Silver City Play Day

My time is coming to an end in Silver City. I am so ready to be back home with my wife. I will say that the OT I have racked up will be nice though it is already spent. We have had all kinds of weather since I have been here. I think there has only been one day without lightning. There have probably been about 20 starts, but only a few have gotten bigger than an acre. It has been just busy enough that I am not way stressed and not bored out of my mind.

I got to go out yesterday and do a "Forest Familiarization Tour". I would have liked to do more but I have been working nights and had already worked for 1:00 a.m. and didn't leave tell 8:00 on my tour. I did try to get as much in as I could in six hours.

I started my trip driving through the town of Pinos Altos. It is an old mining town just a few miles out of Silver City. Here is a link if you are interested in more of the history of this neat little town. http://www.southernnewmexico.com/Articles/Southwest/Grant/PinosAltosthenandnow.html

I continued down the windy narrow road through towering Ponderosa Pine trees. I saw about a dozen mule deer. Nothing big but it was nice to see some critters. I also happened upon two separate sightings of road runners, but no coyotes. Some other wildlife found on the Gila include wolves, elk, bear, cougar, mule deer, and couse deer.

I finally made it to the Gila Cliff Dwellings inhabited by the Mogollon (Muggy-own) Indians. Mogollon Indian farmers built these cliff dwellings between 1270 and 1290 A.D., using them for no more than 40 years before abandoning them. The ruins lie in natural cave-like recesses that are at least 150 feet above the canyon floor. They bear a marked resemblance to the Mesa Verde ruins of the Anasazi Indians, who enjoyed widespread influence. I found it interesting that the dwellings were so well hidden from below. It was a nice mile round trip hike. I am glad I got there before the 95 degree temperatures did. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gila_Cliff_Dwellings_National_Monument

Just down the road from the Cliff Dwellings were some Pictographs. I really couldn't find much history on them as far as any meaning. They were pretty neat. I did learn that they used the husks of the yucca plants as paint brushes to paint on the walls.

I ended my trip at the Santa Rita Mine. A large open pit copper mine in Santa Rita, in southwestern New Mexico, connected to a smelter seven miles south in Hurley. Together these facilities employ about 1,200 people, when operating. The Santa Rita Mine is one of the oldest continuously operating mine in the West. It has been operated by the Chino Mines Company, Phelps Dodge, and Kennecott. A natural landform called the Kneeling Nun, a hillside said to resemble a kneeling nun in profile, looms above the open pit. The town of Santa Rita was moved to make way for the mine.

I will be leaving out of El Paso Monday morning.