New Mexico Museum of Space History, Alamogordo, New Mexico

A visit to Alamogordo, New Mexico, is not complete without a visit to the New Mexico Museum of Space History. You might ask why locate such a museum in Almogordo, New Mexico. But what state is more associated with space age activities than New Mexico? Think of Los Alamos, Trinity Site, Roswell, and all the other places around the state associated with the space age.

The museum complex sits on a slope of the Sacremento Mountains. The tall building in the center is the main museum, and the building with the torquise top is the Imax Theater.

The museum is actually a complex on the western slopes of the Sacremento Mountains on the eastern edge of Alamogordo. Views in all directions are really impressive. The main building is the place to start your tour. Just outside the main building is the John P. Stapp Air and Space Park, which displays larger exhibits. Inside the main building is the Museum of Space History and the International Space Hall of Fame. The Museum of Space History contains exhibits such as Robert Goddard's early rocket experiments near Roswell. The International Space Hall of Fame honors those men and women who have been instrumental in our attempts to conquer space.

The John P. Stapp Air Park sits just outside the main building. It contains larger exhibits.



This is Little Joe 2. It was used to test the Apollo launch escape system.

This is the Vengeance Weapon 2, the world's first long-range ballistic missile. The "V-2" was used by Germany near the end of World War II as a weapon of terror against Allied targets. After the war, German scientists helped the US military develop this technology. This particular exhibit was used in testing in nearby White Sands and was recovered from there.

The main museum is a 4 story building. I enjoyed its uniqueness. After paying our admission fee, we were directed to use the elevator to go up to the 4th floor to begin the tour. When the elevator opened, we were delighted to see that it looked like a control center, complete with sound effects. At the top floor, you pass through numerous smaller exhibits. Once you finish viewing all the exhibits on a floor, you take a ramp down to the next level and the next set of exhibits.

This is actually the inside of the elevator.

This moon rock was collected by Apollo 17 Astronaut Harrison Schmitt. Technically, it is mare basalt. It is believed to be 3.7 billion years old. 

This is a space suttle simulator. You can sit at the controls and, by using the throttle and the monitors, attempt to land the space shuttle. I failed miserably and crashed the space shuttle. Security escorted me out. They told me I was better suited to use the exhibit pictured below.

Skylab toilet

Down the hill from the main museum is the Imax Theater. At the time of our visit, the theater was showing 3 movies: Sea Monsters: A Prehistoric Adventure, Digital Star Show, and Tornado Alley. We opted for Tornado Alley, and I really enjoyed this informational film, especially since our home is not that far from Tornado Alley. It followed the attempts of two separate teams to chase down developing tornadoes to collect data and footage.

Overall, the museum is a good way to spend half a day or so. It is a one-of-a-kind museum, and it has some unique items.

Heart of the Desert Pistachio Farm, Alamogordo, New Mexico

When in Yuma, Arizona, you visit a date farm; when in Alamogordo, New Mexico, you visit a pistachio farm. And that's exactly what we did. I don't know how many pistachio farms there are in the Alamogordo area, but there were 2 within half a mile of our RV park. We decided to visit only one, Heart of the Desert. It was interesting.

Visitor Center and Gift Shop

One of the things that attracted us to Heart of the Desert is that they offered a free tour of their farm. I like free. Heart of the Desert claims to be both the oldest and the largest pistachio farm in New Mexico. The climate around Alamogordo is similar to that in Iraan, where pistachios have been grown for centuries.

Our tour began in the Visitor Center, where we watched a short video about the farm. A tour guide then gave us a brief introduction before leading us outside to view the actual trees. There is roughly 1 male tree for every 10 trees. The males are generally a bit taller and a bit wider than the females. The season runs from early spring to early fall. During our trip, the trees were leafless, as they are decidious.

Part of the large orchard. The tree in center is male; it is taller. It gets to pollinate all those beautiful females around it. Lucky tree.

We next donned hairnets and toured the building where the pistachios are sorted. Machines do most of the original sorting by size before being passed on to real humans to finish up. Next stop was the building where the nuts are roasted. Next step is packaging the nuts, and then they are stored in a refrigerated area.

Employees sorting nuts by hand. Our tour guide is on the left.

This large machine sorts nuts by size.

Roasting oven

The Visitor Center is also a gift shop, and you can, of course, purchase various pistachio related items. Heart of the Desert also produces wine, and you can pick up a bottle or two of good wine. There are numerous pistachio products. Some are simply roasted, while some are spiced. I opted for a 1 lb bag of unsalted and roasted pistachios. I sampled the chocolate pistachio bark products, and they were also delicious.

