I had an enjoyable snowshoe on the East Fork today. Parking is somewhat limited because of snow piled up in the back of the parking lot but there is a bare strip wide enough where people can parallel park and even double park.
There were seven vehicles parked at the trailhead so I had to turn around and park at the sign that reads "Snow Plows Ahead", near the Las Conchas rock climbing area. That was fine because you can actually snowshoe/ski over to the trail/river from there and I did just that in the afternoon to get back to my car. There's space enough for maybe three or four vehicles where I parked.
At the start, I actually walked on the road from my parking place and carried my equipment over to the trailhead. I went down through the gate on the left. The snow was thin and semi-icy but it was much less steep than trying to negotiate my way down to the river from the right edge of the parking lot.
Going downstream, I mostly snowshoed along/in the frozen, snowpacked river and tried out as much of the trail as I could on the way back. I went all the way to where Trail 137 turns left to go steeply uphill and where the river goes into a narrow canyon at the VCNP boundary. Here, the river resurfaces from underneath the snow and ice.
I managed to avoid crossing any of the wooden bridges. The area of the river between the first and third bridges has some obvious spots that are melting out but I could easily avoid them. (When I say first bridge, I'm referring to the first river crossing that used to be a hop from rock to rock underneath a stony overhang. That's now been bridged over.)
I saw lots of snowshoers and skiers. I saw one couple that hiked all the way to the end. I asked if they sunk in much and they said it wasn't too bad as long as they stuck to the packed trail.
Skies were sunny and blue. Views along the river were stunning and made more so by all the beautiful snow. The WI's could enjoyably hike, snowshoe and ski on this trail as it is today.
NM-4 is in fine condition. Along the way, people will enjoy stopping at one of the VCNP's parking aprons to admire the Preserve all cloaked in white!