New Director of state Outdoor Recreation Division to speak at Outdoors Economic Conference

A lone angler fishes on the Rio Costilla in the Valle Vidal of northern New Mexico.

Silver City will host an Outdoor Recreation Economic Conference this weekend where promotion and support of the state’s industry will be the primary topic.

The conference at the Grant County Conference
Center will feature seminars and speakers from numerous outdoor related federal and state agencies, private businesses, advocacy organizations and political leaders.

The conference will include panel discussions about successful community and company programs that promote outdoor recreation opportunities, eco and wildlife tourism, state promotional resources, benefits of trails, sustainable tourism, federal partnerships with land management agencies and equal access to the outdoors.

The public is invited and more information about attending can be found on the website www.outdooreconomicsnm.com.

With over 40 percent of New Mexico’s land in public hands, great weather and friendly people, the state has long been an outdoor recreation mecca.

But the industry as a whole has long suffered from neglect due to its diversity and lack of a trade association.

That is slated to change now that the state has created an office of Outdoor Recreation under the State Economic Development Department.

The office’s new director, Axie Navas, who managed digital media and marketing for Outside magazine in Santa Fe is scheduled to speak at the conference.

Navas said in a recent interview that her first priorities will be to take stock of the industry, get out and meet the players and develop a strategy for helping support and promote them.

The industry is diverse, including hunting, fishing, hiking, boating, camping, sightseeing, bird watching, golfing, skiing, mountain biking, horseback riding, motorized off-roading and other outdoor activities.

Taking inventory of all the state’s businesses, agencies and others involved in the outdoor industry is already underway and plans to provide digital media and other promotion support also are being considered, Navas said.

The state’s outdoor recreational industry brings in about $10 billion in consumer spending each year accounting for an estimated 10 percent of the state’s gross domestic product, according to the recent academic and business studies.

The industry supports close to 100,000 jobs across the state and generates almost $3 billion in payroll while providing more than $600 million in taxes to government coffers.

The fly fishing industry on the San Juan River at Navajo Dam alone produces up to $30 million in business every year while anglers spend about $268 million statewide, according to New Mexico Department of Game and Fish reports.

Other areas of the outdoor industry are more difficult to quantify due to a lack of information and studies. That also could change now that the outdoor industry has an office within state government dedicated to it.

Volunteer on National Public Lands Day

Volunteers will find plenty to do and places to go to help celebrate Public Lands Day in New Mexico this Saturday.

The Continental Divide Trail Coalition is hosting a free cookout at Hopewell Lake in northern New Mexico for volunteers and the public as it celebrates completion of 100 miles of trail through the Carson National Forest.

“This was a huge effort over the last decade involving so many people,” says Amanda Wheelock of the Coalition based in Golden, Colo. “Now its time to celebrate.” 

Volunteers will help do some low impact maintenance on the trial near the lake before settling down to indulge in hotdogs, cake and revelry. The event is scheduled from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 28, 2019. Camping, fishing and hiking are available. Hopewell Lake is off U.S. 64 between Tierra Amarilla and Tres Piedras in the Carson National Forest.

The 3,100 mile trail passes through New Mexico as it follows the Continental Divide between the Mexican and Canadian borders.

Volunteers can visit several other lakes around the region to help out on projects with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Entrance fees also are being waived for the day at all of their sites.

Abiquiu Lake

At Abiquiu Lake they’ll be putting up a new playground, cleaning up the shoreline and creating pollinator gardens. A free night’s camping is being offered to volunteers involved in that project. 

At Cochiti Lake they’ll be planting cottonwood and willow trees along the shoreline near the swim beach and boat ramp to provide more shade and habitat for wildlife.

Volunteers also will be helping clean up the shoreline, campgrounds and roadways at Conchas and Santa Rosa Lakes and enjoying a free lunch for their effort. Visit the Corps Albuquerque District Office website for more details.

The Bureau of Land Management and the state’s National Forests are all hosting various events at different locations, dates and times. Consult their websites to learn more and participate.

And Public Lands Day means the state’s national parks are offering free admission to places such as Bandelier, Carlsbad Caverns, White Sands, Fort Union, Pecos and others. See their website for more information.

And while New Mexico’s state parks don’t have any special events scheduled for National Public Lands Day, a visit to any one of their more than 30 parks would still be a great way to celebrate the occasion. See their website to find a park.

