Road Trip NM - Sugarite Canyon

If Sugarite Canyon is the crown jewel of New Mexico’s state parks, then volunteers like Dan Schamber are the ones who put the shine on it.


“We wouldn’t be the great park we are without them,” said Bob Dye, park superintendent. “We just wouldn’t be able to offer the services and quality programming we have.”

Dan and his wife, Lorene, work nearly full time at the park’s visitor center during the summer tourist season and share the job of leading guests on a guided tour of one of the park’s key attractions, the abandoned Sugarite coal camp.

The camp was just one of many that were once located along the 100-mile-long and 60-mile-wide, underground, coal seam that runs from Cimarron, NM, up to Huerfano, Colo., Dan Schamber explained during a recent mid-day tour.

Coal was used to power the many railroads’ steam locomotives and to heat homes and businesses in the early 1900s and the St. Louis, Rocky Mountain and Pacific Company built the company town to attract and keep workers at its coal mining operation in the canyon.

Located on the outskirts of the plains about six miles east of the city of Raton, the camp once employed up to 1,000 people and featured a post office, company store, school house, clubhouse and dozens of homes built in tidy rows along the hillside.

The company dug three mines into the hills on opposing sides of Chicorica Creek and utilized a gravity operated cable system to lower, fully loaded coal cars to the valley floor while pulling empty ones back up to the mine’s entrance, Schamber explained. The coal was then sorted according to size and loaded into waiting railcars and then shipped by rail to market.

The mines cable drums are still in place and can be seen the at the top of the mountain near the mine's entrance.


But over the years the coal market waned as the railroads adopted diesel/electric locomotives and oil and natural gas became more preferable for home heating, Schamber said.

In 1941 the camp closed, most of the town’s buildings were salvaged and the land was handed over to the city of Raton. The state then leased the land and opened Sugarite Canyon State Park in 1985, with Dye serving as its first and only superintendent since.

Now all that’s left of what had once been a busy mine and company town are the stone foundations, some rusty equipment and a great story.

And 73-year-old, Dan Schamber, tells it well as he leads park visitors on a hike through the hillside ruins and brings the coal camp back to life by recounting its history.

Schamber uses a series of large, plastic covered photographs he carries in a satchel slung across his shoulder to help illustrate how the camp looked during its heyday. His presentation covers a wide variety of subjects including camp life, mining equipment and techniques, site reclamation and any questions visitors might have.

Those who can’t handle the two-mile hike and 400-foot climb can enjoy the tour back in the comfort of the visitors center where Schamber or his wife, Lorene, use in-house exhibits and their oral presentation to enliven visitors.

In over five years of volunteer work at the visitor center the couple have also conducted numerous interviews with former camp residents and other people with knowledge of camp life. They have collected material and many artifacts to help record the camp’s history and Lorene Schamber has authored a 15-page booklet, “Life in Sugarite Canyon Coal Camp.”

The couple also collaborated in the creation of CD documentary about camp life titled ‘We Were Poor but We Were Rich.” Both research works are available at the visitor center.

“We’re just fascinated with history and people,” Schamber, a Korean War era, Marine Corp veteran said when asked about the retired couple’s work.

The two have been married 46 years and are classic snowbirds, having ditched their house and three kids for a big motor home and life on the road, Dan Schamber said.

“I like to tell people we spend our winters in Arizona and our summers in paradise,” he said “This is our kind of country and our kind of living. We love it.”

Superintendent Dye said the public is lucky to have volunteers like the Schambers and others who serve as campground hosts and perform maintenance and other tasks in exchange for nothing more that free camping in one of the state’s finer campgrounds.

Among Sugarite’s other notable assets are trout-filled lakes Maloya and Alice and the hilltop campground, Soda Pocket, which features great views of the valley below.




The park features numerous hiking trails including two, half-mile climbs to the mesa tops surrounding Soda Pocket campground that offer even better views.

The park is such a hidden jewel that Woodall’s Camping Life in April 2006 ranked it among the top-ten, state parks in the entire country, citing it’s abundance of wildlife viewing opportunities as one of its top draws. See the article at Camping Life.

