There is a small town within the boundaries of Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument called Lukeville, but the property within Lukeville is not National Park Service land. Lukeville, population 35, is basically a small commercial and service area that is located on the border with Mexico. It is mainly known as the place where people cross the border to go to
"Rocky Point." The town is officially called Puerto Penasco in Spanish and that name actually means "Rocky Port," but that doesn't change the fact that everyone calls it Rocky Point.
Puerto Penasco is a popular beach resort at the head of the Sea of Cortes and is only 62 miles south of the United States border. It is a very popular Spring Break destination.
Anyway, Lukeville is the place where people who visit Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument load up on supplies if they are staying for an extended period of time.
Lukeville is commonly called Gringo Pass and that is even the name that appears on the post office, but no one likes that name except for the one person who owns most of the property in town.
"Downtown" Lukeville is a shopping center next to the border wall that contains a restaurant, the post office, laundromat, Mexican car insurance, duty free shop and a supermarket, but that supermarket closed about 3 years ago. I noticed that the last time I was in Lukeville in March of 2013. I was stunned to learn that the store had gone out of business. Since the store closed, that means the local gas station/convenience store has filled in the void and is now the busiest place in Lukeville.
The aforementioned shopping center is directly across State Highway 85 from the Customs Station at the border. Across the highway and slightly to the north is the abandoned motel, the Gringo Pass Motel. I believe it closed around 2005 or 2006. I stayed there once, in the 1990s, and I remember the TV reception being terrible.
With the store and motel both closing, it may sound like Lukeville is dying off, but it really isn't. The population remains the same, but the businesses are closing mostly due to an absentee landlord who lives in Florida and is difficult to deal with.
Until a few days ago, I could not figure out why there are approximately 1,200 mail boxes in the Lukeville post office. The population is only 35 and there are some national park employees that live in a residential compound five miles north, but there aren't that many rangers in the park. No one else lives in the area. As it turns out, many business owners in Puerto Penasco, Mexico, 62 miles south, have post office boxes in Lukeville. I am not sure why, though. However, there are rumors that the post office will closed and be replaced with a FedEx or UPS delivery store. Again, due to renting from the landlord.
Lukeville is a tiny town of 35 people that is surrounded on three sides by a national park and on the other side by Mexico. It predates the establishment of Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument. The park was established in 1937 in a very remote part of the Sonoran Desert.
Directly across the border from Lukeville is Sonoyta, Mexico, in the state of Sonora.
Wednesday, December 17, 2014
Saturday, December 13, 2014
Organ Pipe Cactus
In southwestern Arizona, on the border with Mexico, is one of my favorite places on earth. It is Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument. The park was named for the organ pipe cactus,
which mostly grows in Mexico, but ventures into Arizona in a limited area. The great bulk of the organ pipe cacti grow within the boundaries of this national park, but they do continue north to the area around Ajo, a town that is 40 miles from the border and about a dozen miles from the national monument's northern boundary. For decades the organ pipe cacti were constricted to this area, north of the international border, but, lately they have been expanding their range. They also grow on the slopes of the Slate Mountains, on the
Tohono O'odham Indian Reservation, which borders the national monument on the east; there is a "loner" or isolated specimen, growing in the Sand Tank Mountains in the newly christened
Sonoran Desert National Monument, a park that is bisected by Interstate 8; there is a solitary individual growing on a bajada slope in Picacho Peak State Park, near Eloy, between Tucson and Phoenix and one growing on Desert Peak, near Marana, which is a northern suburb of Tucson. These organ pipe specimens have somehow managed to grow and thrive even though they are well removed from their traditional range and they are located at least 40 miles or more from the nearest organ pipe. The seeds from which they sprouted most likely were deposited by a bird dropping or blown about by the wind and managed to take root. In addition, there are other organ pipes that were planted and they are doing quite well in their new location, such as one next to the Desert Laboratory atop Tumamoc Hill on the west side of Tucson, those that are in the Desert Botanical Garden in Phoenix and those that are in
Boyce Thompson Arboretum State Park near Superior.
The fact that they have expanded beyond their traditional range offers hope that the organ pipe cactus will occupy a much bigger range in the future, though I doubt it will ever become as numerous as the more familiar saguaro.
Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument is a place that I daydream about and it is a place I visited as much as possible when I lived in Arizona, but it is a very isolated place that requires preparation if you want to visit. It is accessible by a good paved highway, but services are very limited in the immediate area and, even in the nearby town of Ajo, which is the economic center for a wide area, services still are not very plentiful.
which mostly grows in Mexico, but ventures into Arizona in a limited area. The great bulk of the organ pipe cacti grow within the boundaries of this national park, but they do continue north to the area around Ajo, a town that is 40 miles from the border and about a dozen miles from the national monument's northern boundary. For decades the organ pipe cacti were constricted to this area, north of the international border, but, lately they have been expanding their range. They also grow on the slopes of the Slate Mountains, on the
Tohono O'odham Indian Reservation, which borders the national monument on the east; there is a "loner" or isolated specimen, growing in the Sand Tank Mountains in the newly christened
Sonoran Desert National Monument, a park that is bisected by Interstate 8; there is a solitary individual growing on a bajada slope in Picacho Peak State Park, near Eloy, between Tucson and Phoenix and one growing on Desert Peak, near Marana, which is a northern suburb of Tucson. These organ pipe specimens have somehow managed to grow and thrive even though they are well removed from their traditional range and they are located at least 40 miles or more from the nearest organ pipe. The seeds from which they sprouted most likely were deposited by a bird dropping or blown about by the wind and managed to take root. In addition, there are other organ pipes that were planted and they are doing quite well in their new location, such as one next to the Desert Laboratory atop Tumamoc Hill on the west side of Tucson, those that are in the Desert Botanical Garden in Phoenix and those that are in
Boyce Thompson Arboretum State Park near Superior.