New Mexico has an abundance of public land with over 40 percent of the state owned and enjoyed by the people. 

Visit Bandelier National Monument for a Great Late Summer Escape

Frijoles Canyon at Bandelier National Monument.

With summer waning and vacation crowds thinning it’s a great time to visit one of New Mexico’s many scenic historic sites such as Bandelier National Monument.

Just a short drive from Albuquerque or Santa Fe the national monument showcases ancient Indian cave dwellings in a remote forested canyon.

                       

Visitors can learn more about the people who lived in the canyon and caves as they hike among them along a 1.2 mile main loop trail. Ladders allow visitors to climb into the caves for a firsthand experience while plenty of interpretive signs are posted to provide historical context.

More adventurous guests can continue up the canyon to Alcove House where they’ll scale four sets of ladders to a large cave in the cliff face about 140 feet above the canyon floor. The dizzying heights are not for the meek of heart and make for a memorable visit.

Pole ladders lead up into caves at Bandelier National Monument. Photo courtesy of Leanne Arvila.  

After a couple of hours touring the main loop trail and Alcove House many guests return to the visitor center where they can enjoy an excellent 14-minute film about the monument while relaxing in the air conditioned comfort of the monument’s auditorium.

Recently produced by award-winning National Park Service cinematographer John Grabowska, it features towering, expansive views of Bandelier, the Pajarito Plateau, the Jemez Mountains, the Valle Caldera and the Rio Grande.

The film was shot during different seasons of the year with many scenes taken by helicopter and played back in slow motion to give viewers the sense of flying over the countryside.

The park also offers plenty of other activities including demonstrations by artists from surrounding pueblos, guided hikes and evening seminars at the park’s Juniper campground amphitheater.

Visitors will find other hiking and camping opportunities within the monument by visiting the Bandelier website at https://www.nps.gov/band/index.htm.

A cloud burst at Bandelier National Monument. Photo courtesy of John Gonzales of Lubbock, Texas. 

The basic park entrance fee is $25 per private carload which is good for seven days and allows access to Tsankawi and other areas of the park such as Burnt Mesa.

At Tsankawi visitors can take a 1.5 mile walk along a mesa featuring numerous caves, petroglyphs and the ruins of the village of Tsankawi. Ladders are in place to allow guests to climb up to the mesa top and come down the other side.  Views of the Rio Grande Valley and opposing Sange de Cristo mountains are impressive here.

The parking lot for Tsankawi is found off N.M. 4 at the intersection of the East Jemez Road, also known locally as the Los Alamos National Labs Truck Route. Visit the monument’s website and download a good map of the area at https://www.nps.gov/band/planyourvisit/tsankawi.htm.

Visitors to Bandelier are required to travel into the monument on a free shuttle bus between the hours of 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. Before or after that visitors can drive in. The monument is open dawn to dusk. There are exceptions including vehicles displaying a handicapped placard and for vehicles containing animals, although not pets are allowed on trails within the monument. Campers and wayward travelers  park at Juniper Campground where they then take the shuttle down to the visitor’s center.

The author drives a Bandelier shuttle bus for Atomic City Transit

The shuttle buses are operated by Los Alamos County Atomic City Transit under contract with the National Park Service. The buses leave the White Rock Visitor Center off N.M. 4 every 30 minutes starting at 9 a.m. during the week and every 20 minutes on the weekends. The last bus is scheduled to leave Bandelier daily at 5 p.m. on weekdays and 5:10 p.m. on weekends. All buses stop within the park at Juniper Campground to pick up and drop off passengers.

For maps, directions and more information please visit the monument’s website at https://www.nps.gov/band/index.htm or

contact them by telephone at (505) 672-3861 x517. for more information 

Enchanted Circle a great New Mexico roadtrip

The visitor pavilion at Eagle Nest Lake State Park.

New Mexico’s high country is looking great after a long snowy winter and plenty of rain this summer.

              

And a good way to enjoy some of that scenic beauty is to take a drive along the Enchanted Circle, a 65-mile round trip from Questa through Red River, over to Eagle Nest and back to Taos.

A recent drive revealed anglers reeling in trout at recently restored Eagle Rock Lake off N.M. 38 just outside the town of Questa. The picturesque lake is stocked regularly and is a great place to cast a line before heading over to Red River.

Eagle Rock Lake.

