Outstanding hike in the Fall, great overnighter.

Comments: I took my three older boys (12,8,6) on their first overnight backpack experience. What an experience it was!!! The weather was wet for 2-3 days prior, so when the clouds lifted, it made for very nice hiking weather. We started at Dog Canyon Campground and hiked to McKitterick Canyon Visitor Center. Nothing fun about lugging 30 lbs of water uphill, but the view was worth it. We steadily climbed some 1900 feet to the Mckitterick Ridge Campground, then the next morning, decended into the canyon RAPIDLY (2300 feet in 4 miles) on switchbacks like no other I've seen. Glad to do it downhill. Great views!!! The trick to this hike is to arrange for transportation at the pickup site. Guadalupe Mountains National Park is truly a jewell in an otherwise harsh environment. The biggest hinderence is the lack of water in the backcountry, but oftentimes McKitterick Creek is running in the back parts of the canyon. This is a VERY limited resource, so use it sparingly and always filter or treat it.