King of Wings
Around Farmington - New Mexico
Note: On dirt roads, road conditions can change constantly. Therefore, we strongly recommend that everyone check the road conditions before each trip. We do not recommend driving on unpaved roads before, during or shortly after rain or snowfall.
Our visits: So far 1 visit in October 2012
King of Wings
Description of how to get there: In principle, the drive is not particularly difficult. From Farmington, you first drive about 46mi south on Highway 371. Then turn left onto Country Road 7650. From here on the road is unpaved. After another 11mi, just past a pasture fence, turn right onto a bad field path. After a few more 100 yards you have reached the trailhead. We visited the King of Wings in October 2012. At the time, the field path was in miserable condition. High ground clearance on the car was definitely necessary. We parked our car directly at a cattle gate, which was also well visited by cows during our visit.
Hike Description: The King of Wings was, for a very long time, a so-called Secret. Only a few chosen ones knew where the hoodoo was located. When we did the hike, the secret had only been out for a short time and so there was no track from the hike to guide us. We therefore walked more or less straight towards the King of Wings. First we hiked on a huge plain, where there is not much except bushes. Then we looked for a descent into the badlands and hiked in a wash until the King of Wings was visible. The hike itself is very easy, but we would recommend everyone to have a GPS device with them, because in the vastness you get lost quite easily.
Trail length: 4.2mi
Altitude difference: 453ft
Time needed: 2-3 hours
Difficulty level: easy
Our rating: If it weren't for the King of Wings, this wouldn't be a hike we'd do a second time. In itself, the entire trail is not particularly exciting. There's pretty much nothing to see but wide open spaces and a few small hoodoos here and there. Everything is not very spectacular. But since the goal is worthwhile, you can take the way once.
