredible this year (September 2014), both in terms of sheer mass and in terms of diversity.
An observer noted (from 9/11/14) that: “There are many flowers on the Hillsboro Peak Trail...It's an amazing display, and it begins just uphill from the parking lot. You might want to make an evening walk of some part of the lower trail.”
The birdlife along this trail has, traditionally, been very good and that does not appear to have changed. You may see the full array of mountain species, including; Bushtit, Mountain Chickadee, Pygmy Nuthatch, Clark’s Nutcracker, White-breasted Nuthatch, Hairy Woodpecker, Black- throated Gray and Grace’s Warblers (the trail provides nice looks into the upper canopy of the trees), and Wild Turkey.
Don Precoda served as a fire lookout at Hillsboro Peak for several years. He recounted some of his experiences on the peak in a series of articles which appeared in The Black Range Naturalist (multiple articles - see Index).
REPORT FOR WALK ON MAY 25, 2015: We, walked the Black Range Crest Trail from Emory Pass to Hillsboro Peak, commonly called the Hillsboro Peak Trail today. The trail is unchanged since the trail report (above), except that - it seemed to me - the half-mile section of trail just prior to the first wilderness marker has a lot more loose rock than previously. Some time has passed since the Silver Fire and the recovery is becoming very apparent. Young trees of numerous species are from two to four feet tall, it is apparent that many “burnt” trees survived, and the large patches of forest unaffected by the fire are more impressive than ever. While we were having our lunch on the summit, photo following page, it was difficult to imagine a raging
fire engulfing the range. I don’t wish to downplay the devastation, there are many slopes of charred snags - but even in these places the green of young trees is apparent.
A purpose of our walk was to document the spring which is near the summit for the “Black Range Springs” section of the Black Range website. One would think that finding a spring would be fairly straight forward, but it isn’t, especially if you are tired and loathe to walk down hill if it means you have to turn around immediately and walk uphill. In any case this outing covered 11.4 miles round-trip with an elevation gain of 2,181’, the trail had a maximum grade of 14%. The map at the end of this entry shows the last part of the walk.

On a walk to the summit in September it was reported that slopes were covered with wildflowers and many species were found along the trail.