We traveled to Ruidoso New Mexico with My Dad in May of 1993. We'd arranged a timeshare trade there for a three bedroom apartment a year earlier, planning on bringing my Mom. Mom died in January 1993, but we still did the trip.
This travelogue is incomplete and under construction.
We arrived in El Paso, TX and stayed at the Coral Motel (a real dive) the first night.
The next morning we passed thorough a hot air Balloon festival traveling from El Paso to Las Cruces, NM. West of Las Cruces we passed through the Organ Mountains. They are named that way because they resemble organ pipes.
We arrived in the mid afternoon at Crown Point Condominiums in Ruidoso. The Condos across the street from our shad a wonderful view of Sierra Blanca, a very high mountain (12,000 feet elev.) where the Ski Apache Ski Area is located. When Dad was stationed in Roswell, New Mexico in the late 40s and early 50s, the mountain was called "Old Baldy."
Indian Ruins at Salinas National Monument in New Mexico. Note the arid landscape.
Salinas National Monument was made up of the ruins of three Indian Pueblos and associated Spanish Missions from the sixteenth century. Franciscan priests cam eup with the traders to convert the indians of the Salinas Valley. The three ruins making up the monument are Gran Quivera, Quarai and Abo.
This is the convento, or rectory and school of the mission at Las Humanas. Although the mission was never completed, the convento was used. The church construction began in 1659. In 1672 the Indians at Los Humanas left the pueblo and the unfinished church. Drought and increasing Apache raids drove these indians south. it is believed that they migrated to Ysleta mission in El Paso, which we would visit later in our trip.
The Malpais is a 44 mile long lava Flow in central New Mexico.
We also visited The Malpais, or bad country, which is a huge black lava flow (44 miles long and covering a total of 127 square miles.) At the Valley of the Fires recreation area, near Carrizozo, NM there is a fascinating nature trail where you can learn all about the flora and fauna of this area.
Flowering cactus in The malpais.
There were beautiful but scarce plants and wildflowers (especially cactus) in the Malpais. The vegetation is scarce because it cannot survive on lava, but uses the diret and sand that have been caught in nooks and crannies of the lava.
Bonito Lake was high in the mountains. Note the lush scenery. Yet the arid desert waited only a half hour ride away from here.
Dad, Mark and a cottonwood tree at White Sands.
The next day we headed off to White Sands. The white sands are made of gypsum, which is water soluble, which is why we don't have it in the moist east. Here, in the Tularosa Basin the weather is so Arid that the sands are deposited and dried out. White Sands is in Almogordo, NM. We also stopped and did some shopping in Cloudcroft, NM and enjoyed the National Forest, high in the mountains, near Cloudcroft.
Lincoln County Courthouse.
We started the next morning off with a visit to Billy the Kid Country in Lincoln, NM. This is a tiny town where a number of interesting events related to the wild west, including the Lincoln County War, which involved Billy the Kid. In addition to a Billy the Kid museum, and this courthouse, which dates from those days and has a great deal of historical interest, there was a town museum, which had a great deal of information on the Buffalo Soldiers. These were black soldiers in the wild west. In addition, there are buildings from the nineteenth century that you can tour. This includes a mission (if I remember correctly, somewhat older than the 19th century) a private residence, a store.
Essentially, the whole town is a big museum, it is very interesting, very inexpensive, and, in my opinion very worthwhile. Also, I would think family friendly (though I did not have my kids with me at the time I toured, I kept thinking they would like it.
Bonito Lake.
Later in the afternoon, we decided to head up Sierra Blanca. First we drove past Bonito Lake, which Dad remembered from his days in the Air Force at nearby Roswell AFB. Note how, at higher altitudes, the climate is so completely different. In New Mexico a half hour of driving would change drastically the climate around you, not only in the area of temperature, but also in rainfall and moisture. It is hard to believe, but this lake is within only about 50 miles of the Malpais!
View from Monjeau lookout on Sierra Blanca
We continued on to the Monjeau Lookout. This is at over 10,000 feet above sea level. That makes it three times as high as the biggest peaks flanking Skyline Drive and the Blue Ridge, back where we live. But once at the top, we had a lovely view!
Dinner Show at the Flying J
That night we decided to do a Chuckwagon Dinner at the Flying J Ranch. This was great fun. The restuarant is huge, including an outdoor area with some shops. They stage a gunfight ahead of the dinner, and give you the chance to shop a bit. Pony rides and panning for gold for the kids. Then you head into the ranch where you have a chuckwagon dinner. They serve chuchwagon beef, beans, potato, buiscuits, and the like. I belive they had chicken breast for folks watching cholesterol. It was fun. Then they did a cowboy music show, which we enjoyed. This was so much fun that several years later in Arizona I would go out of my way to get to another chuchwagon dinner!