Road goes down the center of the orchard. The San Andres Mountains are in the western background, and if you look carefully, you can see the line of white gypsum sand from White Sands National Monument at the base of the mountains.

One of the things about traveling, especially in retirement, is you have time to visit places like this and learn something. This was a good outing, and one we really enjoyed.

White Sands National Monument

We arrived in Alamogordo, New Mexico, 2 days ago, on Thursday. First on our list of places to visit  was the White Sands National Monument, located about 15 miles to the southwest. The white sands of this area are formed from gypsum sand, and the monument covers a large part of the Tularosa Basin, a valley ringed by the San Andres Mountains to the west and the Sacremento Mountains to the east. The entire area of the white sand dunes encompasses an area of 275 square miles making it the largest gypsum dune field in the world.

Satellite view of White Sands.

We started our visit by stopping at the Visitor Center, located on US 54/70. The Visitor Center has a gift shop as well as a short film on the area and a few small exhibits.

Visitor Center

Exhibit in the Visitor Center

From the Visitor Center, we drove into the dunes on Dunes Drive, an 8 mile road. The first half of the road is paved. For the first 2 miles or so, the dunes are not really visible. Slowly, the white sands begin to appear, intermixed with the native vegetation. Technically, the first section of the road is labeled a safety corridor, and no stopping is allowed. However, near the halfway mark, the Interdune Boardwalk appears. This is a good opportunity to walk out a few hundred feet on a secure boardwalk, with numerous information plaques.

Interdune Boardwalk

Just beyond the Interdune Boardwalk, the pavement ends. The remainder of the road is packed sand, ending in a loop with several day use areas. In these areas, you can wander the dunes, slide down them on sleds (which you can rent from the Visitor Center), and even hike.

Is it snow, or is it white sand?

The first 4 or so miles of Dunes Drive are paved, but the last 4, including the loop, are packed sand that is graded regularly. This really looks like snow.

The San Andres Mountains form the western backdrop for White Sands.

The Sacremento Mountains are in the east.

Alkali Flat Trailhead. Can you see the trail?

White Sands National Monument is a strange environment. It is a living land with a variety of plants and animals. Children love playing in the sand. But you have to put up with the sand, because it gets everywhere.

Tombstone, Arizona

Tombstone, Arizona, is one of the best known of the wild towns of the Old West. It has long been on my bucket list, so during our stay at Kartchner Caverns State Park, we moseyed on over to take a look.

Tombstone is located in the southeastern portion of Arizona, not that far north of the border we share with Mexico. Today, it is a rather small town with about 1,300 citizens, but when it was founded in the late 1870s, it became an overnight boom town because of rich silver deposits. People poured in to this desert town and its population soon swelled to well more than 10,000. As with all booms, the bad comes with the good, and Tombstone soon developed a reputation as a rough and tumble town, offering at one time more than 100 saloons, numerous gambling parlors, and more than its share of brothels. But it also offered some good things, such as schools, churches, banks, newspapers, and even an ice cream parlor. But booms don't last forever, and Tombstone's boom died about a decade after its birth. By 1910, there were fewer than 1,000 people in the town. Today, it relies on tourism as its main source of revenue.

East Allen Street. 2 or 3 blocks of this street are blocked to vehicular traffic, making it safe for pedestrians. Most of the interesting shops of the town are located here. The OK Corral is near the end of this street on the right.

What really put Tombstone on the history map is the legendary "Gunfight at the OK Corral," which really did not happen at the OK Corral but rather in a vacant lot next to the OK Corral. But "Gunfight at the Vacant Lot Next to the OK Corral" just doesn't have that ring, does it? The fight was only a 30 second affair with about 30 shots fired, but it has gone down as the most famous gunfight in the Old West. Personally, I can think of some other gunfights I consider more interesting, such as the fight between US marshalls and the Bill Doolin/Bill Dalton gang at Ingalls, Oklahoma. The gunfight at Coffeyville, Kansas, when 4 Daltons and several townspeople were killed is another interesting fight. The fight involving the 3 Earp brothers and their friend, Doc Holliday, pitted against the Clantons and McLaurys in Tombstone has somehow captured the public's imagination more. Today, the gunfight is reenacted for tourists several times each day, but Donna and I passed up the chance to spend lots of money for a 30 second show. For my money, the gunfight as depicted in Tombstone starring Kurt Russell and Val Kilmer would be hard to top.

The OK Corrall. The gunfight actually happened in a vacant lot behind this building.