It should be noted that Sugarite is located in prime bear country and campers need to practice precautions to avoid confrontations like the recent case in early July, 2007 where a 13-year-old boy was bitten by a young bear.

The youth slapped at what he thought was his uncle goofing around outside the tent wall in the early morning hours. It turned out to have been a bear snooping around the tent and it bit back before running off.

The boy wasn’t seriously injured but had to undergo rabies vaccination as a precaution, said Dan Williams, a spokesperson for the Department of Game and Fish.
A bear suspected to have been involved in the case was later found and killed and tested negative for rabies, Williams said.

Bears are common visitors to the park because of its mountain location, and the park emphasizes safety by using bear-proof trash cans and educating campers about the importance of keeping a clean camp and not feeding the animals.

Campers are cautioned to keep campsites clean, lock up all food and cooking utensils, and never take food inside a tent. Those who’ve been cooking also should change out of those clothes and store them away from their tent.

For more information about Sugarite Canyon State Park check them out at their website.

IF YOU GO:

From Santa Fe, NM take I-25 north to Raton, head east on State Road 72 to State 526 north to Sugarite Canyon State Park. Stop at the visitor’s center for more information and to take the coal mining camp tour. Showers and ice available across from the visitor’s center. Several RV sites with sewer, electrical and water available at Lake Alice Campground. Soda Pocket Campground has no such services and is first come, first serve. Call ahead for more information at (505) 445-5607.



















NEWS - AUG 2007 - THE SUGARITE SCARE!

Sugarite state park’s alluring peace and tranquility could soon be disrupted by the roar of drilling equipment if a Texas energy company has its way.

TDC Engineering of Abilene, TX. has served notice on the city of Raton that it intends to drill five exploratory wells for coal bed methane gas on city owned land in the Lake Dorothey Wildlife Area, according to Pete Mileta Jr., Raton’s city manager.

The wildlife area is located upstream of Sugarite Canyon State Park, just across the Colorado state line.

Raton owns the surface rights in the wildlife area along with those found in Sugarite Canyon State Park in New Mexico. The area comprises the watershed that feeds reservoirs to supply the Raton’s drinking water.

But while the city may own the land and lease it to the two states for the wilderness area and state park, it’s a mining company, Newmont Mining of Denver, that owns the mineral rights.

And Newmont has since leased those rights to TDC, according to the city’s attorney Lance Astrella of Denver.

TDC wants explore for gas in the coal seam running through the area and in order to do so needs to use New Mexico State Road 526 running through Sugarite State Park to haul heavy equipment up into the wilderness area, Astrella said.

From there TDC would then have to carve out a 4.5 mile road to reach the proposed drilling sites as there is presently no other access to the sites available.

The city is opposed to the proposal primarily out of concern such drilling activity could threaten the quality and quantity of its water supply.

New Mexico State Parks is opposed to the drilling venture on the grounds it’s incompatible with the park’s mission of providing people and wildlife with a sanctuary, said Superintendent, Bob Dye.

An estimated 150,000 people utilize the state park each year and it is home to a wide variety of wildlife including bear, elk, deer, mountain lions, birds, fish and butterflies, he said.

The narrow park road is unsuitable for heavy equipment traffic and competition between those using it for recreation versus construction could create an unsafe situation.

Noise, dust and other impacts associated with drilling could also intrude upon the park’s recreational activities, disrupting those seeking solitude fishing, hiking and relaxing in a natural environment.

The impacts upon wildlife and their habitat could prove be especially damaging, he said.“I understand the nation’s need for energy,” Dye said. “But state parks and water supplies need to be protected.”

A citizens group has since formed to fight the drilling and has set up a website, Save Our Sugarite, where more information can be found.

Calls to Scott Taliaferro Jr. of TDC engineering seeking comment were not returned.

Astrella said his legal strategy to combat the proposed venture is simple.

“The best way to stop them would be to make them do it right,” he said.

While TDC may have a right to drill, the city also has a right to ensure its water supplies are protected. Requiring the company to do that could prove costly enough to make the venture unprofitable, he said.

