February Break -- South to New Mexico

Last September when we met up with old friends Pat Rhodes and Keven Ward, they told us that they would be working at Patagonia Lake State Park in Arizona again this winter and that Patagonia Lake is known for being one of the few places you can see the Elegant Trogon, a gorgeous tropical bird that comes up from Mexico. 

Elegant Trogon; Photo: Gary Clark, Audubon Field Guide

Since I have become an “accidental” birdwatcher (actually bird photographer, which is much harder than just watching), I was intrigued and was thinking about a summer trip. Then I read an article in which I SWEAR it said the Elegant Trogon is in Arizona from November to April, which surprised me because I thought it came in April. Since I am going to the Smokies in April, I decided I needed to go quickly. Plus, Scott had been wanting to take a southern camping trip and he wanted to photograph some Spanish Missions. 

Mission San Xavier del Bac, Arizona

So, I quickly threw together a weeklong New Mexico/Arizona trip.

It was a bit of a challenge because we wanted to take the teardrop camper ... 

The Little Guy

... and it appears that the further into the desert you go, the harder it is to find available campsites that also have access to showers (a Scott requirement and a good idea). I found some good options, many of which were completely booked, some that just seemed too far away, some closed from state budget cuts and one that was closed because of "recent" mountain lion activity (last summer). We could get into Patagonia Lake during the week, but not on the weekend and Tucson was hopeless. I looked at lots of “RV Parks,” but they all looked horrible (camping 18 inches from you neighbor with no outside facilities) ...

Is this a campground or a cruise ship?

... or they were geared specifically to self-contained units (“Yes, we have showers and restrooms in the clubhouse, but we lock it up from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m.”). So, I booked a combination of camping and hotels.

Imagine my horror when, the night before we left, I read another article that confirmed my original belief – the Elegant Trogon arrives in April and stays until November, although some stay year-round. Still, Patagonia has other birds and a trip seemed like a good idea. So, off we went.

Pyrrhuloxia

Actually, after I planned the trip, Scott decided he wanted to spend some time in Albuquerque and go to the Pueblo Indian Cultural Center, where he had taken his mother years before. So, I booked an extra night at the beginning at a KOA in Albuquerque – we haven’t done KOAs, but it was all we could find.

We were so lucky that we decided to leave a day early because it snowed in Colorado and northern New Mexico right after we left and Raton Pass would have been difficult.

Pecos National Historic Park

Our first stop was Pecos National Historic Park 17 miles east of Santa Fe. 

A gorgeous Visitor Center

The site is beautiful, with snowcapped mountains in the distance. And, the weather was gorgeous.

A gorgeous site

The park features the Pecos Pueblo, a National Historic Landmark that was one of 20+ rock-and-mud villages built in the area around AD 1100. By 1352, the village housed more than 2,000 people in a complex of five- and six-story buildings that also featured elevated balconies and walkways. Today, the ruins are exposed at about the second-story level. 

Ruins

There are several kivas, including some you can go down into.

Kiva with ladder

A kiva is a chamber, built wholly or partly underground, used by Pueblo peoples for religious rites.

Inside the Kiva

The park also features the ruins of Mission Nuestra Señora de los Ángeles de Porciúncula de los Pecos, a Catholic church near the pueblo built by the Spanish Coronado expedition (actually built by the natives under the supervision of the Spanish!) in 1619. 

Log beams

The standing ruins sit on the foundation of the original church.

An interesting shape

In 1680, the Pueblo peoples rejected the Christian religion ... 

They burned the mission and built a traditional kiva in front of the churchyard

When the Spanish returned in 1692 (and built a new church), the Pecos community stayed on friendly terms with them. 

The church

The site was abandoned in 1838 after a series of Comanche raids and the surviving Pecos population moved to the Jemez Pueblo.

Impressive

After walking around the grounds (practically by ourselves), we headed out.

New Mexico skies

Albuquerque
We arrived in Albuquerque at lunchtime. Scott wanted to eat at the restaurant at the museum (which had upgraded since he went there).

