Elephant Butte Lake Photo by Sherry Fletcher

Located on the southwestern shore of Elephant Butte Reservoir, Elephant Butte offers residents and visitors mild sunny winters, hot summers moderated by afternoon thunderstorms or lake breezes, and practically perfect weather in the spring and fall.

Elephant Butte State Park is the state’s largest park, with camping, boating, and fishing on the 43 mile long reservoir. Three marinas, numerous marine service and storage facilities along with restaurants, a golf course and lodging facilities serve the many folks who use the lake.

Special events and holidays rev up the tempo a bit, when up to 100,000 visitors venture in for the fun. Fireworks displays on Easter and Independence Day attract viewers from land and sea. Brightly lit boats provide a Parade of Lights between Christmas and New Year’s. The Balloon Regatta, a combination boat and balloon event, provides ballooning fun without a big city crowd. Numerous fishing tournaments, golf tournaments, sailing regattas, power boat and jet ski races provide competition along with recreation.

Beginning as a small retirement community, Elephant Butte is taking advantage of its lakeside attractions, and growing to meet the demand. Elephant Butte combines with its neighbor, Truth or Consequences, five miles away, to provide small town living with wide open opportunities.

Elephant Butte and nearby Truth of Consequences can be a destinations in themselves for those seeking a hot springs getaway or lake recreation, or they can serve as a base for area explorations. Many historic communities, including Williamsburg, Arrey, Derry, Winton/Chloride, Caballo, Cuchillo, Engle, Monticello/Placita, Las Palomas and Winston, add character to the varied Sierra County landscape. Hillsboro and Kingston are popular destinations about 32 miles west in the Black Range Mountains of the Gila National Forest. Fourteen miles south sits Caballo Lake State Park, and Percha Dam State Park is located on the Rio Grande river 20 miles south of T or C.

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Separate from the crowd. Exit Interstate 25 and find yourself on New Mexico’s own Highway One, a slower, quieter route. The road hugs the topography, its narrow, low bridges and sweeping ridgetop climbs reward those taking the alternate route from Elephant Butte to Socorro.

Running parallel to Interstate 25, this remnant of the paved road between Albuquerque and Las Cruces was built in the 1930s, and has a good driving surface. It charms travelers with beautiful vistas, a leisurely pace and a trace of the Camino Real, far from the Interstate’s noise and speed.

The journey begins on I-25 heading north from Truth or Consequences, at Red Rock Exit, #100, about 15 miles north of Elephant Butte. Exit the Interstate, and then turn left to cross the freeway. A rare view of Elephant Butte Reservoir opens to the south. Turn right, note the highway sign for Highway One, and begin this leisurely adventure.

Travelers are rewarded by little traffic and a slower pace to experience the land and wildlife. Occasionally golden eagles and deer are seen along this stretch of road.

The landscape was created by water. Huge watercourses flow from the western mountains east to the Rio Grande. Usually dry, they fill with water during the rainy season, washing away more dirt to the river. The deep arroyos and canyons are why those who journeyed on the Camino Real chose to go without water for three days on a flat route to the east, rather than descend and climb these steep canyons with oxen and wooden carretas (carts).

Here, you are ringed by mountains. The Fra Cristobal Mountains are to the east, across the lake. The San Mateo Mountains rise northward; the Black Range Mountains in the Gila National Forest are to the west, with the Caballo Mountains to the south. Each day brings a different palette of colors to the mountains, sky and land.

Past the Rest Area and the Santa Fe Diner and Truck Stop, a sign marking the turn-off to Ft. Craig rests in the shadow of an electronics tower. A short dirt road leads to the ruins of Ft. Craig, established in 1854. The fort’s mission was to protect settlers and caravans from raiding Apaches and Navajos. It became one of the largest forts to aid in settling the west, and the Civil War Battle of Valverde took place north of the fort. Its adobe ruins and foundations overlook the river and the abundant pasture necessary for the cavalry’s horses.

Back on NM One, a stone monument marks the turn off to San Marcial. The monument remembers the soldiers of the Texas Regiment, who fought the Union soldiers at Ft. Craig in the Battle of Valverde.