“But the city needs to be proactive,” he said. “Because even if these guys don’t do it, someone else might.”

Astrella said there has not been any discussion with Newmont regarding purchase of the mineral rights lying under the city owned land.

In the meantime it remains to be seen if TDC proceeds with its plans to pursue drilling near Sugarite State Park and what opponents can do to stop it.





NEWS UPDATE - SEPT. 2007 - SUGARITE SAVED FOR NOW:

Recreational users of Sugarite Canyon State Park near Raton can breath easier now knowing that a Texas energy firm has dropped its plans to drill for gas in an adjoining state wildlife area.

“That’s the best news I’ve heard in a long time,” said Dan Schamber, volunteer and tour guide at the popular state park. “But just because they’ve given up doesn’t mean someone else won’t try.”

TDC Engineering of Abilene, Texas, notified the city of Raton last week that it is dropping its plans to drill five, exploratory wells for coal bed methane gas on city-owned land in the Lake Dorothey Wildlife Area just across the state line in Colorado, said the city’s attorney, Lance Astrella of Denver.

TDC notified the city that its lease with Newmont expires on September 16, 2007, and in light of their lack of progress in drilling is asking the city to drop its lawsuit against them, Astrella said.

Raton had filed suit in district court this summer to stop TDC from proceeding with its drilling plans citing the potential threat to its water supply. A citizens’ group was also formed called Save Our Sugarite to pursue options in opposition to drilling in the state park and wilderness area. See their website at Save Our Sugarite for more information.

Astrella said he will seek to have the city's lawsuit dismissed now that TDC has backed off.

Meanwhile the city has issued a press release stating its intent to remain “proactive in opposing any future drilling activities which do not accommodate and protect its water rights from depletion and contamination.”

Astrella said the city has several options it could conceivably pursue to include seeking to restrict or retire Newmont’s mineral rights, protect them under some kind of a conservancy plan or purchase them outright.

It remains to be seen what direction the city pursues and Astrella said he expects the fight over coal bed methane drilling and its impact upon water quality and quantity in the Raton basin to continue because of the high stakes involved on both sides.

These articles were originally published in the Santa Fe New Mexican's Outdoors section.

Piedra River - The Ute's Build a Mean Stream

Tired of crowded campgrounds, rivers overrun with anglers, the same old scenery?
Consider a trip into Indian Country, some place like the Southern Ute Reservation just across the Colorado state line.

The Southern Utes have four great rivers running through their territory, the San Juan, the Piedra, the Pine and the Animas.

The Ute’s six-mile stretch of the Animas below the popular college town of Durango draws the most visitors to fish for a good population of rainbows and the chance to snare a large brown trout, said Ben Zimmerman, fisheries biologist for the Southern Ute Tribe.

But if one is looking for solitude, spectacular scenery and plenty of good fishing, they may want to try a trip to the less traveled areas of the San Juan and Piedra rivers in Indian Country.

“You’d be lucky to see anyone else out there with you,” Zimmerman says.

Both rivers’ headwaters can be found in the mountains ringing the town of Pagosa Springs and then they flow south to Navajo Reservoir. The 20-mile long Navajo Lake straddles the Colorado and New Mexico state line and the San Juan River re-emerges from below Navajo Dam as the blue ribbon trout fishery well known to many New Mexico anglers.

But it is the stretch of the San Juan River above Navajo Lake that many may not be familiar with as it flows south out of Pagosa Springs through Indian Country.

Taking Archuleta County Road 500 out of Pagosa Springs one will travel a gravel, country road along the river with several promising fishing holes beckoning anglers.
The countryside is dotted with farms, high piñon and juniper dotted mesas and great stands of cottonwood trees along the river bottom, which would make for a great drive during the fall.



Those in possession of a Southern Ute Indian Tribe fishing permit can stop at any number of fishing access areas posted along the road and try their angling luck.
This stretch of river looks very like much like big, brown trout country where streamers, nymphs, bait and lures might work.

