Friday, August 27, 2010

Military Jeepers Beat The Heat Run

Last weekend, Aug 21/22, myself and several folks from the West Tx/Southern NM Chapter of Military Jeepers, got together for a weekend of camping and off roading. Our destination was the western side of the Sacramento Mtns, NM. There were 7 vehicles and about 15 folks for the trip, the idea was to escape the basin heat 95+, and spend time in the 70 degree mtns. We were fortunate enought to have one of the founders of Military Jeepers come out with us, as he was on leave in AZ and made the trip over. We also had a gentleman from eastern TX, who was doing work in El Paso join us as well.
Here we are on the way to the campsite to drop off most everyones gear before hitting the trails for the day.

Our campsite was a secluded and little known mesa overlooking Alamogordo, so our gear would be safe there as we headed out for the day.



Our first trail lead us up Horse Ridge to another beautiful overlook of the basin below.


Back on the trail.


We were threatened all day with these rains, however they seemed to miss us and our campsite the whole weekend. Ok, except for one little downpoor while hiking back from a waterfall.



It was a great day to be out exploring the area.


After a full day on the trails it was back to camp and AJ cooked up some great ribs!!! Everyone ate well and finished setting up their sites for the night.


As night fell the campfire began roaring as we all settled in for an evening of beverages and good conversation. The lights of the city below just added to the great location. As the night lengthened it was off to bed for a well deserved sleep.


Morning came with coffee and breakfast burritos, what a way to start the day!!!


It was a beautiful sunrise as we all began packing up and getting ready for another day of exploring.



The day was spent out on the trails and enjoying the beautiful scenery.


Our final stop for the weekend was Bluff Springs Falls, this is a year round waterfall approx 50' high. It also helps to feed the Rio Pensco River which winds it's way along the road to the falls.



It was a great weekend, meeting old friends and making new friends. If you can not make it out the banner says, West Texas/Southern Mew Mexico Military Jeepers. I sure will miss these guys when we leave NM, but thats the great thing, MJ is a Nationwide organization so we'll be meeting up with more Military Jeepers all over the country, as well as many other people from both other off road and RV fourms.

2 comments:

Paul and Marti Dahl said...

What a great way to spend a weekend! The pictures show some incredible views, and to share it all with new and old friends, life doesn't get much better than that.

Gary said...

We were stationed there in the early 70's with the Army. Our daughter was born there. We had a 4x4 Scout, and ran several trips with friends in those mountains. From downtown, can you still see a rough trail running straight up the face of the mountain?