Two miles down the dirt road, the Rio Grande is closer; many trees and the very old community of San Marcial, invisible from the freeway, can be seen. The residents were originally squatters who moved in when the land grant owners retreated to El Paso after repeated Indian raids. The squatters somehow survived and were legally awarded their land in the early 1900s. Great floods in the 1920s and 1930s washed away much of the village and farmland, and there are only two homesites still visible. A stone torreon, used for protection from Indians, still greets travelers. A small gravesite is nearby, ringed with a white picket fence.

From Ft. Craig and San Marcial, a large mesa looms from across the river. It is the Mesa del Contadero, where the caravans of the Camino Real watered their herds after the deadly march without water across the Jornada del Muerto (Journey of Death). Atop the mesa, herdsmen counted their animals to see how many survived the journey. Ruins of sheep pens and temporary camps are found near the large black mesa that marked the end of the brutal march.

Driving Highway One again, the boundary to the Bosque del Apache, a world-renowned bird and wildlife refuge, approaches. A shallow pond contains upturned tumbleweeds looking like grass hummocks. Canada Geese and a few ducks swim in the lake. On the west side of Highway One, the Canyon Trail beckons hikers as part of the Bosque attractions. Rushes and ponds appear at the Bosque’s Visitor Center.

The Visitor Center offers hands-on activities to acquaint you with wildlife in the area. We’ve seen coyotes, foxes, turkeys, hawks, sandhill and whooping cranes as we circled the Loop Trail. Winter is the best time to see the thousands of birds that migrate here.

Traveling north, the Bosque Birdwatcher’s RV Park provides camping for bird-watchers and other travelers. Farms, ranches, old adobes with tin roofs and the railyard escort you into San Antonio. A beautiful Church sits on the west side of the highway and old family houses line the road.

The junction of Highway 360 and Highway One in San Antonio is a corner with a history. The Owl Bar and Café, famous for its green chile cheeseburgers, served the men who prepared the Trinity Site for the first test of the atomic bomb. Photos and articles decorate the walls. Across the street is the Galeria del Bosque, offering locally made pottery, paintings, wooden castles and jewelry. You’ll find books, cards and photographs of the region.

Rio Abajo Antiques, on the west side of Highway One, south of the junction, provides hours of treasure hunting. A Hopi ceremonial rattle, a children’s book featuring Roy Rogers, tin handmade electric lights rewired for someone’s remodeled adobe, branding irons, and swords are just a few of the links to the past offered here.

Still heading north, the little town of Luis Lopez strings along the road. Ranches and farms create an inhabited pastoral zone until you reach Socorro. The road crosses the freeway again, leading into town.

A glimpse of the history, wildlife, culture and beauty of Southern New Mexico is part of the journey on Highway One. Like clouds reflecting the sun’s colors, Highway One reflects the best Southern New Mexico has to offer.

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Jornada del Muerto signpost along Highway One between Elephant Butte and Socorro. Photo by Sherry Fletcher.

The roughest and deadliest part of the Camino Real, from Mexico City to Santa Fe, was the stretch between Las Cruces and Socorro called Jornada del Muerto or Journey of the Dead. A broad, flat valley with no water, grazing or firewood, it offered no amenities to travelers for 90 miles.

The river often changed its course and left quicksand in its wake. What had been a safe passage on an earlier trip might lead to suffocating quicksand or be completely washed away. Despite hardships, travelers made better time on the flat, dry valley.

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Desert gardeners face conditions that would wither any other gardener: less than 10 inches of rainfall annually; rocky or caliche (clay) soil with few nutrients; extremes of temperature and weather; oh, and a bit of wind.

However, Southern New Mexican gardeners reap benefits gardeners in the north pine for. Long growing seasons mean active gardening for nine to twelve months of the year. Semi-tropical plants survive in protected areas. An assortment of flowers, grasses, cacti, shrubs, vegetables and trees thrive in this environment, providing exciting design ideas for a desert garden.

Gardens and small farms of Southern New Mexico were historically located in river bottoms and small canyons. They were sheltered from the wind and extreme temperatures. Away from the river bottoms, growing traditional flowers and plants in the Chihuahuan zone is a colossal task. Raised beds, amended soil, shade, wind protection, animal protection, and lots of water are required for plants not adapted to severe desert conditions.

