April Roadtrip, Day 10...Remembering Ham

 Day 10

Monday April 11

     Today was purposefully planned as a light day.  I picked up Hwy 70 East, eventually driving past White Sands National Park and into the town of Alamogordo. Like so many towns out west, this was a railroad town, established in 1898 when the El Paso and Northeastern Railroad built a line through the area.  The name comes from the Spanish term for large cottonwood, a reference to the cottonwood grove on the edge of town.

      Considering New Mexico’s contribution to the early days of NASA’s space program, it’s only fitting there would be a New Mexico Museum of Space History.  

    Before the United States sent a human into space, there were experiments with chimps.  Outside the museum, next to the flagpoles, is the gravesite of Ham, the first to be sent aloft.  He was launched on January 31, 1961for a flight that would last sixteen minutes and thirty-nine seconds.  

    Ham had been trained to perform some basic tasks, such as pulling a lever when a light started to flash.  During his brief flight, his vital signs were monitored, as well as his performance and reaction times.  

     The inside of the museum wouldn't be open for an hour.  Outside there were a few earlier rockets on display, like this one used to test the escape system on the upcoming Apollo missions.  

     On the north side of town, I picked up Hwy 82 east.  North of the highway are remnants of the rail line through Salado Canyon that was abandoned after World War II.  A section of it was repurposed into a Rail Trail.  

     Take the fork on the left and the trail leads a half mile down to a repurposed bridge from the Alamogordo and Sacramento Railroad, originally built in 1898.  

      Backtrack and take the right fork and it's a mile and a half to Bridal Veil Falls.  

    As for the falls themselves... Just remember, this is the dry season...

     The trails are back in the canyons behind the town of High Rolls.  It's allegedly a reference to the rolling hills surrounding the area.  I drove by a deli, but it wasn't open yet.  So, I wound up at a curious place called the Big Game Bistro Market.  Inside, it's your basic bar food, with a few extras.  The Elk burger...quite good.

     In the 1890's, the El Paso and Northeastern Railroad surveyed a possible line to the mining communities to the east.  The survey crews reported back.  Not only was there plenty of timber for the line, there would be plenty to harvest, too.   They also reported a spot they believed could draw tourists.  They chose the name Cloudcroft, meaning a city in the clouds.

     Trains travelled back and forth carrying ore, lumber and passengers.  The new resort had become a hit.  Cars eventually ended passenger service, and the last load of freight passed through in 1947.  

     There's a pullout on the highway overlooking Mexican Canyon.  Down below, one of the two railroad trestles servicing the area.

     A short drive further brings you to a municipal park and a replica of the old Cloudcroft passenger station.   When I arrived, the parking area was mostly empty.  The back end was blocked off by a work crew cleaning up a downed tree.  

    There are also a series of trails down into the canyon with some pretty nice views...

     This is all that's left of what they called the "S" Trestle...

     One thing I didn't expect... snow on the trail.

    Eventually, bringing me to the Mexican Canyon Trestle...

     When I arrived back at the parking lot, it was empty, except for my car and pick-up from the Parks Department.  Leaning against the truck was one guy, waiting for me.  They were supposed to have locked the gates to the lot while they were working.  Not wanting to lock me in, he stuck around until he could let me out and lock up behind us.  
     I kept driving east on Hwy 82 to the town of Artesia, known for their natural springs.  In hindsight, I cold have gone another hour further and saved some driving in the morning.  But, no complaints.  My home for the night was the Legacy Inn.  It looks like your ordinary motel, and for the most part, it is.  But, somehow I scored one of the two rooms with a terrace.  I went out for sunset, but with all the dust blowing around, it was mostly a yellow haze.