Lava Beds, Petroglyphs and Dark Skies

Last month we ventured out for a short camping trip down to Las Cruces and back. It was still cold here so we wanted to head south where it was a bit warmer. At that time, the state was also just beginning to loosen pandemic restrictions in certain counties, and we were headed for places that actually had 25% indoor dining!

We stopped for lunch in San Antonio, just past Socorro, where we turned east on US 380. We ate outdoors at the patio of Buckhorn Tavern, well known for its green chile cheeseburgers. Celebrity chef Bobby Flay lost his Throwdown With Bobby Flay at the Buckhorn in 2009. With that nationwide exposure, the restaurant has seen its best business ever. We can now confirm that the burgers are both huge and delicious.

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When near the town of Carrizozo, we never miss an opportunity to stop at the Tularosa Basin Gallery of Photography. The largest and best photo gallery in the state, it always provides fresh inspiration. We were lucky this day to have owner Wayne Malkerson give us a private tour of the Carrizozo Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in the lower lever of the gallery, consisting of more than 200 pieces of memorabilia from the 60s through the 90s. And walking around Carrizozo is always fun. One never knows what one might find.

Next we headed to the Three Rivers Petroglyph Site where we hiked the basaltic ridge rising above the Tularosa Basin to see some of the 21,000+ petroglyphs that can be spotted here. The number and concentration of petroglyphs make this one of the largest and most interesting rock art sites in the Southwest. These petroglyphs (literally meaning rock carvings) include masks, wildlife, handprints, and geometric and abstract designs. They were made between 900 and 1400 AD by a group of prehistoric Native Americans that archeologists refer to as the Jornada Mogollon (pronounced “hawr-nah-duh” “mug-e-own”).

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We camped the first night at Valley of Fires campground, right on the edge of the Malpais Lava Flow. Approximately 5,000 years ago, nearby Little Black Peak erupted covering 125 square miles of the Tularosa Basin with molten rock up to 160 feet thick. The lava flow is considered to be one of the youngest flows in the U.S. Our campsite backed up to the nature trail across the lava beds.

We flew the drone over the immense lava field to get the 400 foot view. But NASA did us one better by providing the photo below showing the stark lava flow from 193 miles above.

The next day we headed south to Las Cruces, where the Organ Mountains overlook the city from the east. Rising more than 9,000 feet in elevation, they are so named because of the steep, needle-like spires that resemble the pipes of an organ. We drove through the beautiful area of rocky peaks and narrow canyons to the Dripping Springs Natural Area. After a quick trip into town for lunch and a visit to quaint Mesilla, we came back to the mountains to find ourselves a good spot to boondock for the night.

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With no neighbors anywhere near us, we enjoyed some solitude and a classic, clear New Mexico sunset. We vowed to come back here during flower season to catch some blooms and milky way skies later in the season.

Our route was a loop that brought us back towards Socorro, passing through the Gila National Forest on the western side of the state (see map below).

Along the way, we discovered City of Rocks State Park about halfway between Deming and Silver City. This park allows you to camp right up next to the huge volcanic rock formations. For sure we will make this a destination for some summer camping. The visitor center and the Star Observatory (the park rests beneath some of the darkest night skies in the country) were closed because of Coronavirus. But we did enjoy the park’s desert botanical gardens.

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It was a real treat to actually eat in a restaurant for the first time in several months. We had lunch at the Little Toad Creek Brewery & Distillery in Silver City, and while it wasn’t the very best food we’ve ever eaten, it just felt so good to be inside a restaurant (the Albuquerque area has since opened to 33% capacity indoors again).

Needing a place to camp for one last night, we decided on the Cosmic Campground in the Gila National Forest about 60 miles north of Silver City. Designated an International Dark Sky Sanctuary, it is the first such sanctuary located on National Forest System lands and also in North America (it is one of only 14 certified IDA Sanctuaries in the world). As you can guess, the site has one of the darkest natural night skies on earth. Just after sunset, clouds rolled in, and we weren’t sure we’d see the stars at all.

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But we got up at 3:00 am to a sky of incredible stars. It was a little hard to actually find recognizable constellations because there were so many smaller stars that aren’t normally visible (although Orion is clearly visible in the photo below). We want to go back this summer when the Milky Way is in prime position to really take in the experience.

We headed home the next day, very happy to have gotten a little break from the pandemic monotony for even a few days.