Finding Something New in New Mexico

I started planning ideas for this vacation by looking at my maps. I have long been taken with the epic beauty of southern Utah, but something else calls me to New Mexico. It is as if something about the loneliness and emptiness is inviting me to explore myself.

I’ve seen a lot of New Mexico over the years, stretching back to 1981, when I first learned to snow ski at Angel Fire. It’s a big state, but as the years have progressed, I find myself on the same roads.

One of the few areas I had not seen was Ruidoso, a south-central New Mexico green, mountainous area emerging from the surrounding desert.

My first stop for the day was at a west Texas art installation, a “peace park”in the middle of the prairie. Have a look at this companion piece, Give Peace a Chance (link). 

I rolled into Ruidoso after dark. The GPS on my smartphone took me through winding, dark city streets, reminding me that I should often trust my maps and common sense instead of technology, which often has no common sense at all.

Ruidoso’s Grindstone Lake: Recommended

My plan for the week was barely more than a back-of-the-envelope scribble, but my first notion was to make the short drive to a hiking trail network a few miles west of Ruidoso around Grindstone Lake. I would base my hiking choices on the heat, the hills, and my inspiration.

After some decent trail time at the lake, I made my way north to the Smokey Bear Ranger Station for the Lincoln National Forest, where I bought a gorgeous waterproof topographic map of the Smokey Bear and Sacramento Ranger Districts.

Fort Stanton Historic District: Recommended

The map had some points of interest to the north, so I headed that direction, up for anything.

Fort Stanton Historic Site is interesting, though it seemed underdeveloped compared to a lot of other historic sites I’ve seen.

In 1899, the Fort became America’s first federal tuberculosis sanatorium.

According to Wikipedia: During World War II, Fort Stanton was used as a detention center for German and Japanese Americans arrested as “enemy aliens,” and 411 German nationals taken from the luxury liner Columbus in 1939 (officially recorded as “distressed seamen paroled from the German Embassy” since the U.S. was still technically neutral at the time of their capture). The “enemy aliens” were mostly immigrant residents of the U.S. who had been taken into custody as suspected saboteurs shortly after the U.S. entered the war, despite a lack of supporting evidence or access to due process for most internees. The 31 German American internees, labeled “troublemakers” by the Department of Justice, were kept separate from the 17 Japanese Americans (also deemed “troublesome” by authorities) who were transferred to Fort Stanton on March 10, 1945. These new arrivals were deported to Japan later that year.

The hospital was closed in 1953.

Fort Stanton Cemetery: Highly Recommended

Just a couple of miles south out of town, I stopped to photograph the Fort Stanton Cemetery, a Merchant Marine Military Cemetery and U.S. Public Health Service Hospital Cemetery.

I drove up New Mexico 532 hoping to drive to Ski Apache at 9600 feet to find some amazing vistas. Instead, I found a very dry, very brown forest that had burned repeatedly, as well as a huge amount of construction all the way up and down the roadway. I didn’t make a single image.

I was up early for breakfast of huevos rancheros at a local restaurant, and a few quick images of the iron sculptures for sale across the street.

Pistachio Farms in Tularosa: Recommended

On a couple of previous occasions, I stopped and bought pistachios at McGinn’s Pistachioland and the Heart of the Desert Pistachios and Wine, so as I made my way southwest I stopped there again. Both stores were clean and well-kept, and they were well-staffed. It was a stark contrast to the bleak poverty just down the street.

White Sands National Park on the Hottest Day of the Year: Not Recommended

Even at the best time of year with the best light, White Sands National Park is only marginally interesting, with a monotony that sets in quickly after the novelty wears off.

I was able to buy a Senior Lifetime Multiagency Pass at the White Sands entrance, since I was 62 on the day I arrived. I wanted to buy one in October last year, but the government shutdown meant there was no one to sell it to me.

I’ve been to White Sands five times now, once in 1974, again in 2000’s The Shooting Spree, in 2008’s Journada del Muerto, in 2010’s Lost in the Sun, and this time.

In addition to withering heat, road construction caused a significant delay getting into the dunes area.

Organ Mountains / Desert Peaks National Monument: Highly Recommended

I’ve driven past the Organ Mountains many times on my way to one thing or another, but never stopped. So I made it a destination on this trip, and I was glad I did. The staff at the visitor center was friendly, and they had a clean water supply so hikers could fill their bottles.

It was still very hot when I visited, but I found a couple of short trails and did a little exploration.

Driving the LLano Estacado through the Caprock Escarpment, then Home

I had in mind that I would drive through Roswell and maybe find some interesting lore about the famous UFO incidents there, but nothing really drew me in.

Much of the U.S. 285 drive north of Roswell has a kind of next-level emptiness about it.

I chose a backcountry route that would take me across the LLano Estacado (“Staked Plains”), then descend the Caprock escarpment. For decades I had seen these features from Interstate 40, so I thought it would be interesting to see them as I approached from the south.

I felt it was a great trip despite the intense heat. I had a great time.