Pueblo Harvest at the Pueblo Cultural Center 

We had a lovely meal ...

Indian taco for him and enchiladas for me

The museum was open, but had no activities planned and it turns out Scott really wanted to go for the dancing and cultural demonstrations, so we decided to skip it. Then, he decided that there really wasn’t anything he wanted to do in Albuquerque and he’d rather press on and visit the Very Large Array on our way down ...

A cool place to visit

... rather than on our way home as we had planned. So, I cancelled the KOA (and lost the $48 I paid for the night) and nabbed a free night at the Best Western in Socorro using BW points because no campgrounds were available.

Two minutes after I cancelled, weird lights came on on the dashboard that looked like the car had a serious problem, so we quickly found a Honda dealership. We had been getting extremely low gas mileage, so we figured that there might be a connection. And there was! Something about the engine staying at six cylinders all the time instead of dropping down to four when cruising. 

They said it would take a long time to fix because lots of cars were ahead of us – and I had just changed our accommodations!!!!

But, Garcia Honda in Albuquerque squeezed us in and got us back on the road in about two hours. We really appreciate how helpful they were.

San Agustin de la Isleta Mission

Even though it was getting late, we were able to stop at the San Agustin de la Isleta Mission south of Albuquerque. It was tricky to find because it is in the middle of a neighborhood with narrow, winding dirt streets. We first arrived at the back of the Mission and an old rusted sign indicated that NO PHOTOGRAPHY OF ANY KIND was permitted and that if you broke the rule, they would confiscate your camera or cell phone. Who “they” are I don’t know, because it was pretty deserted. Then, we drove around to the actual front and saw no such sign, so we quickly grabbed a few photos.

San Agustin de la Isleta Mission

San Agustín de la Isleta was founded by Spanish Catholic Franciscans in 1622 as a religious outpost to spread Christianity among the local Native Americans. Isleta Pueblo is the name of two pueblos of the ancient Tiwa tribe. The San Agustin de la Isleta Mission is on the older pueblo, on the west bank of the Rio Grande about 13 miles south of Albuquerque. The original Isleta (i.e. islet) was named by the Spanish from its position on a tongue of land projecting into the stream; the native name, Shiewhibak, refers to a knife used in connection with a ceremonial foot race.

It is tucked away in a neighborhood

The San Antonio "convent" at Isleta was actually built around 1629 and later received many refugees from outlying pueblos after Apache raids. By the 1680 revolution it may have housed 2,000 people. 

Cross and bell

The pueblo was burned in the Pueblo Revolt and the remaining residents people went south to El Paso, Texas. 

In 1693, the Spanish reconquered the Pueblo and resumed mission work. 

In 1710, the original pueblo was reoccupied by the Isleta people and a new mission established there under the name of San Agustin. 

But, with the growth of the Spanish population, the importance of Native American missions decreased. 

In 1780-81, one-third of the Pueblo population was swept away by smallpox and most of the missions were abandoned, but the one at Isleta existed under Spanish and Mexican rule for 50 more years, when it became a secular church.

In 1923, the Isleta mission was remodeled with prominent spires on the adobe walls and a new sloping roof to stop the water leaks that had constantly destroyed the altar.

It is in beautiful condition; I wish we could have gone in

It was overcast (snow was surprisingly predicted for Albuquerque that night – maybe skipping camping was good), so the photos were marginal. The church wasn’t open, so all we could see was the exterior. But, it was pretty and no one confiscated our cameras.

San Miguel de Socorro

We made it Socorro and took some night photos of the San Miguel de Socorro, which is an active church built on the ruins of the old Nuestra Señora de Socorro mission. The old mission was built around 1626, but was destroyed in the 1680 Pueblo Revolt.

The mission at night

Local legend has it that during an Apache raid, an angel appeared and scared off the invaders. Parishioners thus decided to name the church after St. Michael, the archangel who supposedly saved the village.

So, our first day was quite busy – ruins and mission, traditional pueblo/Spanish food and a full moon.