The Utes’ permits can be purchased in Colorado at shops in Durango and Ignacio where the tribe’s headquarters are located. They can also be purchased in New Mexico at stores in Farmington and at the Float and Fish fly shop at Navajo Dam.

However the tribe’s fishing permits cannot be purchased in the town of Pagosa Springs nor online and those venturing out of Santa Fe might want to contact one of the participating vendors and make arrangements to purchase one by mail. For more information about permits and rules and regulations check the tribe’s website at http://www.southern-ute.nsn.us/WRMWeb/fishing.html.

It should be noted that signs posted at the Utes’ fishing access sites state alcohol, drugs, firearms and dogs are prohibited while utilizing these areas. It's unknown how strictly regulated these prohibitions are but visitors should exercise extreme discretion while on Indian lands.


This long, lonely stretch of road eventually passes through the abandoned railroad town of Pagosa Junction where a magnificent, whitewashed, adobe church still stands upon a hill overlooking the town’s ruins.

Here one can wander among several still standing buildings, a great stand of cottonwood trees and wonder about the history of this former, bustling railroading town.

Continuing south on County Road 500, visitors will encounter the top end of Navajo Lake which features numerous pull offs for recreation. Camping and other services are available at Navajo State Park and more information can be found at http://parks.state.co.us/Parks/Navajo.

County Road 500 ends at the intersection of Colorado State Road 151 where one can head north to access the Ute Tribe’s six-mile stretch of the Piedra River up Fosset Gulch off Forest Road 613.

This stretch of river was rehabilitated back in 2000 with the installation of hundreds of tons of large boulders to shore up the riverbanks, re-channel the river and create healthier habitat for fish.



The characteristics of this stretch of the Piedra River are so appealing to the angler’s eye that it almost looks like a movie set, it is that well constructed.
So far the Utes’ plan seems to have worked with the area now attracting the occasional discriminating angler and stream surveys showing a good population of rainbows and some large browns trout lurking in the depths, Zimmerman said.

Anyone catching a rare, red-bellied, round-tailed chub from Southern Ute Reservation waters is asked to handle the fish carefully and return it unharmed immediately to the water, Zimmerman added.

This stretch of the Piedra River flows through a heavily forested, cottonwood canyon flanked by rolling hills, some rocky mesas and an occasional pasture on the far bank and once again should prove to be a spectacular drive in the fall.

Wildlife viewing opportunities are abundant with raptors in great numbers including owls swooping over the road and a coyote jogging ahead of the vehicle during a recent trip. At one point a horse emerged from the woods, walked up to the vehicle and allowed a quick rub of its velvety nose before running off in a clatter of hoofs and cloud of dust.

Visitors will see by map that Forest Road 613 cuts through to Colorado State Road 160 between Durango and Pagosa Springs, but should note that a private property owner has since installed two locked gates across the road blocking access.

It’s unknown if and when this issue will be resolved to the public’s benefit.
From this stretch of the Piedra River visitors can also see the twin spires of the Chimney Rock Archaeological Area in the San Juan National Forest located between Durango and Pagosa Springs.

This hilltop Indian ruin is a great side trip off State Road 151 and features a guided, interpretive walking tour and spectacular views from the mountain top fire tower. The site is open May 15th through Sept 30th and more information can be found at http://www.chimneyrockco.org/mainnew.htm.

And on the far end of State Road 151 visitors to the area will find additional fishing and camping at the Southern Utes’ Capote Lake.

Overall this area of southern Colorado in Indian Country offers much for those seeking to get away from the crowds and constrictions found on public lands during summer months.

Also see this article as it appeared in the
Santa Fe New Mexican

Maps - Where to Get Them and Why

Richard Atkinson, manager of the Public Lands Information Center at 1474 Rodeo Road in Santa Fe, N.M. displays the popular and informative BLM Land Status map in Sept. 2007.

Maps.

Face it, if you live in New Mexico, sooner or later, you’re going to need one.

And Santa Fe boasts two great shops for finding maps, books and other information about the state.

