This traverse of the North Country historical timeline starts off by exploring the site of the first confirmed T-Rex track in the world! Move on to Indian Writings the next day to learn about some of the oldest historical sites on the ranch, the many petroglyphs found in the canyon, as well as the pit house excavation site. Continue up the North Ponil Canyon to the site of Metcalf Station and try your hands as a railroader for the day before settling in to Horse Canyon trail camp. Hike down beautiful Horse Canyon to the original base camp and headquarters of Philmont at Ponil. Ride horses, enjoy a nice cold root beer at the Cantina and spend the rest of the day enjoying the western lore programs, a delicious chuckwagon dinner, and an exciting Cantina Show to top off the day. Pick up your burros then head over to Pueblano to spend time with the loggers of the Continental Tie & Lumber Co. to experience the thrill of spar pole climbing and enjoy a great campfire program. Get ready, as the next morning you will be heading up into the mountains and cooler nights at higher elevations. First, drop off your burros at Miranda and get a glimpse of what a Mountain Man Rendezvous might have looked like and enjoy a friendly tomahawk throwing competition. Your next two nights are at a beautiful camp called Ute Meadows, in the shadow of Baldy Mountain. You will have a layover day where you can summit Baldy Mountain, and then, if you are up for the challenge, hike down to Copper Park and French Henry to visit Lucien Maxwells Aztec Mine. Get some rest after a long day and make your way to Baldy Skyline, then down the trail to Head of Dean to test your crew's teamwork skills. Your next stop is not the North Pole, but Santa Claus! Reload 12-gauge shotshells before heading down to the range to do some shooting! Your last night on the trail is at Cimarroncita, where you can learn about Hunter Safety and try out the new Laser Shooting Range! You'll make the short hike the next morning to the Ute Park Trailhead to load up on the bus for the journey back to Base Camp. | ||||
Per the Guidebook to Itineraries: "Due to potential emergencies, such as catastrophic fires, Crews must not deviate from their assigned itinerary. Changes are only permitted for bona fide medical emergencies and must be approved in advance by the Logistics Department." |
Day | Camp | Program Features | Campsite Features | |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | CHQ Trailbound | Opening Campfire | Commissary; Showers; Trading Post;   | |
2 | House Canyon![]() | Bus to Six Mile Gate | Trail Camp;  | |
Tyrannosaurus Rex Track @ Six Mile Gate | Trail Camp;  | |||
Food Pickup @ CHQ Trailbound | Trail Camp; (Commissary; Showers; Trading Post; at CHQ Trailbound) | |||
Ranger Training ![]() | Trail Camp;  | |||
3 | Indian Writings | Atl Atl Darts | Showers;   | |
Archaeology | Showers;   | |||
Petroglyphs Tour | Showers;   | |||
4 | Horse Canyon![]() | Railroading @ Metcalf Station | Trail Camp;  | |
Blacksmithing @ Metcalf Station | Trail Camp;  | |||
5 | Ponil | Cantina Show | Commissary; Trading Post; Showers;   | |
Western Lore / Branding | Commissary; Trading Post; Showers;   | |||
Cantina | Commissary; Trading Post; Showers;   | |||
Horse Rides | Commissary; Trading Post; Showers;   | |||
Chuck Wagon Dinner | Commissary; Trading Post; Showers;   | |||
Food Pickup | Commissary; Trading Post; Showers;   | |||
6 | Pueblano | Pick Up Burros @ Ponil |  (Commissary; Trading Post; Showers; at Ponil) | |
Crosscut Saws / Tie making |   | |||
spar pole climbing |   | |||
Campfire |   | |||
7 | Ute Meadows | Return Burros @ Miranda![]() | Trail Camp;  | |
Mountain Man Rendezvous @ Miranda | Trail Camp;  | |||
Tomahawks @ Miranda | Trail Camp;  | |||
8 | Ute Meadows | Food Pickup @ Baldy Town | Trail Camp; (Commissary; Trading Post; Showers; at Baldy Town) | |
Gold Mining & Panning @ French Henry | Trail Camp;  | |||
Mine Tour @ French Henry | Trail Camp;  | |||
Climb Baldy Mountain ![]() | Trail Camp;  | |||
9 | Head of Dean | Conservation Project @ Baldy Skyline![]() |  (Trail Camp; at Baldy Skyline) | |
10 | Santa Claus | Challenge Events @ Head of Dean |   | |
11 | Cimarroncita![]() | 12 Gauge Shotgun shooting/reloading @ Santa Claus![]() |   | |
12 | CHQ Homebound | Awards Campfire | Commissary; Showers; Trading Post;   | |
Hike to Ute Park Trailhead![]() | Commissary; Showers; Trading Post;   | |||
Day | Camp | Potential Additional Program Features | Campsite Features |
---|---|---|---|
2 | CHQ Trailbound | Visit the Villa Philmonte | Commissary; Showers; Trading Post; |
National Scouting Museum | |||
4 | Metcalf Station | Morse Code | |
6 | Ponil | Cantina | Commissary; Trading Post; Showers; |
Western Lore / Branding | |||
Cantina Show | |||
Climb Hart Peak | |||
Gymkhana | |||
Cavalcade | |||
Cowboy Action Shooting | |||
Pueblano | Continental Tie & Lumber | ||
7 | Miranda | Muzzle Loading Rifles | |
Climb Baldy Mountain | |||
8 | Baldy Town | Climb Baldy Mountain | Commissary; Trading Post; Showers; |
Tour Historic Baldy Town | |||
Mining History | |||
Assaying | |||
French Henry | Blacksmithing | ||
10 | Head of Dean | pickup crew based challenge events | |
12 | CHQ Homebound | Visit the Villa Philmonte | Commissary; Showers; Trading Post; |
National Scouting Museum | |||