A soil test will save many headaches. Fill a brown bag with a pint of dirt, sampled from around your yard. Take it to your county agent, or call the New Mexico State University Cooperative Extension Service for instructions. The cost is about $12.50. The results will guide you in preparing your site.

Almost always, the soil will need nitrogen, but the results of a soil test will specify the exact amendments your landscape needs. If you have caliche, the cement that stops water 6 to 20 inches below the soil, you must physically break it up, or garden in raised beds..

A drip irrigation system produces the healthiest plants with the least water use because the water penetrates the soil slowly without compacting. Uncompacted soil has room for oxygen, necessary for good plant growth. Drip irrigation encourages plants to develop extensive root systems, flourishing on less water than conventional sprinkling.

Compost and mulch work with the drip system to help plants thrive. Compost is decomposed vegetable matter you can buy or make yourself (over time). Mixed in with the soil, it adds nutrients. In some areas of the Chihuahuan Desert, there is less than 1% organic matter in the soil. Compost acts like a sponge to keep nutrients in the soil and slowly release them to the plants’ roots.

Mulch is placed on the surface of the soil. Use whatever it takes to keep the moisture in and weeds out. Old newspapers laid in garden rows work as mulch, and the newspapers break down after a season, adding to the organic matter in the dirt. Wood chips, dry lawn clippings, old straw and pine needles all work to keep the dirt from drying out. Sawdust is not recommended because it removes nitrogen, an important nutrient.

Microclimates

Some desert gardens use microclimates to benefit the plants. North facing walls provide cool shaded areas. Roofs, sidewalks and streets create areas of high water runoff for collection. Cool air flows into valleys. Be aware of walls and paving which add heat and channel winds. The microclimate includes variables such as sunlight, temperature, exposure, humidity and wind. Big differences can be found in microclimates among neighboring houses.

Groves of small trees or shrubs provide wind control and create “outdoor rooms” for microclimates. Form a mini-oasis by grouping moisture-loving plants where they can absorb collected rainwater. Color influences microclimates, as dark rocks or walls retain heat, and white reflects it.

Cactus

Even cactus gardeners face a challenge in the Chihuahuan desert. Much colder than the famous Sonoran desert of Arizona and Northern Mexico, the higher altitude of the Chihuahuan desert creates problems for non-native cacti.

Mary Lou McCord brought 400 pots of cactus with her when she moved to eastern Sierra County from Tucson three years ago. An avid cactus collector, she found many of her plants didn’t survive the cold winter and strong, drying winds.

Mary Lou remarks, “Cacti love alkali soil, and they can be very adaptable. If conditions are right, cacti don’t require a lot of care.” Two Joshua Trees transplanted from Tucson are doing well in her extreme climate.

For those wanting to grow a cactus garden, Mary Lou advises to dig down three feet to prepare the bed, and take the soil away. Mix gravel and sand to achieve a well-drained medium. She threw in rocks and pot shards for substantial drainage. “Drainage is the key, no matter what,” Mary Lou explains. “If cactus get soggy, they rot. Real sandy soil needs more organic matter, such as peat moss or potting soil.”

She sculpted terraces and small mounds. Recently Mary Lou added some black lava rock, to give tender plants more warmth and heat.

Dave Lamb, co-owner of Buffalo Bill’s Exotic Cactus Ranch, recommends digging a gallon-sized hole in the ground to check for drainage. Fill it with water and check the time it takes to empty. Two to four hours is good drainage. If it takes longer to drain, add gravel, or coarse sand.

Plant a yucca in the hottest, driest, coldest, most unproductive spot in your area. “There are 15 to 17 different yucca varieties,” Dave continues. “The soap tree grows 10-15 feet tall, while the soap weed variety grows lower to the ground. Some yuccas grow 5 to 6 inches a year. Joshua trees and datil yucca are tall types that branch out and have a lot of character.”

Dave’s advice for transplanting a cactus: “Protect yourself.” Mark the north side of the cactus with chalk before digging up, and then orient it in the same direction when planting. Leave the cactus out of the ground for a week, out of direct sun to let cut or torn areas heal over before planting.

Use a rope, rolled up plastic garbage bag or towel to wrap around the cactus. Wrap the towel around the middle of the cactus, and lift the towel, positioning the cactus in its location. It might take two people, if it’s a large plant. “Experiences teaches you not to grab fast, you get too prickled,” Dave explains.

