Letterbox Maintenance

Recently I started reviewing notes that people have sent me over the last year when they found my boxes. And I made a list of boxes that needed some maintenance. But I also had boxes that haven't been found in a while and I made a second list of those. Today I decided to head out to Madrid and Cerrillos to check on boxes in those areas. First I made a list of all the boxes with the basic clue and then made notes of what might be needed. I gathered a couple of containers, 2 logbooks, a handful of zip locks and a camo bag and headed out.
I first drove past Cerrillos and past Madrid on NM 14 (The Turquoise Trail) and stopped at a pullout between mile markers 23 & 24. Here I was checking on my Alphabetical New Mexico: T (Turquoise Trail) box. I parked and got out of the car and tried following the directions.

View from my Turquoise Trail Box

But a landmark that I had used was not very noticeable so I decided to just rewrite the clues. So I looked around made notes and came up with a much better clue. I then went to the box and opened it to check on the stamp and logbook. I had made a new logbook (an updated version so that all my Alphabetical New Mexico boxes are the same - I know my OCD is working full force). Everything was fine with this box so I turned around and headed back through Madrid. Next I stopped at the north edge of town and parked near the park. I stopped here to check on Twinville Trekkers' Beatles Series #9 "Day Tripper". This box is in great shape and didn't need any maintenance. So I got back on NM 14 and drove to Cerrillos. My first stop was near the cemetery to check on Bandaid's A Kiss From Connecticut - this box was in perfect order as well.

So now I drove a little further up the road to Cerrillos Hills State Park.

View from Cerrillos Hills

When I hike this park I usually follow the same route and that is what I did today. I had a list of all the boxes in the park in the order I was going to walk. I parked at the kiosk, paid my fee and then started my hike. I crossed the street and took the Jane Calvin Sanchez trail. My first stop was to check on my Felis concolor box. Everything was good - the box was closed well and the baggies were also closed well and it was dry and the clues were good. So I put it back in place and continued on.

Cholla Blooms

On the same trail I stopped and checked on Wronghat's Cerrillos Birr box. This box was also in great shape so I continued on my hike. I got to the end of the trail and then crossed the road again and took the Escalante trail. The next box I got to was Twinville Trekkers' Who? Who? box.

New Trail Sign

At first I couldn't find the box but then I noticed it lying on the ground and it was all chewed up. I am glad I brought that camo bag with me. I took the box back to the nearby bench and put the stamp and logbook into a new ziplock and then into the camo bag. I then hung it back up in the tree. Hopefully it will be okay. Then I continued on the Escalante trail and made my way to the Mirador Overlook. I followed Astro D's clues to find her Miner at the Mirador box. All was well with this box so I put it back in place and then continued on. I retraced my steps on the Escalante trail to the road and then walked back to the parking area.

Prickly Pear Bloom

From here I took the Village View trail to check on my Los Vaqueros box. This box was also in great shape but I had to tweak the clues a little because a sign has been removed. Then I returned to my car. I really enjoyed my hike and I realized that it has been quite a while since I have been on these trails. They have done a lot of work on the trails, removed some signs and put all new trail signs - so things are marked really well. They have also changed and added some trails so at first I was a little confused - I didn't bring a map because I use to know the trails and didn't realize things had changed. But I really enjoyed myself. It was a quiet morning and I only saw three people on the trails. Also the chollas were in bloom everywhere in the park.

I left Cerrillos and headed north on NM 14. I made one last stop at a pullout somewhere around mile marker 35. At this spot I checked on two boxes - Fantastyk Voyager's Magical Gate and rubberpeace's Rock! Paper! Scissors! boxes. These were both in great shape! Once these were checked on I made my way home. I have a great time doing some maintenance on these boxes. I got the clues updated on Atlas Quest and Letterboxing North America so that if anyone heads out to find my boxes they shouldn't have any problems. So now I need to plan my next outing for more maintenance.

More Cholla Bloom Photos . . .