There are lots of shops in town, especially along East Allen Street, and all of them are willing to take your money. Various tours are available, including underground tours and ghost tours. You can ride a stagecoach on a guided tour of Tombstone. Whatever your interest might be, you can find something in Tombstone. We are notorious cheapskates and declined almost all activities. We did, however, tour the Tombstone Courthouse State Park. The old courthouse contains numerous exhibits that cover the history of the town. The courtroom on the second floor was the scene of many trials, some including the Earps and Clantons.

Tombstone Courthouse Museum

The gallows behind the courthouse.

Stagecoach tour coming down East Allen Street. Now, I'm not a horse expert, but those look like Clydesdales to me. I've never heard of Old West stagecoaches being pulled by this breed.

We also visited the Boothill Graveyard on the northwest side of town. I enjoyed this. You can wander the graveyard, free of charge. The number of graves there resulting from violence is a bit disturbing, but it does reflect the nature of Tombstone in those days. I was especially drawn to the graves of Billy Clanton and the McLaury brothers who were killed by the Earps and Doc Holliday at the infamous gunfight. They rest together near the fence next to the parking lot. The Boothill Graveyard site provides information on all the known graves, and the words on the tombstones often make interesting reading.

Boothill Cemetery, with its graves dug from the rocky terrain.

Some of the graves have humorous markers, such as this one, which reads, "Here Lies George Johnson Hanged by Mistake 1882. He was right, we was wrong, But we strung him up, and now he's gone."

Graves of Billy Clanton, Frank McLaury, and Tom McLaury, killed by the Earps and Doc Holliday in the infamous gunfight. Billy Clanton's father lies to his right in another grave.

I've seen Tombstone now. I don't need to go back. But for the western enthusiast, you need to walk the streets of this old town at least once; you need to get the lay of the land, so to speak, to see the hills surrounding the town.

Hike Report: Foothills Loop Trail, Kartchner Caverns State Park

The Foothills Trail is, for all intents and purposes, the only hiking trail at Kartchner Caverns State Park. Now, there is a trailhead at the west end of the park that accesses the Guindani Trail in the Whetstone Mountains of the Coronado National Forest, but the Foothills Trail is the only trail entirely within Kartchner Caverns SP.

We began the hike late in the day, at roughly 3:00. The map indicated the trail was only 2.5 miles, so I thought we would knock that out in roughly 1 to 1.5 hours. I was wrong. This trail is rated moderate to difficult. No bicycles or motorized vehicles are permitted. The trail is clearly marked, and numerous information kiosks and benches are located along the trail. The trail is well maintained considering the terrain, and there is no trouble following it.

Trail is well maintained and defined near the start. Once away from the campground and Discovery Center, it loses the border and surface, but is still a good trail.

We walked to the trailhead from our campsite. Actually, there are 4 access points to the trail. We hiked in a clockwise direction, so we began by following Guindani Wash, which we crisscrossed numerous times. Near the west perimeter of the park, there is a junction. The left (or west) trail goes to the Guindani Trail mentioned above. We took the other fork and began heading north, climbing the hill at the back of the caverns. There is some gentle ledge-walking along this section of the route, and there are numerous exposed rocky areas that I was sure to keep an eye on in case rattlers might be warming themselves.

Guindani Wash

Gentle ledge walking on the west side of the hills.

Eventually the trail turns sharply back to the east and climbs to a ridge that offers good views to the east. Just to the north is a taller hill blocking views to the north, but to the east you can see the highway, some of the park buildings, and the mountains to the east, including the area around Tombstone and Cochise’s Stronghold.

Views to the east. I believe the ragged area on the left is known as Cochise's Stronghold.

The trail dips for a while, then begins to snake up the taller hill. Footing along this stretch is sometimes challenging, and there is quite a bit of ledge walking. We met another couple about our age along this stretch, and the man remarked that the trail was fit only for mountain goats. Well, that is a bit of an exaggeration, but it gives some idea of the rocky trail. There is loose rock as well as exposed rock, so you have to watch every step you take. And all the time, you are either going up or going down.

Our back trail along the middle portion of the trail.

Eventually, the trail reaches a ridge to the east of the taller hill. At this point, there is a spur trail heading west up the taller hill to what the map calls the Mountain Viewpoint. By this point, we had been on the trail longer than I had anticipated, and the sun was racing towards the mountains in the west. I wanted to go up the Mountain Viewpoint, but I didn’t want to get caught in these mountains after dark with temperatures falling. So, we continued on the Foothills Trail Loop and headed east. The trail gradually worked its way down the mountain. I actually thought this stretch of the trail was less challenging than the middle portion.

View of the Discovery Center and other park buildings from our higher elevation.

