Make sure to check on Geocaching.Com Before heading for an outing in the Zuni Mountains. 

The subject area is quite large including the village of Grants. Some of the caches are physically demanding at least on your vehicle while others are in the drive up category. This time let me simply list them by GC # and make a comment or two.

Of course weather conditions are a major factor to consider B4 heading into the mountains.

All the usual caveats apply pertaining to deserts and mountain cache hunting. Most of the area is open to hunting so take that into consideration during the fall hunting seasons. 

Reading the logs for each cache can be very helpful in selecting your challenge.

This article is not intended to remove the excitement/challenge of finding and logging a new one. Only general information is provided which may help cacher’s plan a couple days outing into really nice country with very fine caches awaiting the deserving!

Papaw GCX3P1 Quickie in Grants.

M.O.C. Park GCT995 Another quickie in town.

Mission #16 15 ton drill bit GCK05J In town.

The Gullies GCT993. This one can be difficult particularly if it has rained much or possibly from runoff from the mountains. The cache is hidden where it can bet flooded and is difficult to retrieve if you have large hands. Also possible hideout for critter you might not care to get riled up.

Mission #17 Lava Express GCK05N You have to walk on AA lava which can be treacherous. Close by an old dirt road and only a few yards to the cache over the lava but footing might be a problem for some. That lava can shred you shoes and hide like a razor. Be careful!

KGNT Bugport GCT4GB Essentially in town near the airport. The cache name is a good hint. Easy drive up cache.

Horace’ Roost GCVFKK Now we are looking at a really tuff one! On might get there in a high clearance 2WD and a lack of regard for your vehicle BUT a 4WD is highly recommended. Even with a 4WD you need to be aware of your sidewalls.

Neat place though with great views. Seldom visited for obvious reasons. It takes quite a bit of time to cover a short distance. Possibly problems during fall hunting seasons. 

Rito's Falls GCR7EQ If muddy watch out. If dry it is reachable in 2WD with careful driving. The “road” to it is immediately off of the Taylor Mountain road out of Grants.

Sacred Summit of Tso’odzil GC95FE Whew! Really a great one. I highly recommend taking the route suggested on the cache page. There are ways to get closer to the summit but the trail route given is well worth the effort. You hike thru several life zones. Good workout with outstanding vistas all the way to the summit. The cache was not very close to the coords given when I went for it. Got lucky though and found it. I see in the logs the cache was muggled but has been replaced. A very high quality cache and cache location.

Elk Antler GCGYVZ The 4wd route to this is another way to approach GC95FE. Very rough drive thru heavily forested stretches and alpine meadows. Probably iffy during the fall hunting season. The next cache listed can be bagged off of this same road.

You will be at lofty heights, so take it easy both driving and walking. Not far from the “road”.

Pelon GCQ2BG A Plugge Family cache. The wind was howling ferociously when we were there. Later logs indicate more of the same. Guess this is partly why so little vegetation can get a grip on this challenging lavascape. You can drive in a 4WD pretty close. Consider having an anchor to keep you and your vehicle on terra firma. Great views.

Ketch’s Cache Kan GCXE23. Not as bad as the other Taylor Mountain caches listed above. Decent roads maintained by the U.S. F. S..

As with the other caches in the subject area the Fall hunting season might be a time to avoid it.

GCRH2C and GCWMY1 below, are reachable through the Laguna Pueblo on the road to Seboyeta and Paquate.

In Memory of Dolores GCRH2C Originally this was by itself. Now there are a couple other caches in the area. This will get you into country most of us would not likely visit. Very historic and controversial Seboyeta Land Grant. Yes you can Google that name.. The cache has been certified by Team Tuxawuxa as not on the land grant and the nearby business is aware of geocaching. 

Paquate Rocks GCWMY1 Another one in the area of GCRH2C. Maps of the area can be very confusing particularly in regard to land ownership. It can be driven to pretty darn closely when the roads are dry.

Mission #28 How Do You Get To This Cache? GCP1FD Well now folks, this is a challenge. Many have tried over and over but only one has succeeded. Cyclegreen is the only one to log in except for the previous cache owner, who I might add, did not walk in! I have scouted the roads from the Grants side only to be thwarted by gates and posted fences. Access, if any legitimate access exists, from the east is very limited, as a large wildlife management area is closed off for many months of the year. 

Pinon Picking Cache GCKX5A This may be the only possible approach to Mission #28. The best way in is on the Cabazon road off of Hwy 550 south of Cuba. The road is paved for a few miles then becomes a good dirt road most of the rest of the way. You eventually reach a campground called Hunters Camp. Just beyond the camp the road becomes very rough. 4WD recommended though I have seen pinon pickers with sedans on the mesa. Guess it just depends on ones feeling about their vehicle.

A few hundred yards uphill from the hunter’s camp is a gate. It is closed for much of the year to protect wildlife during birthing times.

Read the logs for this cache. From the gate it is about 2.5 miles to the cache.

Cerro Ojo Frio GCM01V If your going for Pinon Picking then you might just as well pick up the seldom visited caches as a bonus.

At Hunters Camp the road divides. The northerly road drops down a bit to the Cerro. Short steep hike but easy. 

Hopefully this information will help you plan an expedition to the Taylor Mountain area.

You will be on the western side of the Rio Puerco at this point. There are other caches nearby but not within the scope of this listing.