Gone To The Park Side

Taos, New Mexico June 16 – June 23, 2024

Taos was our last stop in New Mexico. We drove through the mountains on a small road to reach Taos. The drive was very pretty. We followed another camper almost the entire way and later found out they left the same campground from Sante Fe and were staying at the same campground in Taos. We got together with them several times during our stay.

Taos has a similar, but smaller, shopping district than Santa Fe. Both are walkable with many stores dedicated to New Mexican products. I liked Taos much more because it was less crowded and smaller.

Since Taos is a town in New Mexico, it has – you guessed it – a pueblo. Taos Pueblo is the oldest continuously inhabited community in the United States. It is designated as a World Heritage Site and National Historic Site for the ancient adobe architecture. Unlike Acoma Pueblo (near Albuquerque) , Taos Pueblo has utilities. Many of the structures have been converted into stores for local merchandise. The cost to enter was a little pricey to walk around and shop in the stores.

Christopher “Kit” Carson is Taos’ most famous resident. So – he has a museum dedicated to his life in Taos. The museum emphasizes his accomplishments like one of the first western explorers, a transcontinental courier, a US Indian agent and an officer in the New Mexico Volunteer Army. The museum glosses over the demise of his first 2 wives (all were American Indians) , and just provided information about his 3rd wife. The museum was small as it was located in his home in Taos and was not well maintained.

Another attraction in Taos is the Rio Grande Gorge Bridge. The gorge trail traveled along the edge of the Gorge and we were able to view the bridge and the gorge from several angles.

The couple we followed to Taos (Charlie and Adele), joined us to drive the Enchanted Circle. This National Forest Scenic Byway circles Wheeler Peak, the highest in New Mexico at 13,161 feet. The trip is 84 miles and encompasses the towns of Taos, Questa, Red River, Eagle Nest and Angel Fire. Most of the towns were pretty small and not worth stopping, except for Red River. Red River is several blocks long with shops and restaurants. We stopped in Red River Brewery for lunch and it was pretty good.

At long last, our trip through New Mexico is over and we are headed to Colorado!

“New Mexico (Kind of Thing)” by Billy Dawson

Sante Fe, NM June 6 – June 16, 2024

We really loved Santa Fe. Staying for ten days allowed us days for relaxation and to also get to know the city. We were able to visit the local farmers market a couple of times at the Santa Fe Railyard. The market had booths for food, art, crafts, and of course local music.

We dined at a couple of local restaurants, and I finally ate tamales at Posa’s Tamale Factory. I was not super impressed, but homemade tamales may be better. Of course we stopped at the Santa Fe Brewery. The beer was pretty good.

Besides the shopping, food and drinks, Santa Fe and the surrounding area is home to many attractions. We were not able to see everything, but we did visit Pecos National Historical Park, Manhattan Project National Historic Park, Bandelier National Monument, and the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum.

Pecos National Historic Park preserves the ruins of the Pecos Pueblo. Most of the pueblo is just ruins, but the Pueblo Mission Church built in the early 17th century is still partially standing. While the Spanish tried to eradicate religion of the local people, some remnants still remain as evidenced by the remains of over 20 ceremonial subterranean kivas.

If you watched the movie Oppenheimer, you are probably familiar with the Manhattan Project. The historic park includes the sites of the lodge and residences of the scientists as well has a museum that includes a fantastic movie about Los Alamos and the Manhattan Project.

The Bandelier National Monument preserves the homes and territory of the Ancestral Puebloans. Most of the pueblo structures date between 1150 and 1600 AD., on the slopes of the Jemez volcanic field in the Jemez Mountains. The cliff dwellings are still visible, however the structures that were attached to the front are long gone. The park required a lot of ladder climbing – on very very rickety ladders!

The Georgia O’Keeffe Museum was small, but had quite a few of her paintings. The museum had a short film about her life, her travels to New Mexico, and ultimately her move to New Mexico.

We loved Santa Fe and really enjoyed our time. Our next stop is Taos.

“Santa Fe” by Bob Dylan

Albuquerque, New Mexico June 2 – June 6, 2024

We finally started moving north, however the heat continued to follow us and it is still hot. Moving into higher elevation did not give us any relief from the heat wave that blanketed the south and southwest, but we are still having a good time. We stopped in Albuquerque to see a few sights. We did a little shopping in the downtown area which was small but cute and had some neat shops.

We visited the Petroglyph National Monument. Petroglyph National Monument protects a variety of cultural and natural resources including an estimated 24,000 petroglyph images carved by Ancestral Pueblo peoples and early Spanish settlers. Many of the images are recognizable but others are not. As people passed through the area, they marked the rocks with images. So basically, this is just ancient graffiti. We hiked up and around the rocks to see the petroglyphs. I was amazed that so many were visible after hundreds of years.

About an hour outside of Albuquerque is the Acoma Pueblo, which is one of a very few Pueblos that is currently occupied. Acoma (pronounced “Ack eh meh”) sits on a mesa about 370 feet above the desert floor. The Acoma people have lived in this area since 1100. A few Acoma still live in the Pueblo which does not have electricity or plumbing. (crazy people). Our tour guide was one of the residents. The history of the pueblo and the Acoma people was interesting. Overall we enjoyed our tour.