The fact that they have expanded beyond their traditional range offers hope that the organ pipe cactus will occupy a much bigger range in the future, though I doubt it will ever become as numerous as the more familiar saguaro.
Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument is a place that I daydream about and it is a place I visited as much as possible when I lived in Arizona, but it is a very isolated place that requires preparation if you want to visit. It is accessible by a good paved highway, but services are very limited in the immediate area and, even in the nearby town of Ajo, which is the economic center for a wide area, services still are not very plentiful.
Thursday, October 2, 2014
A New Perspective?
Well, I stopped writing about Carlsbad, New Mexico briefly because I was planning a trip there and I wanted to write about it from a fresh perspective.
Well, I did go through Carlsbad, but my ability to sightsee was severely limited by the flooding that was going on at the time. This flooding in a desert town was caused by the remnants of
Hurricane Odile, which hit the Baja Peninsula of Mexico with full force. This hurricane wreaked havoc on southern New Mexico, southern Arizona and large portions of northern Texas.
When I was in Carlsbad, I arrived during a lull in the flooding, but there was still plenty of flooding around. I was able to see where waters had receded, however. This was indicated by mud and debris on the streets that proved that water had once flowed across the streets. When I arrived in Carlsbad on Sunday afternoon, September 21, the outside lanes of the major streets were completely flooded, forcing people to drive the inside lanes. This reduced the traffic to one lane each direction plus the turning lane and alot of traffic congestion ensued as a result. To turn onto side streets, drivers had to either drive in the flooded lanes to make the turn or make the turn from the inside lane and drive through the flooded area. Some intersections on secondary streets were completely flooded, probably most of them, but I did not see that many of them. The street in front of Walmart, on the south side of town, was completely flooded for a short distance.
I have heard varying reports on the amount of rainfall that fell on the Carlsbad area, but it was at least 15 inches. This is in a town that averages about 11 inches for the year!
The access road into Carlsbad Caverns National Park, State Highway 7, was closed due to
alot of debris that had washed across the road and blocked it. One oil field worker was swept away and killed by floodwaters and there was a group of 42 oil field workers that were stranded by flood waters and had to be rescued by helicopter. I heard about two different areas in which this happened, one near Artesia, which is 36 miles north of Carlsbad and one near Whites City, which is the town that is adjacent to Carlsbad Caverns National Park. So I don't know if one of the stories was in error or if it happened in two different areas. I don't know if the 42 figure represents one area or both areas.
So, I will have to resume my Carlsbad series with a stitched together series about my brief visit last a week and a half ago and my previous visits to this area.
The lull in the flooding that I saw when I arrived was brief. It poured down rain all night and the already saturated ground could not hold it anymore, so more flooding ensued the next morning. When I went through Artesia late Sunday morning, there was little evidence of the recent flooding, unlike Carlsbad, but, as I saw on the news that night, Eagle Draw, a normally dry watercourse that bisects Artesia, was raging out of control. It happened that quickly!!
Well, I did go through Carlsbad, but my ability to sightsee was severely limited by the flooding that was going on at the time. This flooding in a desert town was caused by the remnants of
Hurricane Odile, which hit the Baja Peninsula of Mexico with full force. This hurricane wreaked havoc on southern New Mexico, southern Arizona and large portions of northern Texas.
When I was in Carlsbad, I arrived during a lull in the flooding, but there was still plenty of flooding around. I was able to see where waters had receded, however. This was indicated by mud and debris on the streets that proved that water had once flowed across the streets. When I arrived in Carlsbad on Sunday afternoon, September 21, the outside lanes of the major streets were completely flooded, forcing people to drive the inside lanes. This reduced the traffic to one lane each direction plus the turning lane and alot of traffic congestion ensued as a result. To turn onto side streets, drivers had to either drive in the flooded lanes to make the turn or make the turn from the inside lane and drive through the flooded area. Some intersections on secondary streets were completely flooded, probably most of them, but I did not see that many of them. The street in front of Walmart, on the south side of town, was completely flooded for a short distance.
I have heard varying reports on the amount of rainfall that fell on the Carlsbad area, but it was at least 15 inches. This is in a town that averages about 11 inches for the year!
The access road into Carlsbad Caverns National Park, State Highway 7, was closed due to
alot of debris that had washed across the road and blocked it. One oil field worker was swept away and killed by floodwaters and there was a group of 42 oil field workers that were stranded by flood waters and had to be rescued by helicopter. I heard about two different areas in which this happened, one near Artesia, which is 36 miles north of Carlsbad and one near Whites City, which is the town that is adjacent to Carlsbad Caverns National Park. So I don't know if one of the stories was in error or if it happened in two different areas. I don't know if the 42 figure represents one area or both areas.
So, I will have to resume my Carlsbad series with a stitched together series about my brief visit last a week and a half ago and my previous visits to this area.
The lull in the flooding that I saw when I arrived was brief. It poured down rain all night and the already saturated ground could not hold it anymore, so more flooding ensued the next morning. When I went through Artesia late Sunday morning, there was little evidence of the recent flooding, unlike Carlsbad, but, as I saw on the news that night, Eagle Draw, a normally dry watercourse that bisects Artesia, was raging out of control. It happened that quickly!!