Vegetable gardens

Vegetable growing can be wonderful in this region, if the gardener ameliorates the harsh conditions. Hot weather crops, such as beans, tomatoes, corn and okra start early in February or March, blooming and setting fruit before the high summer heat. In August, it’s time to plant cool weather crops: lettuce, broccoli, spinach and carrots. A variety of food can be grown in a small area by paying attention to the two, possibly more, growing seasons.

Desert Design

Diminishing the harsh aspects of the desert is important in any desert garden. Wind, sun and glare rob plants of moisture. Designing a garden from scratch, or improving an existing one, requires planning and work before anything gets planted.

Adjust the contours of the land, adding raised berms and scraping arroyos or basins for water movement or collection. Observe traffic patterns for sidewalks or paths. Design a watering system and add nutrients to the soil. Decide how to mulch.

Orient a shady patio to minimize the heat and glare during the hot seasons. Be aware of the daily movement of the sun from east to west and seasonally from north to south when planning the shade structure. Group shrubs and trees together. Design an arroyo, or dry streambed, lined with gravel and river rocks, with plants alongside. A small fountain or trickle of water attracts birds, adds pleasant sounds and a little humidity. Plant native grasses or wildflowers to suggest a meadow.

Using native plants already adapted to the area increases success in desert gardening. Grasses, shrubs, trees and wildflowers are being used in innovative ways to create beautiful, hardy, water-wise and colorful landscapes.

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Elephant Butte Lake
at sunset
Photo by Sherry Fletcher.

“Hi, how’s the weather? It’s snowing? Oh, too bad. We just got back from the lake!”

That’s my usual telephone conversation with relatives from the north on winter weekends. In its quieter months, Elephant Butte Reservoir, New Mexico’s largest lake, offers solitude and clarity that summer users will never know. The bright, clear sun, the mirrored lake surface, the warm, still air, describe many days throughout the winter months.

Add an occasional fish-splash and lots of bird sightings. Winter at the lake features great blue herons, sandhill cranes, a returning osprey, seagulls, grebes, cormorants, and pelicans. Golden eagles live in McRae Canyon, feasting on fish when people go home. Lots of ducks and other waterfowl are startled to find anything on the water besides themselves.

And we are on the water. We pack a portable lunch to eat on the boat. Sometimes we have turkey and dressing and cranberries on the sailboat. No wind, so we motor to a secluded cove. Of course, all coves are secluded in December. On a high hill behind the cove, we watch a golden eagle perch on a cactus.

One winter Saturday we sailed a 14-foot day sailer. It didn’t have a cabin, so we made sandwiches and shoved off. We didn’t get far because there was little wind, but we floated, feeling the movement of the boat in the water, hearing the small water slaps echoing against the hull. Reclining in the boat, we were warmed by the sun, feeling protected from all troubles.

A canoe offers more intimate encounters with birds that frequent the lake in winter. Paddles quiet, we watch herons snoozing or fishing, sandhill cranes flying, screeching, overhead, or a stark black and white osprey roosting on a sailboat’s mast.

We’ve sailed on winter nights, telling the children the story of Orion and the bull. Taurus, the bull, was put into the sky to keep Orion the hunter from terrorizing the Seven Sisters. You can see their constellations in winter, first the Sisters (the Pleiades) rise in the eastern sky, then the bull (a large sharp triangle), then Orion, with his sword hanging from his belt. A classic winter story, best told with the visual aids twinkling in the sky.

Sometimes the lake is not so warm. Winds come blustering through the Narrows, whipping the water into whitecaps, swells and crashing waves. With the cold northern winds, our many layers of clothing are still not enough. Hot drinks from a thermos and a safe harbor provide a refuge for observing nature’s intensity.

Stormy or calm, the lake in winter offers beautiful panoramas, with Kettle Top and the eastern mesas in sharp relief. Sometimes it’s so blue and bright it hurts your eyes. With the sky blue and the lake blue, and the far-off mountains blue, the landscape needs a little brown dirt to separate the colors.

Sunsets come early, usually before we’re ready, pinking up the soft grey clouds before fading to dark.