Bedrock mortar near the end of the trail used by native Americans.

Soon, we were down on fairly level ground. As we neared the Discovery Center, the trail passes beneath a bridge that the park’s trolley system uses to ferry visitors to and from the cave. We eventually worked our way back to our camp.

For a 2.5 mile hike, this is a good challenge. The trail almost constantly goes up and down, so your legs get a good workout.

Kartchner Caverns State Park

We really are enjoying our stay at Kartchner Caverns State Park. Now, part of it is that we just hadn't stayed in a real state park anywhere for quite a while. It's nice to be out, away from a city, surrounding my nature. But mostly, this is just a really nice park.

The park is located on Arizona 90 about 10 or 12 miles south of Benson, Arizona, in the southeastern part of the state. The main attraction of the park is the caverns, but Donna and I came for different reasons. In fact, we don't even plan to go on a cave tour; we've been on so many over the years that they no longer interest us. We mainly came because of the location. I've wanted to visit Tombstone for years, and it is nearby.

But the park offers a short hiking trail, the Foothills Loop Trail, and I'll report on that in another entry.

The park offers sites with water and electricity; full hookups are not available. All interior roads and sites are paved, though our site -- # 40 -- was very unlevel from side to side and from front to back (see park map). 2 restrooms/showers are located in the camping area. Each site has a picnic table. A new service, just started about 10 days or so before our arrival, is WiFi. Passwords are required, and these are issued per user, and that process is a bit tedious. We ended up going to the Discovery Center to get our pass code. The connection worked well once we were able to log in, though I did have to log in at intervals. I'm sure they will refine the process once they get a bit more experience at it and get the bugs worked out. Recycling bins are available for aluminum, plastic, and mixed paper.

One of the 2 restrooms/showers in the camping area.

Scenery is beautiful, especially towards the Whetstone Mountains on the west side of the park in the Coronado National Forest. The weather was perfect during our stay, with daily highs in the mid to upper 70s and lows in the mid to upper 40s.

This is the view from our trailer.

Donna enjoying the beautiful weather. Notice boards under trailer tires to help level it.

Beautiful view of the Whetstone Mountains from the Discovery Center

Another view of the Whetstone Mountains. You can see the tops of some of the RVs in our campground through the brush.

Even if you don't intend to tour the cave, take time to visit the Discovery Center. A couple of rooms in the Center are designed to resemble a cave. The entire facility is well done. There is also a small cafe, the Bat Cave Cafe, where you can get basic snack bar foods.

Room in the Discovery Center designed to resemble a cave.

I don't know if we will ever pass this way again, but if we do, this park will be a likely spot if we are in an RV.

On the Road: Yuma, AZ, to Kartchner Caverns State Park

We’re at Kartchner Caverns State Park now, in the southeastern part of Arizona near Benson.


We left Yuma, Arizona, early yesterday morning. We had 279 miles ahead of us and we needed an early start. Just a few blocks from our RV park in Yuma, we pulled on Interstate 8, which we would follow about 180 miles until it merged with Interstate 10 near Casa Grande, Arizona, a few miles south of Phoenix.



Just a few miles east of Yuma, all east-bound interstate traffic had to pass through a Border Patrol inspection station. The next few miles then passed through some mountainous terrain. At one point, the west-bound traffic was to the south of us, something I’ve never seen before. But then the highway sloped down to level ground. From that point on, the drive was easy and pleasant. There was little traffic, with few trucks, and for the most part the drive was straight and level. I enjoyed it.


We continued to see productive farm land along both sides of the interstate, especially to the north near the Gila River. We even saw – and smelled – numerous cattle feed yards. Undoubtedly, most of the crops along the route were alfalfa or other crops used to feed these cattle. Once past Gila Bend, we saw a haze in the distance. As we approached, we discovered it was caused by tractors working the fields and stirring the dirt, forming thin dust clouds in the air.


At Casa Grande, we merged with Interstate 10 and headed south to Tucson. Traffic increased considerably at this point, but we enjoyed the 6 lane highway (3 lanes each direction). Traffic through Tucson at midday was not too bad and we soon found ourselves east of Tucson on the final leg of the journey.


Just west of Benson, we turned south on Highway 90 for the final 10 miles to the park. We immediately noticed the similarity of the land to some areas of West Texas. We now saw grass growing on the hillsides, and the grass-covered mountains were gentle like those around the Davis Mountains. Highway 90, at least for the stretch we were on, is a 4 lane highway. After a short drive of 10 miles or so, we pulled into Kartchner Caverns, our home for the next 3 nights.