Monday, September 1, 2014
Silver City
The economy of Silver City has relied mostly on the mining industry and on the presence of
Western New Mexico University for most of its history. Today, those two components are still a big force in the economy, but it is a little more diversified now. Silver City is located close to the Gila Wilderness, which was the first federally designated wilderness in the country. There are plenty of opportunities for hiking, fishing and camping in the Gila Wilderness. Also in the area is Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument, which are located at the northern end of
State Highway 15, which is a very slow, twisting mountain road. Silver City also has a nearly completely intact and very historic downtown area with most of the buildings dating from the 1800s or early 1900s. The downtown area of Silver City is one of my favorite downtown areas anywhere! Now this is not the adobe construction you might expect to find in a small
New Mexico town. Adobe is an anomaly around here. The principal downtown street is
Bullard Street, but it was originally Main Street, one block to the east. You see, Main Street
disappeared in a flash flood in 1896. Several more floods in the next decade carved the newly created canyon even deeper. Now it is a greenbelt called Big Ditch Park and the canyon is 55 feet deep and the series of floods washed it down to bedrock. There are buildings lining the
west side of Big Ditch Park that once lined Main Street and they have elaborate front entrances that now face a greenbelt park. When the town plat for Silver City was first drawn up, it was laid out directly in the path of storm water runoff and Main Street wound up paying the ultimate price for the bad design. There are still about four blocks of Main Street left, north of the downtown area. It begins at 14th Street and then dead-ends at approximately the point where it once would have intersected with 10th Street. A glance at an aerial map will show a straight stretch of San Vicente Arroyo going past the downtown area. This was once
Main Street.
Western New Mexico University for most of its history. Today, those two components are still a big force in the economy, but it is a little more diversified now. Silver City is located close to the Gila Wilderness, which was the first federally designated wilderness in the country. There are plenty of opportunities for hiking, fishing and camping in the Gila Wilderness. Also in the area is Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument, which are located at the northern end of
State Highway 15, which is a very slow, twisting mountain road. Silver City also has a nearly completely intact and very historic downtown area with most of the buildings dating from the 1800s or early 1900s. The downtown area of Silver City is one of my favorite downtown areas anywhere! Now this is not the adobe construction you might expect to find in a small
New Mexico town. Adobe is an anomaly around here. The principal downtown street is
Bullard Street, but it was originally Main Street, one block to the east. You see, Main Street
disappeared in a flash flood in 1896. Several more floods in the next decade carved the newly created canyon even deeper. Now it is a greenbelt called Big Ditch Park and the canyon is 55 feet deep and the series of floods washed it down to bedrock. There are buildings lining the
west side of Big Ditch Park that once lined Main Street and they have elaborate front entrances that now face a greenbelt park. When the town plat for Silver City was first drawn up, it was laid out directly in the path of storm water runoff and Main Street wound up paying the ultimate price for the bad design. There are still about four blocks of Main Street left, north of the downtown area. It begins at 14th Street and then dead-ends at approximately the point where it once would have intersected with 10th Street. A glance at an aerial map will show a straight stretch of San Vicente Arroyo going past the downtown area. This was once
Main Street.
Tuesday, August 12, 2014
A Brief Detour
I apologize for not writing in such a long time. That has been the case with all of my blogs, though. I will try to rectify that situation.
Since I have a trip to New Mexico planned for next month, I will temporarily suspend my series about the Carlsbad area, so I can write about that area from a fresher perspective.
Meanwile, I want to "drift" over into western New Mexico. One of my favorite towns anywhere is Silver City, which is located in southwestern New Mexico. Silver City has about 10,500 people and the population has hovered in the 10,000 range for quite some time.
The whole area in which Silver City resides was settled due to the opening of numerous mines and today mining still plays a significant part if the region's economy, but mining is not the dominant force it once was. The economy today is heavily based on tourism. There are ample recreational opportunities in this area ranging from hiking and camping in the nearby mountains, ancient Indian ruins, ghost towns and a fascinating state park that contains very weird, grotesque and otherworldy rock formations. In addition, Silver City is the home of
Western New Mexico University, which has about 3,500 students and it was established in 1893, when New Mexico was still a territory. It was founded as a teacher's college. The university occupies a prominent, hilltop location on the west side of Silver City. The university is a large source of employment in the area.
There are 12 towns located in close proximity to each other in this area, in the central part of Grant County. They are: Silver City, Santa Clara, Bayard, North Hurley, Hurley, Vanadium, Turnerville, Hanover, Arenas Valley, Little Walnut Village, Pinos Altos and Tyrone. Silver City is the biggest of these towns and the county seat of Grant County. In addition, there are several housing developments and rural, residential neighborhoods, which makes this a well settled area.
Since I have a trip to New Mexico planned for next month, I will temporarily suspend my series about the Carlsbad area, so I can write about that area from a fresher perspective.
Meanwile, I want to "drift" over into western New Mexico. One of my favorite towns anywhere is Silver City, which is located in southwestern New Mexico. Silver City has about 10,500 people and the population has hovered in the 10,000 range for quite some time.
The whole area in which Silver City resides was settled due to the opening of numerous mines and today mining still plays a significant part if the region's economy, but mining is not the dominant force it once was. The economy today is heavily based on tourism. There are ample recreational opportunities in this area ranging from hiking and camping in the nearby mountains, ancient Indian ruins, ghost towns and a fascinating state park that contains very weird, grotesque and otherworldy rock formations. In addition, Silver City is the home of
Western New Mexico University, which has about 3,500 students and it was established in 1893, when New Mexico was still a territory. It was founded as a teacher's college. The university occupies a prominent, hilltop location on the west side of Silver City. The university is a large source of employment in the area.
There are 12 towns located in close proximity to each other in this area, in the central part of Grant County. They are: Silver City, Santa Clara, Bayard, North Hurley, Hurley, Vanadium, Turnerville, Hanover, Arenas Valley, Little Walnut Village, Pinos Altos and Tyrone. Silver City is the biggest of these towns and the county seat of Grant County. In addition, there are several housing developments and rural, residential neighborhoods, which makes this a well settled area.