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Truth or Consequences Photo courtesy TorC/Sierra County Chamber of Commerce

The “Jewel of the Rio Grande,” or Truth or Consequences, is bordered by the San Andres and Black Range Mountains on I-25 between Las Cruces and Albuquerque. It claims its fair share of snowbirds who flock there to enjoy mild winters, lakes and mountains, hot mineral springs, golfing, the El Camino Real Historic Trail, Geronimo Springs Museum and the Auto Museum.

T or C was chartered in 1916 as Hot Springs. In 1950, it became Truth or Consequences in response to Ralph Edwards’ request that a town in America take on the television game show’s namesake. Edwards still makes an appearance every May to celebrate the change.

At 4,260 feet above sea level, with a population of 7,500, T or C is the seat of Sierra County. It serves an agricultural and ranching community whose population is spread over 2,771,200 acres of land on 420 farms and ranches.

T or C and its nearyby neighbor, Elephant Butte, can be a destinations in themselves for those seeking a hot springs getaway or lake recreation, or they can serve as a base for area explorations. Many historic communities, including Williamsburg, Arrey, Derry, Winton/Chloride, Caballo, Cuchillo, Engle, Monticello/Placita, Las Palomas and Winston, add character to the varied Sierra County landscape. Hillsboro and Kingston are popular destinations about 32 miles west in the Black Range Mountains of the Gila National Forest. Fourteen miles south sits Caballo Lake State Park, and Percha Dam State Park is located on the Rio Grande river 20 miles south of T or C.

Other nearby area attractions include Cuchillo Museum and Saloon, Emory Pass Vista, Lake Valley Scenic By-Way, Engle Vineyards and the Mimbres Valley.

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Looking north to the mountains along the Royal Road

In January 1598, Don Juan de Oñate set forth with an expedition to colonize the lands of New Mexico. Eighty-three wagons carried munitions, supplies and food for 400 men, some soldiers, some colonists. One hundred families, eight priests and two lay brothers accompanied them. Seven thousand head of livestock, grapevine cuttings, seeds and tools were brought to help settlers survive and establish new homes.

Measuring four miles in length, the column of migrants headed north from Santa Barbara, near Mexico City. They traveled through the Chihuahuan Desert, reaching the Rio Grande four months later. Oñate called for a rest, thanksgiving and celebration of Easter. This first thanksgiving included a dramatic presentation and a formal speech by Oñate claiming all the lands watered by the Rio Grande for Spain and King Phillip.

The caravan slowly moved up the Rio Grande, encountering some natives who pointed out a trail. At Points of Rocks, north of Las Cruces, the caravan left the river and moved onto the waterless area now known as the Jornada del Muerto. This was in May 1598, usually a very hot and dry month. They marched straight north for three days and reached a place near the river on May 25. On May 27, they reached a "distinctive mesa of black rock," possibly near San Marcial.

Residents of the Indian Pueblo, Teipana, provided the strangers with food and succor. Oñate renamed the village Socorro , which means help. As the party moved up the river, the many pueblos encountered were claimed for Spain and the Catholic Church.

Oñate established his capital at San Gabriel, across the river from the current San Juan Pueblo, north of Espanola. Two years later, the capital moved to Santa Fe.

Oñate had established the Camino Real, the Royal Road, the only line of transport and communication between New Mexico and the rest of the world. The 1,800 mile route sometimes followed native paths, sometimes crossed new territory. Caravans after 1598 followed the same route, stopping at the same parajes, or camping places.

These caravans took six months to travel from Parral, Mexico to Santa Fe or Taos, six months to rest and restock for the trip south, and another six months to return. They brought trade goods, religious articles, government communications and new colonists. The return trip took blankets, extracts from mining and whatever New Mexicans could offer to the southern provinces of Spain’s colony.

Remains of an old wagon left on the Camino Real

The arrival of the Spanish created profound changes in the cultures of the natives and the newcomers. Horses introduced from Spain formed the basis for the Native American herds which altered the lives of the Plains Indians, and indeed most other Native tribes. Prior to Oñate’s expedition, horses had been extinct in the Americas. All of the Indian horses descended from those in caravans who ran off or were captured in raids by the native bands.

Thanks to the Camino Real, New Mexico has the oldest capital city in the United States. Our culture honors the original native ways, Spanish traditions and even some American ideas that arrived 200 years later.

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