Elephant Butte by Kayak

The skies were clear for paddling and star gazing

Adventure

Adventures in the new year -- 2015

First off-highway tracks of the year, into the vivid setting sun.

The tent site was in 3ft. of snow and under a full moon, it was a bright night.

Adventure dog.

Snow wagon

The following week we ventured away from the mountains and toward the coast, stopping here at Yuma territorial prison on the way. This is the cell block, it must have been miserable to be here in the summer.

Ocean Beach in San Diego

The tide returning to the tide pools near Ocean Beach

Wildlife on the Pier.

I can't wait to go sailing someday.

Cruising the PCH on the way to San Fransisco. The M3 is a very fine car for this road.

HDR of Big Sur, a beautiful drive. I'm excited to come back and do more exploring here soon.

White Gap Pass

We knew we needed to get out. It had been a long semester and a lot of man-hours at work. We made a few calls, stopped at the grocery store on the way out, then we were on our way.

We arrived after dark, the sky was crystal clear, the temperature crisp. We started a campfire, made some food, and enjoyed the Geminid meteor shower.

The temperature began dropping and clouds began moving in from the Northwest. We took notice, but I didn't expect it to rain, it was southern New Mexico after all. It did rain. We scrambled to get the tents and shelters up, keep our sleeping bags dry and get the cameras put away. The rain turned to ice, the wind was relentless. We got to bed and were able to stay (kinda) warm and dry.

The morning came, the sun came out, and things warmed up. We drank some delicious coffee. I wonder if the coffee was actually better tasting or if being with friends, the cold weather, the beautiful surroundings and the sense of adventure made it taste so good. 

We left camp and began ascending White gap pass. The road was extremely rocky, but not terribly technical. 

We reached the pass, the view over the valley was stunning.

The wind in the pass was intense. It whistled through the barb wire and stole the words out of our mouths.

Everyone was eager to get off the pass. 

We found a homestead. I imagine the first rancher in this area lived in this house. It was a very remote location.

The house had indoor plumbing. Pretty civilized given the time of construction and the distance from any other settlement or structure. 

It's a bit of a fixer-upper these days, but we could imagine having lived here in the high desert.

After we came back to pavement, we ate lunch at Sparkies in Hatch. Glad to have good food and to sit in the sunshine.  

Fort Stanton Live

These are photos from Fort Stanton Live! An annual event held at historic Ft. Stanton, near Ruidoso NM. The fort was used to protect the area from the Apache threat, and later for a variety of other purposes, including a tuberculosis sanctuary and an internment camp for German nationals during WWII. The historical presentations and reenactments were very cool. 

An actor dressed as a Cavalry Soldier

 The artillery presentations were my favorite. The shock wave from the canon would hit before the sound did, then you were washed by the smoke, which smelled strongly of gunpowder, and then the crew reloaded and fired again. It was fantastic.

 It's hard to imagine what a real artillery battle would have been like, with dozens of these going off together.

 The Apache soldiers on their way to the "battle" with the soldiers. The Apaches won.

Historical chapel at Ft. Stanton.