New Mexico: A Drive Home

Highway 82, between High Rolls and Alamogordo, New Mexico. October 2012.

Whenever I drove home to Alamogordo down from Cloudroft or other parts east on Highway 82, I'd think, when I got to this spot: Wow, I live here.

Highway 82, between High Rolls and Alamogordo, New Mexico. October 2012.

It was always uplifting to see the White Sands. 

New Mexico: Architecture 4: The Appalling

What is it they say? I don't know much about art, but .... I know what I [don't] like.

I've noticed that communities in New Mexico have been enamored with these stone buttresses that jut out from the core. I've seen a number of public schools with this bit. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't. But even when it works, it's like the PT Cruiser - the first three times I saw one, I thought, oh, cute! but then I was done with them.

In Cloudcroft, it kind of works. To be fair, the building looks prettier in person than in the photo below. 

The high school in Bloomfield, New Mexico. My God, when I first drove past the building, I didn't know if it was a fancy factory? Office building? Oh, what'd you say - a high school? Strangely, I can find very few photos of the school.  Unlike the Cloudcroft situation, the photo below makes the school look better than it does in person. 

Bloomfield High School. Credit: Greer-Stafford. 

And then there's the Public Safety Complex in Artesia. Again, difficult to find photos, partly because the complex is so large. If you were to take parts of the complex, it would be fine, but the overall project is a manic jumble of different styles and media.

Artesia Public Safety Complex. Credit: whjarch

But even though I find the busyness and clunkiness of the above designs not to my taste, none hold a candle to my yardstick of horrible design, that which is a white box for warehousing humans, found in my own hometown of Jefferson City, Missouri:

Howerton Building, Jefferson City, Missouri

No, it is not a prison per se. It is a place of employment for people responsible for improving the quality of lives of others. You can imagine how this environment supports them in this task.

So now with that perspective, I can embrace the jumble of the above New Mexico designs with a little more warmth.

Sunspot, New Mexico: National Solar Observatory

National Solar Observatory, Sunspot, Sacramento Peak, New Mexico

The word on the mountain is that the observatory operation in Sunspot, New Mexico, will have new owners soon. What this might mean for future access to the site, or even what will be happening here - don't know. But if Sunspot's been on your list of places to visit for awhile, now's the time to do it.

National Solar Observatory, Sunspot, Sacramento Peak, New Mexico

Regardless of whether or not there'll be new owners, many of the scientists will decamp to Colorado or to the National Solar Observatory's new solar observatory in Hawaii:

NSO currently has offices and ground-based observing facilities at Kitt Peak, Ariz., and Sacramento Peak, N.M., which will cease operations when the new Advanced Technology Solar Telescope is completed.

National Solar Observatory, Sunspot, Sacramento Peak, New Mexico

I visited the observatory recently, and made the once-daily tour at 2:00 p.m. Pleasant tour albeit a little rushed, as a Scout group was scheduled afterward.

















The drive up to Sunspot is lovely, cutting through the Lincoln National Forest and private lands, with numerous opportunities to stop at a trail head for hiking, a place for a picnic lunch at the restorative Upper Karr Canyon Recreation Area, and a kicking view of the Tularosa Basin at the Haynes Canyon Vista lookout.

Haynes Canyon Vista, en route to Sunspot, on State Road 6563, New Mexico

I even discovered the terminus for the mysterious Binoculars 58!

Sunspot has its own post office.

National Solar Observatory, Sunspot, Sacramento Peak, New Mexico

 You can tell that nerds live here because Sunspot's street names are so .... practical.

National Solar Observatory, Sunspot, Sacramento Peak, New Mexico

 There is also a Trailer Drive, on which there are trailers.


And, as with the Very Large Array, I loved the irony of old-school technology in a field that is so literally out there scientifically.