Monday, July 7, 2014
Carlsbad
Carlsbad is a pleasant little town, a veritable oasis in the desert. It is a tree studded town, but, of course, the majority of those trees were planted after the town was settled. The town was started by people who utilized irrigation water from the Pecos River and the town was initially called Eddy. The county that would later be created was also called Eddy and the town of Eddy
was named the county seat. After mineral springs were developed, the town became somewhat of a spa community. As a result, the residents of the town voted, in 1899, to change the town's name to Carlsbad because Karlsbad, Bohemia(now Karlovy Vary, Czech Republic), was a well known spa community at that time.
Eventually, potash and oil were discovered in the area and then, after those discoveries were made, the most famous discovery was made---the Carlsbad Caverns. At first they were just called "The Bat Caves," and they are located about 20 miles south of Carlsbad. The
Carlsbad Caverns will be the topic of another blog entry.
Meanwhile, back to Carlsbad itself. Even though it is currently experiencing a resurgence due to the ongoing oil boom, there are still signs of the prior difficult times the town had experienced. Before the oil boom started, the number of abandoned buildings in town was getting larger every time I went through the town. Of course, some of this is attributable to the decline of downtown business districts everywhere, a phenomenon that began shortly after World War II and accelerated in the 1950s with the "explosion" of suburban developments. That is when cities and towns everywhere began to grow outward and the downtown areas began to suffer as a result. However, many of these abandoned buildings, in Carlsbad, were not in the downtown area. But, be that as it may, the recent resurgence in Carlsbad is noticeable with the addition of new hotels, restaurants and other types of businesses. Most of the growth is on the southwest side of town, along National Parks Highway, the road to the caverns. This federal highway carries the dual designation of U.S. Highway 62&180. This highway provides access not only to Carlsbad Caverns National Park, but to
Guadalupe Mountains National Park, which is in Texas. Both parks are headquartered together in Carlsbad, on the south side of town.
Although Carlsbad has had its share of ups and down in regards to population, it was never in really bad shape like many other towns in this area are. It did not lose 50% to 60% of its population like some other nearby towns did. The nearby caverns may be the reason for this. That tourism industry, in addition to federal employment with two national parks being in the area plus a national forest (Lincoln National Forest), plus a federal courthouse and office building, provided federal government jobs for the town. Lincoln National Forest has a ranger station in Carlsbad for the Guadalupe Ranger District.
One thing that really sticks out in my mind about Carlsbad is the fact that traffic lights at a bunch of intersections have been taken down over the years. The first time I ever went through Carlsbad, in 1979, was when I was going to summer camp near Santa Fe. To the best of my knowledge, traffic lights at 14 intersections have been taken down in Carlsbad over the years. Some of these intersections are still extremely busy. I am not sure why, but that is one thing that always sticks in my mind about Carlsbad. If it was a dying city, I could understand this, but it is not a dying city. Of course, one intersection has received traffic lights in the past few years, that did not have them previously, two more intersections are about to receive them
(and they may be operational by now) and a few more intersections are being studied to determine of they need traffic lights.
was named the county seat. After mineral springs were developed, the town became somewhat of a spa community. As a result, the residents of the town voted, in 1899, to change the town's name to Carlsbad because Karlsbad, Bohemia(now Karlovy Vary, Czech Republic), was a well known spa community at that time.
Eventually, potash and oil were discovered in the area and then, after those discoveries were made, the most famous discovery was made---the Carlsbad Caverns. At first they were just called "The Bat Caves," and they are located about 20 miles south of Carlsbad. The
Carlsbad Caverns will be the topic of another blog entry.
Meanwhile, back to Carlsbad itself. Even though it is currently experiencing a resurgence due to the ongoing oil boom, there are still signs of the prior difficult times the town had experienced. Before the oil boom started, the number of abandoned buildings in town was getting larger every time I went through the town. Of course, some of this is attributable to the decline of downtown business districts everywhere, a phenomenon that began shortly after World War II and accelerated in the 1950s with the "explosion" of suburban developments. That is when cities and towns everywhere began to grow outward and the downtown areas began to suffer as a result. However, many of these abandoned buildings, in Carlsbad, were not in the downtown area. But, be that as it may, the recent resurgence in Carlsbad is noticeable with the addition of new hotels, restaurants and other types of businesses. Most of the growth is on the southwest side of town, along National Parks Highway, the road to the caverns. This federal highway carries the dual designation of U.S. Highway 62&180. This highway provides access not only to Carlsbad Caverns National Park, but to
Guadalupe Mountains National Park, which is in Texas. Both parks are headquartered together in Carlsbad, on the south side of town.
Although Carlsbad has had its share of ups and down in regards to population, it was never in really bad shape like many other towns in this area are. It did not lose 50% to 60% of its population like some other nearby towns did. The nearby caverns may be the reason for this. That tourism industry, in addition to federal employment with two national parks being in the area plus a national forest (Lincoln National Forest), plus a federal courthouse and office building, provided federal government jobs for the town. Lincoln National Forest has a ranger station in Carlsbad for the Guadalupe Ranger District.
One thing that really sticks out in my mind about Carlsbad is the fact that traffic lights at a bunch of intersections have been taken down over the years. The first time I ever went through Carlsbad, in 1979, was when I was going to summer camp near Santa Fe. To the best of my knowledge, traffic lights at 14 intersections have been taken down in Carlsbad over the years. Some of these intersections are still extremely busy. I am not sure why, but that is one thing that always sticks in my mind about Carlsbad. If it was a dying city, I could understand this, but it is not a dying city. Of course, one intersection has received traffic lights in the past few years, that did not have them previously, two more intersections are about to receive them
(and they may be operational by now) and a few more intersections are being studied to determine of they need traffic lights.
