As the weather warms up in the Southwest desert, those of us fortunate enough to have our home on wheels begin making preparations to travel to cooler climates While wintering at Picacho Peak RV Resort (
LINK), our good friends from Georgia took a work camper job located in the mountains near Ruidoso, New Mexico. We decided to make this our first stop and were really glad we did. We stayed a week at Bonito Hollow Campground (
LINK) & (
REVIEW), and toured the surrounding area with our friends. The first night there, we went to dinner at the Inn of the Mountain Gods casino. They have a promotion called
High 5's for 55's that gets seniors 55 and older, 50% off buffet dining on Monday and Wednesday. It is a great buffet that costs $5.33 each! Take advantage if you are in the area (
LINK). Now that we found a good place to eat, it's time to get out and explore!
This area of New Mexico is beautiful with mountains and broad valleys.
A few miles up the road from the campground is the small town of Capitan which is the birthplace and final resting place of Smokey the Bear. There is a small museum and garden that tells Smokey's story (
LINK). He lived for 26 years at the National Zoo in Washington D.C. before dying of old age.
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| Diane and I with Smokey |
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| Final Resting place. |
Next it was a few miles further down the road to Valley of Fires Recreation Area (
LINK). This place is a long, broad valley that filled with slowly flowing lava creating a surreal landscape that you have to see to believe. There is a paved path that meanders amongst the lava flow with interpretive signs placed at the more interesting places. It is definitely worth a couple hours stop.
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Lava folds as it cooled. Amazing the variety of plants that have taken root
and survive on the cracks, nooks, and crannies of this solid rock. |
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| An OLD juniper and a young lady! |
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| Lava in every shape imaginable. |
Our next and final stop for the day, was the Three Rivers Petroglyph Site (
LINK). These rock carvings were made over 600 years ago by local Indians. A half mile rugged trail winds along a ridge with over 20,000 carvings. Plants, animals, geometric patterns and some things that just don't make sense are represented. Spend a couple hours here with your camera and put your self 600 years back in time. What was the artist trying to convey?
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| Radiation symbol? |
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| Stairway to Heaven. |
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| A penguin? In the desert 600 years ago? |
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| "I shot a turtle with big ears. A bear came. I ran away." ??? |
The day was getting late but we wanted to drive through a primitive campground area near the Petroglyph site so away we went until the road turned to dirt and gravel. We traveled several miles among the hills and valleys and saw wild horses, Golden Eagles, free range cows, flowering cactus, and other local inhabitants.
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| One group of several wild horses that roam this area. |
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| The scenery is beautiful. Look close and you'll see a golden eagle sitting in top of the tree dead center. ( I really need a longer lens!) |
By now, it is getting very late in the day so we head back to the campground. About a half mile from our destination, as it was getting dusk, we found a herd of elk cows and several mule deer right beside the road. What a perfect end to a perfect day!
Stay tuned for our next outing to white sands and an old fort!
