Goodby Texas - Hello New Mexico

We left El Paso on Thursday and drove north into New Mexico and set up camp in the Oliver Lee Memorial State Park south of Alamogordo.  It is a small park at the entrance to Dog Canyon between two small desert mountains.  The canyon has a spring running through it and the area has much history involving Indians and Ranchers.  We enjoyed the hiking trails and high scenery above the New Mexico landscape.

White Sands National Monument

We left our RV behind on Friday for a day out to see the major attractions near Alamogordo New Mexico.  We started at the White Sands National Monument which is a gigantic sea of sparkling white gypsum about 12 miles south.  We saw a 20 minute video and took a drive to see the dunes up close.  They were similar to dunes near Lake Michigan, only these were pure white.  To us - many of the scenes looked like winter with snow.

New Mexico Museum of Space History

On our day trip out we stopped at the New Mexico Museum of Space History in Alamogordo.  It had many amazing exhibits and this town was chosen because of the many technological advances in rocketry and missiles that were developed nearby.  White Sands Missile Range is close as is Holloman
Air Force Base that holds the stealth fighter fleet.  The first atomic bomb was exploded about fifty miles north.  The first U.S. chimp to go into space is buried here by the front sign.

Small Alamogordo Zoo

On our day trip from the New Mexico state park we stopped at the Alamogordo Zoo.  We liked the Puma and have you ever seen a real Roadrunner up close?

Hueco Tanks looks like Four Huge Piles of Rocks but it is more.

This state park is a state historic site first and a small campground of 20 sites second.  Its unusual formation and history make it an amazing place to spend a few days and explore. It has many rules to follow to protect the history and the park only allows so many people in on any given day.  We enjoyed our hikes and bike rides and saw amazing sites here.  (side note - any picture in this blog should open up to a larger size if you click on it with your mouse for a closer look)

Pictographs and Hiking Tours of the Area

The huge bolder and rock formations at Hueco Tanks trap water in hollows among the rocks and has made this location a desert oasis for different cultures for over thousands of years.  It has served as a refuge for plants, animals, and people over millionia.  Thousands of pictographs left by prehistoric and historic native Americans are a testament to the life-sustaining power of Hueco Tanks.  Bill and Karen took some hikes by themselves as well as a tour with a group led by a professional guide.

Rock Climbers at Hueco Tanks

When we arrived we did not know that Hueco Tanks is noted in North America as a major attraction for rock climbers.  We saw dozens of climbers from all over including British Columbia, Nova Scotia, Massachusetts, Virginia, Oregon, and California.  They would carry bolder packs on their backs to use as landing pads when they went up dangerous climbs in case they fell.