Tuesday, June 3, 2014
Oil, Potash and Caverns
In the southeastern part of New Mexico, thirty miles from the Texas border, lies the town of Carlsbad. Carlsbad is principally known for the nearby Carlsbad Caverns, but it is predominantly an oil town, its fortunes rising and falling with the oil industry. There are also quite a few potash mines in the area. Potash is a substance that is used in a variety of things, such as making glass, but it is mainly used in making soap. The word "potassium" is a derivative of "potash." Carlsbad's fortunes are currently on the rise due to the ongoing oil boom. Its population hovered around 24,000 to 25,000 for about 60 years, with the exception of the 1960s when it dropped to around 21,000. The population of Carlsbad is currently
about 29,000.
Carlsbad is a pleasant little town that is an oasis in the desert. There is a small lake in town, Lake Carlsbad, that is the result of a small dam that was built across the Pecos River. There are two more lakes north of town, Avalon and Brantley, that are also the result of dams, much bigger dams, across the Pecos River. The lake in town is basically just a deep and full river channel, resembling what the Pecos River must have looked like in the distant past. It takes a dam to get the river to fill up its channel in this parched corner of the Chihuahuan Desert.
When the Pecos River comes into Carlsbad from the north, it is just a dry channel, having been sucked dry by Avalon Dam upstream and also by the Pecos River Flume, which is considered to be an engineering marvel.
Carlsbad is one of the hottest places in New Mexico, which is typically a high elevation state.
I remember one time, in June of 1994, when I lived in Arizona, when I was on vacation and I met my family in Carlsbad and it was one of the most severe heat waves in a long time, with the high temperature in Carlsbad, over that stretch, averaging 118 degrees with the hottest temperature recorded being 121 degrees. The state record high temperature for New Mexico,
122 degrees, was recorded during that heat wave at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant,
southeast of Carlsbad.
Even with its somewhat lofty elevation, Carlsbad is still at an elevation of 3,111 feet above sea level. Even though this elevation is rather high, Carlsbad is one of the lowest towns in
New Mexico. In fact, the lowest point in New Mexico is south of Carlsbad at the Texas border at the point where Red Bluff Lake enters Texas. Red Bluff Lake was created by still another dam across the Pecos River. The elevation of the lowest point in New Mexico is 2,817 feet above sea level.
With this introduction, I will now write a series about Carlsbad and its county, Eddy County.
about 29,000.
Carlsbad is a pleasant little town that is an oasis in the desert. There is a small lake in town, Lake Carlsbad, that is the result of a small dam that was built across the Pecos River. There are two more lakes north of town, Avalon and Brantley, that are also the result of dams, much bigger dams, across the Pecos River. The lake in town is basically just a deep and full river channel, resembling what the Pecos River must have looked like in the distant past. It takes a dam to get the river to fill up its channel in this parched corner of the Chihuahuan Desert.
When the Pecos River comes into Carlsbad from the north, it is just a dry channel, having been sucked dry by Avalon Dam upstream and also by the Pecos River Flume, which is considered to be an engineering marvel.
Carlsbad is one of the hottest places in New Mexico, which is typically a high elevation state.
I remember one time, in June of 1994, when I lived in Arizona, when I was on vacation and I met my family in Carlsbad and it was one of the most severe heat waves in a long time, with the high temperature in Carlsbad, over that stretch, averaging 118 degrees with the hottest temperature recorded being 121 degrees. The state record high temperature for New Mexico,
122 degrees, was recorded during that heat wave at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant,
southeast of Carlsbad.
Even with its somewhat lofty elevation, Carlsbad is still at an elevation of 3,111 feet above sea level. Even though this elevation is rather high, Carlsbad is one of the lowest towns in
New Mexico. In fact, the lowest point in New Mexico is south of Carlsbad at the Texas border at the point where Red Bluff Lake enters Texas. Red Bluff Lake was created by still another dam across the Pecos River. The elevation of the lowest point in New Mexico is 2,817 feet above sea level.
With this introduction, I will now write a series about Carlsbad and its county, Eddy County.
Saturday, May 3, 2014
Border Twins
WOW! I cannot believe that I haven't written in this blog since February 23rd. Well, since I
am writing about the upper part of the Texas Panhandle in my other travel blog, I have decided to begin writing about an area on the western edge of the Texas Panhandle. Specifically, two "twin towns" that are only separated by a state border. Those towns are Farwell, Texas and Texico, New Mexico. Farwell is located on land that was formerly part of the XIT Ranch, that legendary, 3 million acre ranch that existed on the western edge of the Texas Panhandle in the late 1800s. In fact, Farwell is on the opposite end of the former ranch from Dalhart, which I have been writing about in my other travel blog. Farwell was named for two brothers who were part of the Capitol Syndicate, a group that received the land that would become the
XIT Ranch in exchange for building the state capitol in Austin. This deal was struck after the old capitol suffered a catastrophic fire in 1881.
The town on the New Mexico side of the border is Texico. The town's name is rather obvious, it is a combination of "Texas" and "New Mexico."
Farwell was platted as a townsite in 1905. I have not been able to find a founding date for Texico, but I believe it was established at about the same time. Most towns in this area were established in the first decade of the 1900s. Farwell was platted in 1905 at the point where two railroads entered New Mexico. One railroad ran southwest from Amarillo and the other one ran northwest from Lubbock. They meet just inside the state border, in Texas. The highways that were built in later years that parallel these two railroads, U.S. Highway 60 and
U.S. Highway 70, meet just inside New Mexico.
