For our New Mexican vacation, we have based ourselves in Las Cruces, located in the south-central part of the state. Southern New Mexico sees far less tourism than the northern part of the state, an unfortunate fact for the many visitors who miss out on all this region has to offer, but lucky for those of us who have figured it out, and then largely have the place to ourselves. Having previously had the chance to visit the very popular destination of Santa Fe, four hours to the north, I personally found that area to be both overpriced and overrated. Las Cruces, on the other hand, suits us perfectly.
Meaning "the crosses" in Spanish, Las Cruces was named (or so the story goes) for the multitude of wooden crosses that dotted the area in the 18th century, marking the graves of would-be settlers who had been slaughtered by the Apache Indians. Today, Las Cruces is a small city of 90,000 or so much more friendly residents, home to New Mexico State University and also a strong agricultural community, with the Rio Grande river providing the irrigation necessary for crops like pecans and chile peppers to grow in the desert climate. On the subject of climate, the weather here is practically perfect, with lovely warm temperatures and something like 350 days of sun per year.
In our three days here, we have taken advantage of the fabulous weather and spent lots of time outdoors. Two days ago, we drove fifty miles northeast to White Sands National Monument, where huge dunes of snow-white gypsum sand cover a mind-blowing 275 square miles of land. This amazing area was formed over millions of years, as gypsum deposits in the nearby mountains were dissolved by rain and snow, then washed down to a large dry lake bed below. Once there, the hot and dry climate served to evaporate the moisture, causing crystals of gypsum to form, which the strong local winds then whipped into tiny particles of sand. Those same winds then moved the sand slowly across the desert floor, with more and more dunes continuing to form over the ages. Today, the dunes are still moving, some at an annual pace of up to thirty feet.
Visitors to White Sands can take a scenic drive through miles of the giant dunes and, if desired, can park along the way as we did, to get out and explore the sand on foot. Climbing atop the massive dunes and walking out into the endless fields of sand is a rather surreal experience, as one takes in the views of nothing but waves of pure white sand as far as the eye can see, juxtaposed against the bright blue New Mexican sky, and it is certainly an experience that should not be missed.
On the drive back from White Sands, we visited Aguirre Spring Recreation Area and this wilderness preserve was also well worth the stop. A narrow, winding road leads six miles up into the steep and rocky foothills of the adjacent mountains and, once there, provides a look at some gorgeous natural scenery, as well as a panoramic view of the desert valley below. We took a stroll up one of the hiking trails to get an better look around, and were only sorry that time did not permit us to follow the trail all the way to the mountain pass at the top.
The following day, we decided to try a hike at Mesilla Valley Bosque State Park, which is New Mexico's newest state park, having opened in 2008 along the western bank of the Rio Grande. There, several trails lead through the river's flood plain and the "bosque", or river woodlands, that have formed along the flood plain, and allow a nice chance to look for wildlife and just generally enjoy the area. During our hike, we were thrilled to spot a roadrunner, and Scott even managed to get a decent photo before, true to its name, the bird sped off.
Having worked a little exercise into our day, we spent the afternoon in a far more relaxing manner, lounging by the lovely pool back at the condo, enjoying the sunshine and the eighty degree temperature.
As the sun was setting, the perfect end to a perfect day turned out to be a delicious pizza that we picked up from Lorenzo's, an extremely popular Italian restaurant just down the road in Mesilla.
Today, being Saturday, we spent an enjoyable hour this morning strolling the open-air farmers' and crafts market held weekly on the downtown plaza in Las Cruces, followed by brunch at the Mesilla Valley Kitchen, highly touted as serving the best breakfast in town. That reputation is definitely deserved, based upon the awesome burritos we were served, which were filled with scrambled eggs, sausage, bacon, mushrooms, bell peppers, onions and tomatoes, then topped with green chile and cheese.
Thoroughly stuffed, we made our way to the Mesilla Valley Mall to do a little more shopping. I loaded up on books and magazines at Barnes and Noble, to somehow be crammed into my carry-on in along with our prior purchases, including this beautiful southwestern-style cross, made of clay, that I thought made an extremely fitting memento of this city named for crosses.
Our trip comes to an end tomorrow, when we return to El Paso in order to catch a flight back to Ohio. While our visit here was ultimately far too brief, we still enjoyed a rich variety of wonderful experiences and, along with our souvenirs and photographs, we will be returning home with some excellent memories of the time we spent in the amazing American southwest.
No comments:
Post a Comment