One evening we stopped by Marble Brewery for a sip of beer. It was a much needed “cold one” to beat the heat!

While in Albuquerque, we met up with friends of friends, Chris and Margaret, They were nice enough to spend an evening with us and share their local pizza hangout .

Next stop Sante Fe!

“Heatwave” by Martha and the Vandellas

Silver City, New Mexico May 29 – June 2, 2024

We enjoyed the scenery driving from one city in New Mexico to another – probably because the topography and vegetation is so different than Florida. We have only traveled in the southern part of New Mexico and I’m sure the scenery will change but so far it seems lonely to me.

We stopped in Ruidoso, New Mexico while driving to visit the Billy the Kid Visitors Center. Billy the Kid traveled many roads across southern New Mexico. We did not stop in Lincoln where he escaped from jail and killed two deputies – which is supposed to be an excellent museum. We will visit the museum in Las Cruces on our return trip. Billy the Kid moved to Silver City, New Mexico in 1873 with his mother who had tuberculosis. After she died when he was 16, he began his life of crime. A short life – he died at 21. New Mexico seems to love him.

Besides Billy the Kid’s home, the main attraction in Silver City was the Gila (pronounced “hee la”) Cliff Dwellings National Monument. The dwellings were used for thousands of years by groups of nomads as temporary shelter. In the late 1200s, Native American People (Mogollon) made it a home. They built rooms, crafted pottery in the cliff dwellings. By approximately 1300, the Mogollon had moved on, leaving the walls behind. Silver City is the closest city to the cliff dwellings. The drive takes about 1 ½ hours over a mountainous winding road (road is probably and exaggeration). It is about a mile hike up the cliffs to see the caves. The caves were unique and preserved enough that you could visualize how ancient people lived. We thoroughly enjoyed our visit to the Gila Cliff Dwellings (although not the ride).

We loved our stay in Silver city. We were still in the grips of the heat wave, but the nights were cool. Our site at the park was very nice, and we enjoyed sitting out most evenings.

Now we travel north to Albuquerque!

“I Can See For Miles” by The Who

Alamogordo, New Mexico May 25 – May 29, 2024

The top attraction in Alamogordo is White Sands National Park. We were unable to visit the entire park (another travel god setback) because of missile testing at the missile range which is still open and operational. White Sands covers approximately 275 square miles and is the largest gypsum dunefield in the world. A normal visit would consist of walking on the sands and driving the 16 mile round trip of through the dunes. All but 3 miles of the park was closed, but we were still able to walk the dunes. The dunes reminded me of walking on the beach in Panama City – but without the gulf!

We also visited the New Mexico Museum of Space History. You may ask why is there a space museum in Alamogordo – I certainly did. Apparently, many major breakthroughs in space technology occurred in the Alamogordo area, and the museum offers a variety of exhibitions to showcase those milestones. I personally think it is because Ham (the first great ape launched into space) was from Alamogordo and his remains are at the space museum. It is a very nice museum with lots of exhibits and a planetarium.

We stayed at Oliver Lee Memorial Park which was located at the base of the Sacramento Mountains. The park had great views and Ziva really liked it.

Of course you cannot visit Alamogordo without stopping to take a picture of the world’s largest Pistachio – yes there is a world’s largest pistachio. Evidently, the climate in southern New Mexico is perfect for growing pistachios – who knew?

Overall, we liked Alamogordo. The town was small, but had everything we needed and the park was nice.

Now we are headed to Silver City, New Mexico.

“Rocket Man” by Elton John

Carlsbad, New Mexico May 19 – May 21, 2024
Roswell, New Mexico May 21 – May 25, 2024

We arrived in New Mexico and the travel gods were not with us. Texas and New Mexico were both in the grip of a heat wave and the weather was very hot. RV’s do not fare well in extreme temperatures, so we were hot! The heat was not going to change our trip, so off we went to Carlsbad Caverns and the travel gods struck again!

Our plan was to hike the 1.5 miles down into the cavern, walk the mile around the cavern, and then take the elevator back up to the top. You guessed it – the elevator was not working! So, we hiked the 1.5 miles down, the mile around the cavern and the 1.5 miles back up. I read reviews and several indicated the views on the way down were worth the walk. Not so much. Skip the walk and take the elevator. The cavern was huge and the mile walk at the bottom was spectacular. I wish the pictures showed just how spectacular.

Our next stop was Roswell. I lived here as a child when my dad was stationed at Walker Air Force Base. Some of the buildings are still around, but the base is no longer there.

Roswell is a quirky little town that takes UFOs very seriously. We went to the UFO museum to get the facts. After reading all of the information at the museum, I am convinced that a UFO ship with aliens landed outside of Roswell in 1947 – AND – the government covered it up. The museum provided information to substantiate the existence of UFOs and was very interesting.

The entire town gets into the spirt of UFOs – there were UFO signs everywhere.

We had a good time and Roswell was a neat place to spend a few days. Our next stop is Alamogordo, New Mexico.

“Starrider” by Foreigner