Farwell and Texico are roughly the same size, with Farwell being a tiny bit bigger. In the
2010 Census, Farwell had 1,363 people and Texico had 1,130 people.
am writing about the upper part of the Texas Panhandle in my other travel blog, I have decided to begin writing about an area on the western edge of the Texas Panhandle. Specifically, two "twin towns" that are only separated by a state border. Those towns are Farwell, Texas and Texico, New Mexico. Farwell is located on land that was formerly part of the XIT Ranch, that legendary, 3 million acre ranch that existed on the western edge of the Texas Panhandle in the late 1800s. In fact, Farwell is on the opposite end of the former ranch from Dalhart, which I have been writing about in my other travel blog. Farwell was named for two brothers who were part of the Capitol Syndicate, a group that received the land that would become the
XIT Ranch in exchange for building the state capitol in Austin. This deal was struck after the old capitol suffered a catastrophic fire in 1881.
The town on the New Mexico side of the border is Texico. The town's name is rather obvious, it is a combination of "Texas" and "New Mexico."
Farwell was platted as a townsite in 1905. I have not been able to find a founding date for Texico, but I believe it was established at about the same time. Most towns in this area were established in the first decade of the 1900s. Farwell was platted in 1905 at the point where two railroads entered New Mexico. One railroad ran southwest from Amarillo and the other one ran northwest from Lubbock. They meet just inside the state border, in Texas. The highways that were built in later years that parallel these two railroads, U.S. Highway 60 and
U.S. Highway 70, meet just inside New Mexico.
Farwell and Texico are roughly the same size, with Farwell being a tiny bit bigger. In the
2010 Census, Farwell had 1,363 people and Texico had 1,130 people.
Sunday, February 23, 2014
Idaho Revisited
Well, my posts keep bringing me back to Idaho. Idaho is a state that I have not visited very often, but I absolutely loved it when I did! Idaho, Arizona and New Mexico are my three favorite states. What is amazing about Idaho is how much of it is still untouched wilderness. There are huge chunks of the state that are still roadless to this day. This is especially true in the central part of the state and also in Owyhee County, which occupies the southwest corner of Idaho. But it holds true for the vast majority of the state.
I have not personally visited Idaho since 2008 and I am having "withdrawals." I now live farther away from Idaho than I did in the past, so getting there would be a little more difficult.
Idaho seems to have somewhat of an identity crisis. I don't mean that as a put down at all, but, in the past, whenever I would say "Idaho," people usually thought I was talking about Iowa or Ohio. Also, when people think of Idaho, they usually think of whitewater streams, dark, dense forests and mountain men. Well, that is true, but there is a lot more than that. The majority of southern Idaho is desert and a good sized chunk of northern Idaho is a lush grassland that is part of the Palouse Region. The Palouse Region lies mostly in Washington and also occupies the northeast corner of Oregon, but it extends into Idaho as well. There is also a lush grassland in southern Idaho, near the Utah border. In fact, this area is part of
Curlew National Grassland, a system of protected grasslands that were established after the horrendous Dust Bowl days of the 1930s. Most national grasslands are in the Midwest, in the Plains states, but there is one in Idaho and one in Oregon. These are the farthest west of the national grasslands. National Grasslands are administered by the U.S. Forest Service, under the direction of the Department of Agriculture.
In addition to Idaho's apparent identity crisis, it has recently been determined that the state's name is fictitious. It was believed that "Idaho" was a derivative of "eda how," which was supposedly a Shoshone Indian word that meant "sun shining on the mountains."
This has recently been determined to be false. Yet this claim appeared in text books until very recently. George Willing, an eccentric lobbyist in the 1860s, suggested the name "Idaho" when Congress was considering creating a new territory in this area. This name was initially rejected, but would not go away. The Colorado town of Idaho Springs took this name and later a steamship took the name "Idaho." Eventually a county was created called Idaho County. This name later was applied to the new territory. The county named Idaho got its name before the territory/state did. George Willing even admitted later that he made the name up, because he liked the sound of it, but this evidently escaped the notice of historians until very recently. And yet, there is a Comanche Indian word "idaahe" that means "enemy." Hmmmm could there be a connection there? People don't seem to think so, but there might be. Maybe George Willing just made up a word without realizing the similarity it had to a Comanche word?
Anyway, I am planning to write about Idaho for awhile.
I have not personally visited Idaho since 2008 and I am having "withdrawals." I now live farther away from Idaho than I did in the past, so getting there would be a little more difficult.
Idaho seems to have somewhat of an identity crisis. I don't mean that as a put down at all, but, in the past, whenever I would say "Idaho," people usually thought I was talking about Iowa or Ohio. Also, when people think of Idaho, they usually think of whitewater streams, dark, dense forests and mountain men. Well, that is true, but there is a lot more than that. The majority of southern Idaho is desert and a good sized chunk of northern Idaho is a lush grassland that is part of the Palouse Region. The Palouse Region lies mostly in Washington and also occupies the northeast corner of Oregon, but it extends into Idaho as well. There is also a lush grassland in southern Idaho, near the Utah border. In fact, this area is part of
Curlew National Grassland, a system of protected grasslands that were established after the horrendous Dust Bowl days of the 1930s. Most national grasslands are in the Midwest, in the Plains states, but there is one in Idaho and one in Oregon. These are the farthest west of the national grasslands. National Grasslands are administered by the U.S. Forest Service, under the direction of the Department of Agriculture.
In addition to Idaho's apparent identity crisis, it has recently been determined that the state's name is fictitious. It was believed that "Idaho" was a derivative of "eda how," which was supposedly a Shoshone Indian word that meant "sun shining on the mountains."