National Solar Observatory, Sunspot, Sacramento Peak, New Mexico

National Solar Observatory, Sunspot, Sacramento Peak, New Mexico

National Solar Observatory, Sunspot, Sacramento Peak, New Mexico

Inside the main observatory, I wondered about the interior design - the warm color on the walls and the giant globed lights. It wasn't til I processed my photos that I had an aha moment - the large globe lights are like the sun.

National Solar Observatory, Sunspot, Sacramento Peak, New Mexico

There was an intro video that preceded the tour. Original scientists atop the mountain shortly after the end of WWII, when denied money for a real observatory, repurposed a grain silo, ordered from Sears, as a work-around. This historic building is still onsite.

National Solar Observatory, Sunspot, Sacramento Peak, New Mexico

For now, there are about 50 people who live for all or part of the year up in Sunspot, but evidently a number will move out in the fall to Colorado as the operations from New Mexico to Colorado or Hawaii transition.

National Solar Observatory, Sunspot, Sacramento Peak, New Mexico

 
Our tour guide, a graduate student living at Sunspot this summer, noted that bears are a common sight around their residences, and one scientiest encountered a mountain lion while walking between the visitor center and one of the observatories.

National Solar Observatory, Sunspot, Sacramento Peak, New Mexico

   
As I said, don't put off a tour to the observatory at Sunspot for too long - it may not be there a year from now.

The Rain Came

Lady in the mountain, Alamogordo, New Mexico. A rainy day in July.

Until today, it had been hot, hot, hot in Alamogordo. And then the rains came. First to the mountains and then the Tularosa Basin.

The rain brought cool air.

I was up in Cloudcroft in the morning. On my way back to Alamogordo in the afternoon, it was so good to be in the rain. The air was sharp with the scent of pine.

The above video is Highway 82 east and west of the tunnel in Lincoln National Forest. You can see how the White Sands gleam in the distance about :57. It's days in New Mexico like this when I am amazed: I live here.

Driving into Alamogordo, the rain continued.

Delicious.

Lincoln National Forest: Upper Karr Canyon Recreation Area

Upper Karr Canyon Recreation Area, near Cloudcroft, New Mexico

Upper Karr Canyon Recreation Area, on Highway 6563, south of Cloudcroft, New Mexico, is - cliché alert! - an oasis of cool summer green high above the hot Tularosa Basin.

Pleasant walks through the woods and across small meadows.

Upper Karr Canyon Recreation Area, near Cloudcroft, New Mexico

Shady camp sites - free!

Great spangled fritillary butterfly. Upper Karr Canyon Recreation Area, near Cloudcroft, New Mexico

No water, but there's a vault toilet.

A picnic lunch among the stand of aspens.

Watching butterflies and other insects feast on the yellow flowers in the meadow, with the sound of thunder in the distance.

A slide show:

New Mexico's Secret Music Festival

Bad Ass Mountain Music Festival 2013, Cloudcroft, New Mexico

This music festival shouldn't be secret, or more accurately, it shouldn't be unknown. But it is, "it" being the Bad Ass Mountain Music Festival in Cloudcroft, New Mexico. (Elevation proudly proclaimed at 9000 feet.)

How can you combine great music with a beautiful outdoor venue, in (mostly) glorious weather - where you can camp for free  - and wear that tie-dye shirt again - and not have a kick ass, bad ass, popular event? Well, somehow, the word hasn't gotten out because not many people go.

If you can make your way to Cloudcroft in 2014, go to the festival.

Bad Ass Mountain Music Festival 2013, Cloudcroft, New Mexico

There's music on Fridays and Saturdays during this event. Cost $25 for the whole shebang. I was there almost all of Saturday.

Above: Chuco Soul Project. 

Lots of bands, all winners. Music ranged from country, bluesy, jazzy, indie-rock, Americana, folk, so-called "taco billy," Latino, swing, and ballads. Most songs were original.

Above: Sorry About Your Sister

In theory, no alcohol permitted, but ... let's just say its consumption was discreet. No pets, either, though one attendee thought that didn't pertain to him.