An almost full Moon

Very Large Array
Day two of our February Break started early because we wanted to get to the Very Large Array early for morning light. I wrote about the VLA just last month when I went there as part of my trip to Bosque del Apache, so I won’t repeat everything.

Massive radio telescopes

To read about it, click here.

Moonset

It was a clear, but very cold morning and we made it to the VLA long before the visitor center opened. So, we drove around and took some pictures. People were working and the facility was accessible even though it wasn’t open. I am surprised at how easy it is to explore there -- but, of course, it's not that easy to get there.

I was surprised at how easy it is to explore -- but, it's not that easy to get there

It was interesting to go back after such a short time because all the telescopes had been moved and re-aimed. 

Pointing a different direction

So, it had a very different look.

Lined up

Then, it was back to Socorro and south for just a short distance to our next planned stop: Elephant Butte State Park.

On the way, we tried to stop several places, but quickly learned that Tuesday is New Mexico’s favorite day to close parks and visitor centers. 

Elephant Butte State Park

So, we continued on to Elephant Butte, which is a strikingly pretty lake in the midst of the desert. Of course, it is dammed. You seldom see a natural lake here. The area is named for the butte in the middle of the lake that looks a bit like an elephant from one angle.

Do you see an elephant?

In case you don’t know the difference between a butte and a mesa: a butte is taller than wide; a mesa is wider than tall.

Pretty color

Originally, this was to be our first night’s stop, so I hadn’t planned on a lot of time there. It was beautiful, but cold and wickedly windy. With no real shelter, it looked like it was going to be a rough night. On the website, the camping spot had looked like it was right on the lake, but it was really a distance away. I suspect that it is closer if the lake level is higher. And, considering the wind, that was probably a good thing. For $18, who can complain?

A very different-looking lake

Truth or Consequences
We parked the trailer and headed out to explore. We went to the nearby town of Truth or Consequences (yep!). 

The real name (but not the original)

The name is a stunt

The town changed its name from Hot Springs in 1950 when game show host Ralph Edwards issued a challenge that if a town would change its name to Truth or Consequences (locally known as T or C), he would broadcast the game show from the town. 

They did and he did. I guess the name is a novelty now, but I wonder how many people know where it comes from -- or that it was Ralph Edwards, not Bob Barker, who started all this.

Photo: Geronimo Trail National Scenic Byway

The town has about 20 hot springs, ranging from hotels to spas to B&Bs to private tubs in small rooms. During the 30s and 40s, it was an exclusive vacation spot for Hollywood's elite and, still, many people come to "take the waters." I didn't even realize that it had hot springs, a casualty of the name change.

We considered (briefly) going to one of the springs. But, many are hot tubs in closed rooms. That just didn’t appeal to me – I prefer some sunshine with my springs. And, it looked like all the really nice (and sunny) ones were either pricey spas or you had to be a hotel guest. Since I hadn't planned on much time there, I hadn't really researched it.

Spaceport America; Photo: Wired

We also discovered that the Spaceport America (home to Virgin Galactic's WhiteKnightTwo and SpaceShipTwo, SpaceX's Falcon 9R and numerous other suborbital launchers) was nearby. I should have known that, but I thought it was further north. 

We decided to take a tour. Nope! It was Tuesday. But, we did got to the tee shirt shop ... er, visitor center.

Scott enjoyed it

So Long, New Mexico

So, nothing to see, wind and a long day planned for the next day … We decided to hook up and press on. We had reservations the next afternoon for a tour at Kartchner Caverns in Arizona before ending up in Patagonia Lake, so we tried to change our reservation to an earlier slot over the phone. Nope. Sold out. Still, I thought we might be able to change in person. Then, I tried to book a camp site at Kartchner and was told that they were “pretty much booked.” Pretty much? “Does that mean you have spaces?” “No, we are pretty much booked.” Hmmmmm.

So, we found another Best Western, hooked up the camper and headed to New Mexico. That evening, we went out to take pictures.

Out looking for subjects

We caught a lovely sunset … but not much else of interest.

Good night

But, it was a fun day despite all the changes.

Trip date: February 22-29, 2016