With almost half the state under public ownership one of the best maps to illustrate that may be the BLM’s (Bureau of Land Management) color-coded “surface management responsibility” or land status map available at the Public Lands Information Center at 1474 Rodeo Road in Santa Fe, N.M.

Richard Atkinson, the center’s manager, says the map is just one of many in the information center has available to the public and it’s a handy tool for those exploring the state especially those preparing for an upcoming hunt.

Atkinson uses an overlay on top of the land use map to shows the state’s hunting units and then the associated BLM or Forest Service maps that are needed for that area.

The same system is available online at www.publiclands.org , just pick New Mexico from the pull down list of states at the maps center, click on the hunting unit index tab and the maps you need will pop up.

The land status map is available in a four-foot wide and five-foot tall wall hanging or a smaller version about half that size and is great for viewing at home before setting out on the road.

The Public Lands Center also features every available Forest Service and BLM map for the state as well as a collection of private maps and atlases that make a road trip easy.

Atkinson said he prefers BLM maps to Forest Service maps because they show topography and are contiguous and can be assembled for a bigger picture of an area with no gaps between the maps.

That’s important for those hiking into the woods, he says.

Forest Service maps are limited primarily to the forest they cover and do not feature topography unless it’s a wilderness map, he notes.

In addition to those federal agencies’ maps Atkinson’s shop has two versions of the state atlas, the Road and Recreation atlas and the Gazetteer. Both are good books of maps for general use throughout the state.

Atkinson recommends everyone own one of these and then start collecting maps for more specific areas such as the state’s national forests, wilderness areas and other places of interest.

The information center also includes a great collection of hunting, fishing, hiking, cooking, history and other books with a New Mexico theme. There are also free brochures available from various state agencies and other information assembled to help visitors utilize the state’s public lands.

“You really can’t find the kind of collection we have here anywhere else,” he said.

The Center opened in 1996 and is operated by the private non-profit organization, Public Lands Interpretive Association with offices in every state and a website that brings them all together in one place.

Those seeking more specific maps can visit the Travel Bug at 839 Paseo de Peralta near downtown Santa Fe. Those in the know have been picking up maps and books here for years and the service and selection is why.

Here one can find and have printed a United State Geological Service topographic map for anywhere in state, or the country for that matter, says owner Greg Ohlsen.

The store features maps from all over the world or something closer to town such as a city or county produced map. The Travel Bug can produce aerial and satellite photos and also stock the just released, updated version of the popular New Mexico atlas, “Roads of New Mexico.”

And customers can sip cup coffee or enjoy a fruit smoothie while browsing the collection of maps, books and related items found in this distinctive shop.

The store also carries and services the Garmin line of satellite operated, GPS (Global Positioning System) products that not only help one find where they are in a strange town but can also be used to map one’s hikes in the woods.

Ohlsen said he used one to map all the day hikes for use in the Sierra Club’s latest version of “Day Hikes in the Santa Fe Area.”

“It’s amazing stuff,” he says. For more info about GPS check out www.garmin.com .

One of the pricier GPS units allows the user to strap an electronic transmitter on a dog’s collar and then monitor the dog’s movements while out hiking.

The unit will show how far away and in what direction the dog is located in relation to the handheld receiver carried by the owner. The units have a range of about five miles in open country and have helped Ohlsen find his lost dogs on a number of occasions, he said.

But Ohlsen says despite the handheld devices great capabilities they just can’t compete with a map for showing the big picture, the great landscape of New Mexico.

For that one might want to drop in to the state Department of Transportation (DOT) at 1120 Cerrillos Road where in the lobby one can find a free New Mexico road map and one for most every state in the country.

“I can fill this here today and by the end of the week they’ll all be gone,” says
Virginia Neville, receptionist at the DOT headquarters a she points to the display rack in the lobby. “I don’t know how people know they’re here, we don’t advertise.”

The rack doesn’t feature any state road maps from either California or Arizona because both those states refuse to provide them for free, said Michael Urioste, a DOT administrator who orders the maps for the free rack.

New Mexico hands out about a half a million free maps a year, Urioste said, primarily to distributors such as chamber of commerce’s, visitor centers, state and federal agencies and even private businesses.

