Our Trip to the Sacramento Mountains
 

We recently returned from a very nice camping trip into the Sacramento Mountains of New Mexico (elevation 9,000 ft), near the little town of Cloudcroft, and I thought I'd share some pictures.

The first is our campsite. Very nicely set up and easy to back into. This was at Silver campground, which was one of the few that had not closed for the winter. Daytime highs were in the low 70s and the nighttime lows were in the high 40s. We had a thunderstorm one night, otherwise, the weather was perfect.

The second is at White Sands National Monument, which is a short drive down into the Tularosa Valley just west of Alamogordo. The "sand" is really gypsum, and the wind grinds it very fine, almost like talcum powder. It's actually easier to walk on than real "sand".

We did a lot of hiking while we were there and in the third picture Janet is standing in front of the Salado Canyon trestle, which is one of many the old train used to cross on the way up to Cloudcroft. This trestle has been restored and is part of the trail we were on. We're pretty low here, about 7,000 ft, and had to drive down the mountain to the trail head. But, the drive was short, only about 10 miles.

On the way back to camp, we stopped at an apple orchard and picked some apples and then at a store on the way we bought some excellent homemade fudge.

There's three more in the next post, if you can stand it.

- Jack

Nice! I camp just East of Cloudcroft in Mayhill, which was hit by fires this past year. I love that I can drive two and a half hours and be out of the desert and into the mountains. Silver Lake, which is between Cloudcroft and Riudoso is another one of my favorites.

Our Trip to the Sacramento Mountains, Part 2
 

Well, my computer just had a momentary glitch and I lost this post just as I was about to upload it. So, here goes again. :mad:

The first picture is looking down Mexican Canyon, which you drive up to get to Cloudcroft. We're on the Osha Trail here, which is a nice loop trail about 2.5 miles long mostly through the woods. But, in this view, the "white area" you see in the distance is White Sands in the Tularosa Valley. The missile range occupies a great deal of that valley too.

The next picture is of the Mexican Canyon trestle which is just about a mile below Cloudcroft and was the largest of the many trestles the train crossed on its way up the mountain. It's six stories high at the highest point. According to the information posted on a sign there, the trestle "swayed" when the train crossed it, which must have given the passengers a bit of a thrill. This trestle is not "restored", and you can be fined $500 and put in jail for 30 days if you're caught on it. Spoilsports! :( We're on a trail here that was part of the old railroad bed.

Finally, if you want to stay someplace "civilized", you can stay at the Lodge at Cloudcroft. You can climb up into the tower, which we did, and there you find Clark Gable and Judy Garland's names carved into the woodwork by them when they stayed there. (If you don't know who Clark Gable and Judy Garland are, you're too young - go ask your parents!) :p

As we were leaving, on the way down Highway 82 last Friday (Sep 23), we passed another Hi-Lo going up! Was it anyone on this forum? If so, we tooted our horn at you! :D

- Jack

That DOES look like a nice campground!

Mary Kay

The pics are incredable !!!! The forest and desert are exciting to explore. Thanks for posting them. It gives us even more incentive to camp. I plan on camping in that state in the future. Next week we will take our 1908T to Amarillo Tx for Thanksgiving.

The camper is in the shop to fix the furnace. They found a critter that had been incenerated probably by the previous owners. They sent away for gaskets to complete the repair.

Ray

pictures
 

Jack & Janet,

Enjoyed the photos very much. :p We are currently in Rockport, TX for a three week stay. I will try and post some pictures tomorrow.

Jerry Curtis
2406 T 2000 F250 4x4