Atalaya Mountain Trail is a 6 mile heavily trafficked out and back trail located near Santa Fe, New Mexico that features a great forest setting and is rated as moderate. The trail is primarily used for hiking, walking, and trail running and is accessible year-round. Dogs are also able to use this trail but must be kept on leash.
dogs on leash
hiking
trail running
walking
forest
views
This is a short day hike from St. Johns College trail head east side of the city of Santa Fe, NM into the edge of the Santa Fe National forest.
takes time. allow plenty. there are shady parts. steep sections. good news is there are lots of hikers so you have company.
Challenging 6 mile in and out hike with great views of the New Mexican plains south of Santa Fe. We took the steeper route up to the top and it made for a shorter, more intense hike. 8/10
It's a climb but gorgeous views the whole time. Did get caught in a hail storm on the way down however.
Nice trail with great views over Santa Fe once you get to the top. the route was well-marked, with signs at every fork and one that pointed out the steeper from the easier route. We encountered lots of other hikers going both directions, so it seems to be a popular trail. One thing I didn't like was that the trail seemed to go right behind people's backyards for almost the first half of the hike, so houses were always close-by and visible. The hike took about three hours total.
We measured this trail at 3.8 miles up taking the shorter steep route. We took the the longer less steep route on the way down. This added close to a mile to the trip and a ton of time. You will see the option signs on the trail.
Great views on the trail definitely worth the trip. Start early it gets warm on the trail in the summer.
Great trail!! Bring water, as it is long, but you'll be rewarded with great views!!
Seems to be a nice peaceful trail. I went up there looking to photograph wildlife. Didn't see much, but it was a nice walk. I didn't get to finish the hike because I ran out of water and some storm clouds were moving in, but I was only a few miles short. Pretty good look at Santa Fe when you get up there.
This is my favorite trail in the SF area, and I try to do it at least once a week. I recommend doing this trail in the morning because of the temps and increasing chance of tstorms in afternoon. Also, bring plenty of water-I see a lot of people bail halfway because they don't have enough.
Great hike!
Challenging, mostly due to the altitude (plus spending a few hours beforehand walking around Meow Wolf didn't help, haha), but the views at the top are totally worth it! There's a point later on in the trail where you can choose the steep path or the easier path. We took the steep path up but the easier path down, which I'd recommend. The easier path has a different vibe to it and gives a bit more variety to the trail. This was one of my favorite hikes.