Great news – the yurt camping that became available a couple of winters ago is now also available in summer. Looking back to its origins:
On a Saturday night in early December, Enchanted Forest Cross Country Ski & Snowshoe Area owner Geoff Goins camped in his new yurt with his wife and co-owner Ellen.
“We took a starlight hike out to the Pièce de Résistance and the Milky Way just blanketed the sky. We hardly used the headlamp. The snow reflected just enough light that it was almost like a moonlight hike. Jupiter shown bright in the sky and Orion was just rising in the east.”
Goins — who spends summer months as a “Dark Ranger” (Interpretive Ranger) at Bryce Canyon National Park– was predisposed to enjoy the deep dark night sky that is, no doubt, enhanced at an elevation of 9,000 feet… in winter.
“When we got back to the yurt, we turned down the lights and watched the stars through the dome of the yurt and also the windows and door. It was fantastic.”
If the words “winter camping” conjure an image of sleeping on the ground with nothing between you and the snow but a thin swath of nylon and a 1-inch foam pad, consider a more upscale option: a yurt.
Goins says Enchanted Forest**is adding several rental yurts over the next 3 years. The first, at the Linda’s Leg trailhead on Little John, is ready to go for the 2010-2011 season.
“I think it’s going to be very popular,” Goins says. “As soon as people see it, they’re going to want to give it a try.”
According to Goins, the yurt is primitive but comfortable with a wood stove (and firewood), insulation, dining table, kitchen area and futon sofa “bunks.” A supply of games and books is also provided. The yurt is accessed only by cross-country skiing or snowshoeing but Enchanted Forest will loan you a “pulk” sled for carrying your gear. You get drinking water from melting snow or you can bring your own. Enchanted Forest will have cook tools and other kitchen items (like spices) but you need to bring your own food. (In order to keep the snow pure for drinking water, a portable outhouse will also be close by.)
Goins calls the experience “glamping” (an upscale version of camping) but cautions, “This is still WINTER CAMPING, not a hotel room. You will need a warm 20-degree or so sleeping bag, and somebody may have to get
up in the middle of the night to stoke the fire… I know I did.”
Enchanted Forest’s yurt is actually a modern adaptation of the portable round tents used by nomadic Mongolian for centuries — a circular structure that includes a lattice wall, radial rafters, central compression ring and a framed door, on a raised wooden platform and covered by durable, weather-tight fabric.
The yurt sleeps five comfortably; six if someone takes the floor. Rates range from $75 to $125 per night. Info, 575-754-6112 or EnchantedForestXC.com.
Enchanted Forest — located a little over 3 miles east of Red River just off Highway 38 — is New Mexico’s premier cross-country ski and snowshoe center with 33 kilometers of groomed ski trails, 18k of snowshoe trails and 5k of “dog-friendly” trails. Views from the area of the Wheeler Peak Wilderness Area, New Mexico’s highest point, and the numerous peaks in the Carson National Forest are spectacular.
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Geoff Goins, Owner
www.EnchantedForestXC.com