This has recently been determined to be false. Yet this claim appeared in text books until very recently. George Willing, an eccentric lobbyist in the 1860s, suggested the name "Idaho" when Congress was considering creating a new territory in this area. This name was initially rejected, but would not go away. The Colorado town of Idaho Springs took this name and later a steamship took the name "Idaho." Eventually a county was created called Idaho County. This name later was applied to the new territory. The county named Idaho got its name before the territory/state did. George Willing even admitted later that he made the name up, because he liked the sound of it, but this evidently escaped the notice of historians until very recently. And yet, there is a Comanche Indian word "idaahe" that means "enemy." Hmmmm could there be a connection there? People don't seem to think so, but there might be. Maybe George Willing just made up a word without realizing the similarity it had to a Comanche word?
Anyway, I am planning to write about Idaho for awhile.
Thursday, January 30, 2014
An Iconic Bridge
There are two attractions that come to mind when most people think of Yuma. One is the
Old Yuma Territorial Prison, which is now a state park, and the other is the Ocean to Ocean Highway Bridge. The Ocean to Ocean Highway Bridge was the first automobile bridge over the Colorado River. It opened to traffic in 1914. Since this bridge was the only river bridge over a huge area, it forced many people who were driving from east to west or west to east, to make a big detour to the Yuma area so they could cross the Colorado River safely on a bridge. At the time, the Colorado was a huge, wide, deep and cantankerous river that was very difficult to cross. That is no longer the case, since the river has been over allocated and over irrigated to provide water to a thirsty population in an arid climate.
Nevertheless, this is still an iconic bridge and is a marvel of early bridge building techniques.
The Ocean to Ocean Highway Bridge and the adjacent railroad bridge, were built where the Colorado River squeezes between bluffs on each side, at least it used to squeeze between bluffs.
The bridge is 444 feet long, but these days, the majority of that span is over a dry riverbed with just a narrow stream snaking through the historic river channel. The bridge opened to automobile traffic in 1914. It was completely rehabilitated in 1943, during World War II, as a "national necessity" because, at the time, a major federal highway went over the bridge, providing a crucial link between California and the rest of the nation. Over the years, this bridge was bypassed by a new U.S. Highway 80 bridge, farther west on North 4th Avenue and then it was replaced again by the towering, twin bridges of Interstate 8 a short distance away. The bridge was eventually closed to automobile traffic in 1988 and became a pedestrian-only bridge. I have heard conflicting stories about why the bridge was closed. I have been told that it was functionally obsolete since there were newer and wider bridges nearby, I was told that the physical condition of the bridge deteriorated to the point that it had to be closed due to safety concerns and I was also told that there was nothing structurally wrong with it, it was just too narrow to accommodate modern traffic. After all the bridge was only 16 feet, 9 inches wide, barely wide enough for two cars. In that era, bridges were typically narrow, but the standard width was 18 feet, so this bridge was narrower than most bridges of its day. It was impossible to two trucks, or buses, to pass each other on this extremely narrow bridge. Maybe all three scenarios played a part in the bridge's closing, that is my personal opinion. At any rate, the bridge was reopened to vehicular traffic in 2002 after an extensive rehabilitation. I remember reading about the rehabilitation project in the newspaper when it was still in the planning stages. The California side of the river is the Fort Yuma Indian Reservation and an Indian casino had already opened for business while the bridge was closed. The hotel/casino is just a short distance north of the bridge. The reopening of the bridge greatly facilitated traffic flow to and from the hotel/casino to Yuma and from the reservation, in general to Yuma. Although the bridge is carrying automobile traffic again, there is one major difference. It is open to only one direction of traffic at a time. Traffic goes down the middle of the bridge while both sides are used as pedestrian walkways. The direction of traffic flow is controlled by traffic lights on each end of the bridge. The traffic alternates between northbound and southbound, depending on who has the green light.
One iconic feature of this century old bridge is the fact that the words "OCEAN TO OCEAN BRIDGE, YUMA" are on the side of this iron truss bridge and the letters are lit up at night.
Old Yuma Territorial Prison, which is now a state park, and the other is the Ocean to Ocean Highway Bridge. The Ocean to Ocean Highway Bridge was the first automobile bridge over the Colorado River. It opened to traffic in 1914. Since this bridge was the only river bridge over a huge area, it forced many people who were driving from east to west or west to east, to make a big detour to the Yuma area so they could cross the Colorado River safely on a bridge. At the time, the Colorado was a huge, wide, deep and cantankerous river that was very difficult to cross. That is no longer the case, since the river has been over allocated and over irrigated to provide water to a thirsty population in an arid climate.
Nevertheless, this is still an iconic bridge and is a marvel of early bridge building techniques.
The Ocean to Ocean Highway Bridge and the adjacent railroad bridge, were built where the Colorado River squeezes between bluffs on each side, at least it used to squeeze between bluffs.
