"Petabete Peak is a peak I have been thinking about for quite some time. It looks difficult from all directions. I left my home at 4:30 AM, June 25, 2015, and arrived in Questa, New Mexico at 7:30 to hike with a peakbagging friend Richard O. We met and continued north on highway 522 to El Rito. In El Rito we turned east on El Rito Road then drove for about 15 minutes, the last part was a brutal 4-wheel drive road with a stream crossing. I carried my usual 15-pound pack with emergency gear, lunch and about 5 pounds of water. I like to carry this mostly for conditioning. We each took our vehicles and parked. It was a beautiful clear morning. We started hiking at about 8:45 at an elevation of 8725 feet, we gained elevation to 8950, then dropped into a valley with an elevation of 8650 feet, then began our assent. Shortly after we started to hike a large hawk buzzed hard and fast about a foot over our heads, then again. (My pictures were identified by a raptor expert at a Mountaineering club meeting, 10-19-2022, as a Northern Goshawk. He owns one as a trained hunting bird. He said they are very illusive and very hard to spot, the ghost of the forest.) A minute later the hawk was flying f..." — Phil-Robinson • Jun 25, 2015