A quintessential summer resort town, Red River offers so much to do one needs to stop and ponder it all before proceeding. The patio at Red River Brewing Company overlooking busy Main Street offers great spot to do that.

Tucked in a canyon surrounded by heavily forested mountains, outdoor recreation and the visitors it brings are the primary focus of Red River’s economy.

Main Street of Red River N.M.

A walk about the teaming tourist town reveals a go-cart track to race around while the nearby ski area lift offers a lazier and more scenic ride.

Horseback rides, off-road vehicle rentals and guided fishing trips can be had while plenty of restaurants, saloons, gift shops, sporting goods stores and art galleries round out the town’s offerings.

The area features numerous campgrounds, motels and hotels for visitors to stay in and attracts many guests from nearby plains states such as Texas and Oklahoma.

Upon leaving Red River, the Enchanted Circle tour continues with a climb over Bobcat Pass at 9,800 feet and winds down into the rural Moreno Valley.

Bobcat Pass.

The valley had once been a booming gold mining area with the city of Elizabethtown at its heart. At the time it boasted a population of 7,000 with saloons, gambling halls, theatres, businesses and several newspapers.

Now the gold and the town are gone and the valley is a quiet place dominated by sprawling ranches and expansive views.

The highway ends at Eagle Nest where the local state park and its beautiful visitor center features a beautiful outdoor pavilion overlooking the lake. This spot is one of the state’s best kept secrets and is a great place to stop for a picnic and some fishing.

The state park also features a campground for those who might want spend the night while the nearby town offers overnight accommodations, gas and groceries, fishing supplies and a classic western style saloon.

The valley also is home to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial State Park where visitors can learn more about those who served and died in that war.

The Enchanted Circle commences on U.S. 64, up and over 9,100 foot Palo Flechado Pass and down through a twisty canyon along which the Rio Fernando de Taos flows. At the intersection of N.M. 585 travelers can head west to reunite with N.M. 68 and take that road back home.

Valles Caldera Backcountry Open to Motorists

Editors note: The backcountry is open this summer too but you'll need a fishing and vehicle permit from the NPS to go angling. Open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Visit their website for more info.

The Valles Caldera National Preserve’s backcountry is open again to motorists this summer providing free access to prime fishing, hiking and other outdoor activities.

“The public enjoys the convenience of driving into the preserve,” says Kimberly DeVall, Chief of Interpretation and Education for the National Park Service’s preserve in the Jemez Mountains. “And we’re happy to be able to provide them that opportunity so they can enjoy all the preserve has to offer.” 

The backcountry normally opens up by mid-May but was delayed until just recently this season due to road repairs, says DeVall.

The preserve issues up to 35 backcountry motor vehicle permits daily to motorists visiting the 89,000 acre preserve. The permits are issued on a first come, first served basis at no cost. The preserve is open from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily. No permits will be issued after 3:30 p.m. and all motorists must check out by 5:30 p.m. There is no camping available on the preserve.

DeVall says they rarely run out of permits during the week but on the weekends they tend to go quickly.

Visitors will find 26 miles of dirt and gravel roads to travel within the vast backcountry featuring plenty of hiking and biking trails and great fishing on San Antonio and Jaramillo Creeks. No pets are allowed in the backcountry.

A recent visit to the preserve during the week revealed only a handful of vehicles in the backcountry and most of them belonged to anglers. Motorist must remain on established roads and park in only in designated areas. Portable toilets are provided.

The two backcountry creeks flow through great, open meadows and are noted for their deep undercut banks where trout can hide. A two fish bag limit is in effect on the preserve, a valid state license is required and only artificial flies and lures with single, barbless hooks are permitted. Waders are not needed but a good hat, long sleeves and plenty of sunscreen and bug repellant is recommended. Fishing supplies and groceries can be purchased in the nearby town of La Cueva.

Some visitors to the preserve may enjoy just driving into the backcountry for some sightseeing and a picnic. San Antonio Cabin is a scenic spot with picnic tables for use and visitors are reminded to clean up after themselves.

The preserve also is home to many wildlife species including elk, bear, coyote, eagles and turkeys and the best viewing opportunities are in the morning and evening.

The preserve can be found off N.M.4 between Jemez Springs and Los Alamos. For more information about the Valles Caldera National Preserve please their website at https://www.nps.gov/vall/index.html or call the preserve at 575-829-4100.