The bridge is 444 feet long, but these days, the majority of that span is over a dry riverbed with just a narrow stream snaking through the historic river channel. The bridge opened to automobile traffic in 1914. It was completely rehabilitated in 1943, during World War II, as a "national necessity" because, at the time, a major federal highway went over the bridge, providing a crucial link between California and the rest of the nation. Over the years, this bridge was bypassed by a new U.S. Highway 80 bridge, farther west on North 4th Avenue and then it was replaced again by the towering, twin bridges of Interstate 8 a short distance away. The bridge was eventually closed to automobile traffic in 1988 and became a pedestrian-only bridge. I have heard conflicting stories about why the bridge was closed. I have been told that it was functionally obsolete since there were newer and wider bridges nearby, I was told that the physical condition of the bridge deteriorated to the point that it had to be closed due to safety concerns and I was also told that there was nothing structurally wrong with it, it was just too narrow to accommodate modern traffic. After all the bridge was only 16 feet, 9 inches wide, barely wide enough for two cars. In that era, bridges were typically narrow, but the standard width was 18 feet, so this bridge was narrower than most bridges of its day. It was impossible to two trucks, or buses, to pass each other on this extremely narrow bridge. Maybe all three scenarios played a part in the bridge's closing, that is my personal opinion. At any rate, the bridge was reopened to vehicular traffic in 2002 after an extensive rehabilitation. I remember reading about the rehabilitation project in the newspaper when it was still in the planning stages. The California side of the river is the Fort Yuma Indian Reservation and an Indian casino had already opened for business while the bridge was closed. The hotel/casino is just a short distance north of the bridge. The reopening of the bridge greatly facilitated traffic flow to and from the hotel/casino to Yuma and from the reservation, in general to Yuma. Although the bridge is carrying automobile traffic again, there is one major difference. It is open to only one direction of traffic at a time. Traffic goes down the middle of the bridge while both sides are used as pedestrian walkways. The direction of traffic flow is controlled by traffic lights on each end of the bridge. The traffic alternates between northbound and southbound, depending on who has the green light.
One iconic feature of this century old bridge is the fact that the words "OCEAN TO OCEAN BRIDGE, YUMA" are on the side of this iron truss bridge and the letters are lit up at night.
Wednesday, January 8, 2014
Old Town Yuma
Yuma, Arizona is a city with more than 100,000 people, but its downtown area is very peaceful. If downtown is the only part of Yuma that a person saw, the person would most likely get the impression that Yuma is a very small town, but that is not the case. The only traffic lights in downtown Yuma are along the outer edges, 2 intersections on 4th Avenue, one intersection on
East Harold Giss Parkway and some on North Penitentiary Avenue and these traffic lights control traffic flow across a one way bridge. I will write about that bridge soon. It is one of the oldest automobile bridges in the western part of the United States. For the most part, traffic is very light in downtown Yuma and the streets are narrow. There are alot of adobe buildings. The entire town of Yuma was completely built out of adobe in the early years, but the adobe buildings would melt away during floods, since the town was located at the confluence of two rivers. The principal street of Yuma in the town's early years was Main Street. Main Street is still the heart of downtown Yuma, but is no longer the city's primary business street. In the early days of Yuma, Main Street was one of the widest streets in the United States. It was so wide that a team of horses pulling a buggy could turn completely around in the street. The street remained this wide through the early days of the automobile, but eventually, the growth in Yuma shifted away from downtown and, in 1969, a two block stretch of South Main Street was closed and turned into a pedestrian mall. It was thought at the time that eliminating vehicles from the street and allowing people to visit the stores without having to watch for traffic would revitalize the downtown area, but, as in most cases around the country, this pedestrian mall failed miserably.
The two block stretch of South Main Street between Second Street and Harold Giss Parkway was reopened to motorized traffic in 2002. I remember seeing South Main Street when it was a pedestrian mall. Most of the businesses had closed and the former street was lined with vacant storefronts. There were very few people walking around the area visiting the few businesses that were still open. Reopening the street to cars has brought the street back to life and nearly every business has reopened and people have returned to downtown Yuma. While the downtown area is coming back to life, it is still not as busy as other parts of the city. One look at Main Street in Yuma, either in person or on an aerial map, will reveal how wide the street once was. Today the street is lined with extremely wide sidewalks, grassy strips in front of the stores and large concrete boxes that are filled with desert plants or trees. In addition, there is angled parking on both sides of the street. Main Street has been reduced to a single lane of traffic each direction and that is all it needs, since the majority of the city has spread southward and westward from here.
East Harold Giss Parkway and some on North Penitentiary Avenue and these traffic lights control traffic flow across a one way bridge. I will write about that bridge soon. It is one of the oldest automobile bridges in the western part of the United States. For the most part, traffic is very light in downtown Yuma and the streets are narrow. There are alot of adobe buildings. The entire town of Yuma was completely built out of adobe in the early years, but the adobe buildings would melt away during floods, since the town was located at the confluence of two rivers. The principal street of Yuma in the town's early years was Main Street. Main Street is still the heart of downtown Yuma, but is no longer the city's primary business street. In the early days of Yuma, Main Street was one of the widest streets in the United States. It was so wide that a team of horses pulling a buggy could turn completely around in the street. The street remained this wide through the early days of the automobile, but eventually, the growth in Yuma shifted away from downtown and, in 1969, a two block stretch of South Main Street was closed and turned into a pedestrian mall. It was thought at the time that eliminating vehicles from the street and allowing people to visit the stores without having to watch for traffic would revitalize the downtown area, but, as in most cases around the country, this pedestrian mall failed miserably.
The two block stretch of South Main Street between Second Street and Harold Giss Parkway was reopened to motorized traffic in 2002. I remember seeing South Main Street when it was a pedestrian mall. Most of the businesses had closed and the former street was lined with vacant storefronts. There were very few people walking around the area visiting the few businesses that were still open. Reopening the street to cars has brought the street back to life and nearly every business has reopened and people have returned to downtown Yuma. While the downtown area is coming back to life, it is still not as busy as other parts of the city. One look at Main Street in Yuma, either in person or on an aerial map, will reveal how wide the street once was. Today the street is lined with extremely wide sidewalks, grassy strips in front of the stores and large concrete boxes that are filled with desert plants or trees. In addition, there is angled parking on both sides of the street. Main Street has been reduced to a single lane of traffic each direction and that is all it needs, since the majority of the city has spread southward and westward from here.
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