photoman
Explorer
Each and every year I take my son on a road trip during his spring break. Past years have included Utah & Northern AZ, six days in San Diego, NW New Mexico, and the Pacific Northwest. For 2011 we decided to return to New Mexico and hit several sites in the Western and Southern parts of the state.
Our original plans of spending two days in the Imperial Sand Dunes was canceled when my brother-in-law called and informed me his rail was broke and they were staying home. I did some more research and developed a new itinerary for our six day adventure.
Day 1-
We departed our home shortly after 7am on Saturday morning, an unusually late start for us, and made our way South of Tucson AZ to the Titan Missile Museum. The site, built in 1963, was an active Air Force missile site with an active 103 foot tall missile with a 9 Megaton W53 warhead up until 1982 when it was deactivated by President Ronald Reagan. The silo is underground with eight levels and underground passageways and walls as thick as eight feet.
1. Looking down at the missile from an observation deck
After doing the hour long tour which included visiting the control center and walking through the underground passageways we grabbed a quick lunch before heading to New Mexico.
My son wanted to stop at all the road side attractions for moccasins, rocks, and fireworks. I finally agreed to a stop to visit 'The Thing'. We paid the $1 admittance and walked through three buildings containing old cars, equipment, and wood sculptures before standing directly over 'The Thing'. We grabbed a few drinks and told my son we are not buying fireworks because we cant use them where we are going and he already as a bunch at home.
Our journey continued to Silver City NM and then on to Mogollon NM. Mogollon NM was developed in the late 1800's in large part to successful mining of Gold and Silver. Several large buildings remain in good condition and are open for tourists during the warmer months. On our trip we happened to meet one of the locals which gave us some information on the town and the mines. He pointed to a large white rock and informed us there was about 20 ounces of silver in that rock if you knew how to extract it. The boy of course wanted to load that rock in the car and bring it home with us.
2. Mogollon, New Mexico
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We headed back down into Glenwood NM looking for a place to eat. Of the two establishments in town one was still open. Over dinner i asked the locals about another near-bye attraction I was hoping to shoot during the super moon. My initial questions included how far is the hike, how difficult, and then moved on to my thoughts of shooting at night. The locals immediately informed me that was a very bad idea. They explained the area has a very high population of mountain lion, bobcat, and to top it off several foxes had recently tested positive for rabies. I decided hiking the narrow canyon at night with my son was indeed a bad idea. We drove out to the canyon and settled into the front seats of the car for a restless, cold, and windy night.
Day 2
The super moon was indeed super bright which made it difficult to sleep and frustrating because I know the moon shots in the canyon would have been great. As day broke we strapped on the hiking boots and hit the trail in the canyon to our intended destination The Catwalk. The Catwalk is a trail that follows a water pipeline built in the 1890's to carry water to the town of Graham, NM.
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6. One of the waterfalls along The Catwalk trail
Video of the falls:
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8.
The young protege working a few images (click for video)
Our original plans of spending two days in the Imperial Sand Dunes was canceled when my brother-in-law called and informed me his rail was broke and they were staying home. I did some more research and developed a new itinerary for our six day adventure.
Day 1-
We departed our home shortly after 7am on Saturday morning, an unusually late start for us, and made our way South of Tucson AZ to the Titan Missile Museum. The site, built in 1963, was an active Air Force missile site with an active 103 foot tall missile with a 9 Megaton W53 warhead up until 1982 when it was deactivated by President Ronald Reagan. The silo is underground with eight levels and underground passageways and walls as thick as eight feet.
1. Looking down at the missile from an observation deck
After doing the hour long tour which included visiting the control center and walking through the underground passageways we grabbed a quick lunch before heading to New Mexico.
My son wanted to stop at all the road side attractions for moccasins, rocks, and fireworks. I finally agreed to a stop to visit 'The Thing'. We paid the $1 admittance and walked through three buildings containing old cars, equipment, and wood sculptures before standing directly over 'The Thing'. We grabbed a few drinks and told my son we are not buying fireworks because we cant use them where we are going and he already as a bunch at home.
Our journey continued to Silver City NM and then on to Mogollon NM. Mogollon NM was developed in the late 1800's in large part to successful mining of Gold and Silver. Several large buildings remain in good condition and are open for tourists during the warmer months. On our trip we happened to meet one of the locals which gave us some information on the town and the mines. He pointed to a large white rock and informed us there was about 20 ounces of silver in that rock if you knew how to extract it. The boy of course wanted to load that rock in the car and bring it home with us.
2. Mogollon, New Mexico
3.
4.
We headed back down into Glenwood NM looking for a place to eat. Of the two establishments in town one was still open. Over dinner i asked the locals about another near-bye attraction I was hoping to shoot during the super moon. My initial questions included how far is the hike, how difficult, and then moved on to my thoughts of shooting at night. The locals immediately informed me that was a very bad idea. They explained the area has a very high population of mountain lion, bobcat, and to top it off several foxes had recently tested positive for rabies. I decided hiking the narrow canyon at night with my son was indeed a bad idea. We drove out to the canyon and settled into the front seats of the car for a restless, cold, and windy night.
Day 2
The super moon was indeed super bright which made it difficult to sleep and frustrating because I know the moon shots in the canyon would have been great. As day broke we strapped on the hiking boots and hit the trail in the canyon to our intended destination The Catwalk. The Catwalk is a trail that follows a water pipeline built in the 1890's to carry water to the town of Graham, NM.
5.
6. One of the waterfalls along The Catwalk trail
Video of the falls:
7.
8.
The young protege working a few images (click for video)