Elk!

A young man ahead of me swerved to avoid an elk, but went off the road and took a tumble. Thankfully, he survived without injury. I had to drive several miles down the road to get sufficient signal to call police. Eventually an Apache officer and a State Trooper showed up.

Domestic Trash

Dang! I have to limit myself to dumping imported trash.

Sliver of Sunlight

I completely lost the Sun but then found it again after driving over a couple mountains. There's a sliver of sunlight ahead. 

Memorial

Chasing the Sun

Tularosa: Valley of Fires

If you slow down and look, you might notice pleny of evidence of past volcanic lava flow through Tularosa Valley.

After Burn

A 2012 fire claimed 44,340 acres and 242 homes from this now-sparsely-populated ponderosa pine forest.

Old Dolin Mill

The Old Mill iis the reason why the town of Ruidoso formed. The mill was built after the civil war as a sawmill. Ruidoso was a prime location because it was close to Fort Stanton and had both forest (for lumber) and water (for power). After struggling to make the property financially viable as a gift shop or museum, the owners now make it available as an event venue. It would be sad to see this piece of history fade away. If in Ruidoso, stop by and give the old mill your support.

Tap Room

Sometimes good beer and good food demand pausing a roadtrip. The Sierra Blanca and Rio Grande (the breweries merged) Tap Room in Ruidoso serves some of New Mexico's best craft beer with great food and friendly service. I had to try several, and bought a couple cases of beer to take home.

Sometimes a great beer sampling opportunity requires pausing a road trip even longer as one must wait around or explore on foot to sober up before continuing the journey. I have test tools for that. :)

Can you hear me now?