New Mexico trails · Cold Spring
Cold Spring
A 6.5-mile out-and-back in New Mexico, with 3,062 ft of climbing. Reaches Junction Spring and other pass/spring destinations. Managed by the U.S. Forest Service.
Elevation profile
Most of the climbing sits in the final third — 59% of the ascent, between mile 4.3 and mile 6.5.
3-D terrain
USGS 3DEP ELEVATION × ESRI WORLD IMAGERY · VERTICAL ×1.5
Reaches
- Junction Spring (spring)
- Cyclone Saddle (pass)
- Cold Spring (spring)
Heads up
Getting there
Cold Spring access. About 1 h 53 min drive (58 mi, 12 of them unpaved) from Socorro. 33.67658, -107.34832 · directions
Daylight at the trailhead
On October 14, 2026 — the day this page was generated — first light reaches this trailhead at 6:48 a.m., the sun rises at 7:13 a.m. and sets at 6:37 p.m., and the last usable light fades about 7:02 p.m. (MDT) — 11 h 24 min of daylight. At about 2.7 mph plus 30 minutes per 1,000 feet of climbing, the 12.9-mile round trip takes roughly 7 h 51 min, so leaving the trailhead at sunrise puts you back around 3:04 p.m. — 3 h 32 min before sunset.
Loop options
- Cold Spring + Apache Kid + Teepe Peak — 14.7 mi loop, 5,344 ft gain
Nearby trails
- East Red — 6.5 mi
- Apache Kid — 7.6 mi