72 lines
4.3 KiB
Markdown
72 lines
4.3 KiB
Markdown
# Oases in the Desert
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Before writing this, I did not know what the plural form for the word "oasis"
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was. Apparently it's "oases", which I had never heard before in my life! It's
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hard for me to talk about Caballo Lake without also mentioning Elephant Butte
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Lake. The two are less than 20 miles apart, and are both dammed resevoirs fed
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by the iconic Rio Grande.
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There is a cansus-designated place in New Mexico called Caballo, which has a
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very small population. But they do have a post office! The name is shared also
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by the Caballo Mountains range and Caballo Lake. As a title for this album, it
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is used loosely to refer to that whole region.
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Caballo Lake State Park is a peaceful place. There are small gardens of cacti
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in various spots, with picnicking, fishing, and camping areas with spectacular
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views of the Caballo Mountains. In my time spent there, I saw a lot of families
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enjoying themselves, fishing, grilling, and chilling out. I was camping on a
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rocky shoreline of the lake, and a man was walking with his dog. His dog
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excitedly ran over to my campsite to greet me, and his owner followed and we
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chatted for a while.
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He was an interesting character, telling me stories of him being a
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self-described con artist. He likes to sit at intersections in the nearby town
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of Truth or Consequences, writing carefully phrased signs for panhandling. He
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pointed out to me that he takes great care not to lie. While he may be asking
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for money, he does not claim to be homeless or in danger, but he tries to
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appeal to folks who do help the homeless. One time, someone gave him money and
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said very sternly "this is for your dog, not for you.", and he said that he
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listened to that demand. He came back later and gave me a real wooden walking
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stick, colored like lapis lazuli. I still have the walking stick, though I
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never preferred using it over my trekking poles. It does look quite lovely
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though.
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I have enjoyed kayaking on the lake. One morning I brewed myself some tea on
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the shore and enjoyed it while slowly floating about. I spent a couple days
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camping in the same spot, and there was another family nearby on the lake
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shore. We never talked, but we were able to see what the other was doing at
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camp. They spent a lot of time fishing. After a couple days, I decided to pack
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all my backpacking gear onto my kayak so i could cross the lake and camp on the
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other side. I found a nice sandy alcove with cottonwood trees, bordered by some
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steep bluffs that led out to the desert at the base of the mountains. I enjoyed
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a night of solitude, slept in my tent, and returned to the park the next morning.
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When I got back, the family I was camping near at the park was concerned that I
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had went missing. They asked if I was okay, and if I hadn't showed up earlier,
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they would have asked the rangers to find me and see if I was alright. They
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didn't expect me to leave like that and thought i got lost or hurt! I told them
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I just wanted to camp on the other side, and they understood. They were very
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kind and I appreciated that.
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When I was hanging out by Truth or Consequences, I found some unpaved roads on
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my atlas that led to the east side of the Caballo Mountains, "behind" the lake.
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The roads traversed southward along the valley, and then had turnouts that went
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west towards the mountain range. I found a cool spot to hang out and do a
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little mountain biking. I didn't go all the way to the peaks, but the views
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were really nice anyways. You can see the distant Elephant Butte Lake, from a
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high vantage point that made it look quite small. Sadly I did not feel like
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taking a lot of pictures in this area, but I regret that and want to go back to
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do more photography, and then go to the peaks.
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The east side of these mountains are where you can find the Jornada del Muerto.
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It is a very dry, sometimes red-colored stretch of desert that challenged
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Spanish travelers with a waterless 90 mile stretch. Along the highway south of
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Engle, I found some access points where I walked the old trail and hiked up to
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[Point of Rocks](https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/new-mexico-point-of-rocks.htm).
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Here you can also find Spaceport America.
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The areas around Truth or Consequences and Caballo have turned into one of my
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favorite regions of New Mexico. I have spent a lot of time here enjoying the
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Chihuahuan Desert. I feel very welcome and comfortable there and will surely be
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back in the future.
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