It’s just one of those little known public services the state performs with little fanfare but great results. So grab a map and explore New Mexico today!

Flyfishing New Mexico 101 - A How to Guide

The author casts while fishing at Eagle Nest lake in Northeast New Mexico during a summer of 2007 trip.Photo courtesy of Greg Faught, Green Mountain Anglers.

So maybe you wanted to learn to fly fish this summer but after a visit to one of Santa Fe’s fly shops you were left wondering how, what with the cost of a rod, reel and a day’s instruction on the water running around $600.

No need to worry, here’s a few low cost tips that’ll have you out on the water and fly fishing in no time at all!

Bill Orr, former manager of the High Desert Angler fly shop and co-author of the book “Fly Patterns of Northern New Mexico,” suggests beginners save their cash for gas instead of hiring a guide or buying a lot of high-end gear.

“You don’t need them,” Orr, now a sixth-grade schoolteacher, says. “You need to just get out there and teach yourself.”

For starters, beginners might want to read up on the subject with a simple, easy to comprehend guide such as L.L. Bean’s “Fly-Fishing Handbook” by Dave Whitlock or Dan Holland’s “Trout Fisherman’s Bible.” The local library may carry some classics such as Ray Bergman’s “Trout” or Robert Traver’s “Trout Madness” that could whet your appetite for fishing.

Of course once you decide to go, you’ll need a serviceable rod and reel rigged with backing, fly line and a leader. A two-piece, eight and a half-foot, five weight is a good, all-around rod for New Mexico’s waters and there’s absolutely nothing wrong with a low cost, fly fishing combo kit to get you started.

L.L. Bean sells an Angler Fly Rod Outfit, ready to fish for about $75. A complete rod and reel package by Scientific Angler can be found on the shelf at Wal-Mart for about the same money. For twice that money but still half of what you’d pay for the cheapest outfit at a Santa Fe fly shop, Cabela’s offers their Genesis outfits for $150 that also include a chest pack, a fly box full of trout flies and accessories like nippers, forceps, leaders, weights, fly floatant and strike indicators.

You’ll need some of these accessories on the water, like a pair of fingernail clippers to snip off line, a pair of forceps or small needle nose pliers to remove hooks and smash down their barbs, a bottle of fly floatant to keep your dry flies working and a strike indicator for when you’re fishing nymphs on the bottom.

You’ll probably want an extra leader and a spool of 5X and 6X weight tippet and a fishing vest to carry your gear, but a fanny pack or even a shirt with big pockets will work.

And you’ll need a good all-around selection of flies including a couple of size 12 stimulators, a few size 16 elk-hair Caddis, and size 18 Adams dry flies. For nymphs, grab a few pheasant-tails, hares’ ear, princes, Warden’s Worry and Wooley Boogers in black, Orr suggests.

Beginners can wear a pair of old sneakers and shorts to wade in the summertime and buy a pair of inexpensive, hip-waders for use in the fall and winter.

Armed with this gear, the self starter can head out, perhaps even carrying a copy of “Fly-Fishing in Northern New Mexico” or Taylor Streit’s “Fly Fishing New Mexico” to lead the way.

Beginners will want to start on water with plenty of fish so they can get some practice at reading the water, casting, detecting a strike and setting the hook and how to play, land and release a fish unharmed.

It’s important for beginners to learn and practice catch and release fishing to help ensure trout remain available to be caught and released yet another day.


Beginners can start with a quick trip to a nearby river such as the Pecos River, east of Santa Fe, where fish are regularly stocked. While there, the beginner can watch other anglers to pick up tips and ask questions if so inclined.

Beginners can also monitor the weekly fishing report found in the Outdoors section of the Santa Fe New Mexican for ideas on where to fish and also visit websites like www.talesfromthefarbank.com for stories about fishing the West and links to fishing and stream flow reports.

If this sounds like just too much work, consider the reasoning behind it all.