Enjoy some of the music I did

Todd and the Fox

Dusty Low

Zoltan Orkestar

The Memphis Strange

Chuco Soul Project

Bourbon Legend

Bad Ass Mountain Music Festival 2013, Cloudcroft, New Mexico

The mountain lap created a natural amphitheater.

Watch out for the deer poop, though.



















A slideshow:

Cloudcroft, New Mexico: A View of White Sands

Cloudcroft, New Mexico, is a village in the Sacramento Mountains, surrounded by the Lincoln National Forest, on Highway 82.  (The old commercial road is on Burro Road, off of 82.)

There are plentiful forest trails nearby, some walking distance from the village. Below is a photo of White Sands - 40 miles away - from one of the trails.

It was a gorgeous spring day yesterday, and two acquaintances and I met for coffee in the village, took a walk, and then had lunch. The road and the village were alive with like-minded folks, including a large contingent of motorcyclists, all out to get the warm sun on skin.

New Mexico Do List

Before I move to my next place in fall 2013, I want to have checked out these New Mexico locations:

All of the state parks

Bluewater Lake State Park
Bottomless Lakes State Park  Done (20 April 2013)
Brantley Lake State Park  Done (3 August 2013) Post here.
Caballo Lake State Park  Done
Cerrillos Hills State Park  Done (6 September 2013)
Cimarron Canyon State Park   Done (16 August 2013)
City of Rocks State Park   Done   Post here.
Clayton Lake State Park
Conchas Lake State Park  Done (18 August 2013)
Coyote Creek State Park   Done (16 August 2013)
Eagle Nest Lake State Park   Done  (16 August 2013)
Elephant Butte Lake State Park   Done (5 May 2013)  
El Vado Lake State Park
Fenton Lake State Park  Done (11 August 2013) Post here.
Heron Lake State Park
Hyde Memorial State Park
Leasburg Dam State Park  Done (3 May 2013)
Living Desert Zoo & Gardens State Park  Done (March 2010 on a Travels with Carol road trip). Post here)
Manzano Mountains State Park  Park closed
Mesilla Valley Bosque State Park  Done
Morphy Lake State Park   Done (16 August 2013)
Navajo Lake State Park  Done  (6 April 2013) Posts begin here.
Oasis State Park   Done (28 September 2013)
Oliver Lee Memorial State Park  Done
Pancho Villa State Park  Done  (13 April 2013)
Percha Dam State Park  Done
Rio Grande Nature Center State Park  Done (28 April 2013)
Rockhound State Park  Done
Santa Rosa Lake State Park   Done (18 August 2013)
Storrie Lake State Park   Done (17 August 2013)
Sugarite Canyon State Park  Done (13 July 2013) Post here.
Sumner Lake State Park   Done (28 September 2013)
Ute Lake State Park   Done (29 September 2013)
Vietnam Veterans Memorial State Park   Done (16 August 2013)
Villanueva State Park   Done (18 August 2013)


The federal public lands

Aztec Ruins  Done  (6 April 2013) Post here.
Bandelier National Monument Done (7 September 2013)
Capulin Volcano National Monument  Done (14 July 2013) Post here.
Carlsbad Caverns  Done  (March 2010 on a Travels with Carol road trip) Post here. 
Chaco Canyon
El Malpais  Done
El Morro   Done
Gila Cliff Dwellings Done  Post here.
Pecos National Historical Park
White Sands National Monument   Done
Carson National Forest
Cibola National Forest
Gila National Forest
Kiowa National Grassland
Black Kettle & McClellan Creek National Grasslands
Lincoln National Forest  Done. Posts here and ....
Rita Blanca National Grassland
Santa Fe National Forest
Aguirre Spring Campground  Done
Angel Peak Scenic Area   Done  (7 April 2013) Post here.
Bisti-De-Na-Zin Wilderness  Done  Post here. 
Black River Recreation Area
Cabezon Peak Wilderness Study Area
Casamero Chacoan Outlier Community
Cebolla Wilderness
Continental Divide National Scenic Trail
Datil Well Recreation Area Campground
Dripping Springs Natural Area   Done (19 April 2013) Post here.
Ignacio Chavez Special Management Area
Kasha-Katuwe Tent Rocks National Monument
Lake Valley Townsite
Ojito Wilderness
San Lorenzo Canyon Recreation Area
Santa Cruz Lake Recreation Area
Three Rivers Petroglyph Site   Done
Valley of Fires Recreation Area   Done  Post here.
Wild Rivers Recreation Area




All of the border crossings between Old and New Mexicos

• Antelope Wells  Done  (March 2013) Post here.
  
• Columbus  Done (April 12 and April 13, 2013)
• Santa Teresa  Done (April 14, 2013)

I also want to see the crazy fence between the U.S. and Mexico.


Festivals

• Red Paint Powwow in Silver City (January) Done. Post here.
• Poppies Festival in El Paso (March)  Missed
• Winston Spring Fiesta (March) Don't think this happened in 2013
• Truth or Consequences Fiesta (May) Done. (3-5 May 2013)
• Gathering of Nations (April)  Done (27 April 2013) Posts begin here.
• Cactus Carnival (May) Went to Columbus, NM, in April instead.
• Bluegrass Festival in Deming (May)
• Blues Festival in Silver City (May)
• Bad Ass Mountain Music Festival (June) Done. Post here.
• Gallup InterTribal Indian Ceremonial (August) Didn't go.
• Hatch Chile Festival (September) Whoops! Got my weekends mixed up, so missed this.

Other stuff

• Very Large Array  Done. Post here.
• National Solar Observatory (Sunspot) Done. Post here and here.

I better get crack-a-lackin'!  I've barely got 9 months left!

Cloudcroft, NM: Karr Canyon and the Mystery of Binoculars 58

Karr  Canyon, near Cloudcroft, New Mexico

AKA: New Mexico: Fall Colors, Part 3


After I emerged victorious from imaginary mountain lion attacks, I made my way back through High Rolls and headed to Cloudcroft proper. 

But almost as soon as I got onto Highway 82, I saw a sign with a graphic of binoculars and the number 58, pointing right.


58 Binoculars

It was a beautiful Sunday afternoon, and why not? So I turned right onto Karr Canyon Road in search of what I presumed to be a scenic viewpoint a few hundred yards away.










The beginning held so much promise, with a spectacular vision of tall columns of leafy sunshine.












And after rounding some pleasant curves, I approached a postcard-beautiful meadow at the foot of the mountains, filled with multi-colored, waving grasses and shrubs in medieval-tapestry colors like claret, champagne, and ivory. Alas, I knew my camera was not going to be able to overcome the still-strong sunlight to recreate how gorgeous this scene was. It's worth returning to this area during a different time of day to try to capture it. In the meantime, this was the best I could do:

But where was this scenic view #58? I pushed on. I seemed to be climbing, and soon I entered a forest. Then yay! Another sign with the binoculars and the 58!

(What was the 58? The name of the road? The mile marker? The 58th scenic view in NM? I didn't know, but I was guessing a mile marker, but weren't the mile markers ascending rather than descending? I didn't know.) 

I kept going, even when the pavement stopped.

The forest pressed in closer. I passed an area with picnic tables and even a vault toilet structure. The road was pretty rough, and I kept climbing.

I saw a trio of deer over on the left, and they bounded away.

Occasionally, sun pushed through the dense canopy and I thought I might be cresting the mountain, where I'd arrive at the view.  But then I'd climb some more.

My wuss side kept talking to me about vehicle breakdowns, heavily-armed mountain-living survivalists, methheads, and I had no whistle to defend myself.

But I kept going.

Until. I realized, no, it was just too late in the day, this first day of not-daylight-savings time. So I turned around and came back, with a plan to find out what this 58 business was so I could visit it another day. I got to see the lovely yellow columns again on my way out.














When I emerged, again unscathed, I took a right onto 82 and decided to look into the Old Apple Barn, a touristy store outside of Cloudcroft.



The Old Apple Barn

The Apple Barn, near Cloudcroft, New Mexico

I went inside the Old Apple Barn, confident that I'd see a lot of uninteresting tourist crap. Well, there was a lot of tourist crap, but most of it was, in fact, interesting. A pleasant surprise. I even found something I'd been looking for: A thing to hold my small purse items to make it easier to change bags - my purse, my backpack, my 'festival' bag. And a postcard.

I coveted some bamboo (?!) plates, but their price made it easier to break loose the hold.

I bought an apple for 40 cents, which I ate on my way back home. It was so tasty. The cashier offered me a free smidge of fudge to take with me, but I virtuously declined the invitation.

Cloudcroft, NM: Salado Canyon Trail, and a Whistle Killer

Salado Canyon, near Cloudcroft, New Mexico

AKA: New Mexico: Fall Colors, Part 2


Recently, New Mexico's rails-to-trails organization opened a new trail route to Bridal Veil Falls, which is in the Salado Canyon, near Cloudcroft. Truthfully, it's closer to High Rolls, so you can go with that, if you prefer. 

I didn't go there.

But I did take a short walk on the related Salado Canyon trail, to the trestle bridge.

Before that, though, I did a due diligence search for some fall foliage, and I found a little here, at the creek crossing on the road that I have not yet followed to its end.

Salado Canyon, near Cloudcroft, New Mexico

I turned around at the creek and went back to one of the trailhead markers. Got out and almost as soon as I set foot on the trail, proceeded to slip and slide on the loose gravel.  What the heck? So I placed my feet a little more carefully, and all was fine. As I walked, I could just feel myself become lighter, airier, freer. Disney bluebirds were about to flutter into my bucolic bubble. Just as I puckered my lips in preparation for whistling a happy tune, I saw a flash of something unnaturally white in my peripheral vision, to the right.

Salado Canyon Trail, near Cloudcroft, New Mexico

I walked over to investigate.

Bones. A trail of them. Leading to an empty hide, dried and contracted from days of exposure to the sun. A dark brown pelt. Largish.

Mountain lion? Mountain lion?

Trail of bones, Salado Canyon Trail, near Cloudcroft, New Mexico

Carcass that used to cover said bones, Salado Canyon Trail, near Cloudcroft, New Mexico

The Disney bluebirds evaporated in a pouf, as did my whistle of a happy tune. My inner wuss had returned.

My rational mind told me not to be stupid. There wasn't even a sign at the trail head saying to watch out for mountain lions. But my wuss side tried to do numbers on my head.

This didn't keep me from continuing my walk to the trestle bridge, however. The train that used to chug its way through here was the Alamogordo and Sacramento Railway, primarily used to transport lumber from the mountains to the basin below. I'd learned from a museum docent a couple of weeks ago that once trucks were pressed into the lumber-transporting service hereabouts, it was discovered they were more economical than trains, especially since they were able to carry longer logs than the trains. So the train business petered out.  

View from trestle bridge. Salado Canyon Trail, near Cloudcroft, New Mexico

There were quite a lot of large droppings on the trail. Probably horses. I didn't take a picture of the droppings.

It was nice to stand on the trestle and listen to the creek below.

Later, once at home, and having successfully rebuffed all non-existent mountain lion attacks, I thought I'd exercise some cognitive therapy and find out how many mountain lion attacks actually occur in New Mexico. I estimated virtually none.

I didn't want to see this headline right off the bat: New Mexico Man Torn Apart by Mountain Lion.

I found a less salacious source of information here: Mountain Lion Attacks from .... . The author has compiled reports of confirmed (and unconfirmed) attacks for North America, formatted per decade. This link happens to take you to the 2001-2010 page.