Orr remembers how his father put him on a small creek in Colorado at the tender age of 4. They snuck up on a hole, parted the trees back and his dad handed him a rod and told him to “set” the fly on the water. Up came a beautiful brook trout to take the fly, it ran about in the water, tugging at the little boy’s arm and then there it was in hand, its shimmering, colorful body captivating him.

Orr has been fly fishing ever since.

“And it has taken me to some really neat and beautiful places,” he says.

And that’s probably one of the best reasons for learning to fly fish in New Mexico: The opportunity to visit and fish an endless number of great places including fabled spots like the Rio Costilla on the Valle Vidal, the blue ribbon San Juan River and the Wild Rivers Recreation Area in the Rio Grande Gorge.

And maybe then the newborn angler can begin to understand and entertain the need for all that expensive gear found at the fly shop.

On second thought, maybe it’d be better just to save the money for gas and get back out there.

This story originally appeared in the Santa Fe New Mexican's Outdoors section.

Who'll Stop the Rain? A Tale From the Far Bank

The car windows were too steamed up to see out anymore, my sodden military poncho lay in a puddle on the floorboards between my legs, the dog was curled in a ball upon a mound of gear on the front seat, it’s nose tucked under her body.

I leaned back in the seat as far as it would go and let out a weary sigh.

For the last hour I’d been working in a wind-whipped downpour.

I'd rigged a plastic tarp over the light tent to ward off the heavy rain. Then I dug a trench around the base to drain away the sheets of water washing off the tarp. And finally I tied rocks to the ropes that lashed down the tarp in an effort to keep it all from blowing away.

I was doing all this in between desperate lunges back into the car in the seconds between knee-buckling, thunderclaps and the lightning strikes I knew were to come.

I was high on a hill in Northeast New Mexico at Sugarite Canyon State Park and if the weather didn't get me, the bears probably would.

I was bone tired as I watched the tarp flap and strain in the wind and figured I needed a backup plan just in case it all went to hell.

I began shifting the gear in the back of the little Geo Tracker SUV. I had taken the back seat out long ago to accommodate the equipment I lugged around on fishing trips. Now I pushed it all to one side of the car and piled it up high so I could lay the seat back down and sleep inside if necessary.

It wouldn’t be too comfortable but I’d already put in long day of hiking and fishing before I got around to fighting the rain and, with a couple of beers under my belt, I’d probably nod off in no time at all.

That would be of small consolation.

I lay back and listened, the rain had waned for a moment, it had been doing that, coming in violent, wind-driven waves, and then it’d take a break but come back again.

I’d given up hope it would ever stop and thought of what else I could do for the tent, a cheap, K-Mart special, I bought in Raton after discovering I'd left my good one at home.

I wiped at the condensation covering the window and looked out into the darkness.

The tent was still standing and my emergecny tarp remained staked to the ground.

I leaned back and turned on the radio, picking up the strained broadcast of a public radio station out of southern Colorado. The commentator droned on about some such thing and I slowly began to nod off.

I awoke shortly, shifting to relieve the dull ache in my backm when I noticed it was quiet.

Then I realizied the rain had stopped?

The dog stirred and we crawled out of the little truck, stretched our legs and looked up to the sky. It was lightening up and soon a couple of stars began to peek through the parting clouds.

The rain had finally stopped after all that work.

Figures.

We slept well that night in our dry tent, saved by a seven dollar, plastic tarp and a bunch of nylon rope.

The next morning the bright sunshine cleared away any thoughts of the horrific night before and we moved on.

Vuja De

I was on the San Juan River in Northwest New Mexico in late May and the water level was back down after several weeks of heavy flows from the dam.

Every spring the river’s government handlers ratchet up the flow tenfold and send a torrent of water downstream to mimic spring runoff and scour out the riverbed for several weeks.

And when they turn off the spigot, the fish peel themselves off the banks and spread out across the water in search of fresh food and breathing room.

Someone in the know once told me I needed to be on the upper flats of this fabled, blue ribbon trout stream when they brought the water down.

“The fishing will be stellar,” he said quietly.

Several weeks of rest from the daily pounding from anxious anglers in this heavily fished tail-water did wonders for the trout’s attitude, my source had told me.

Fish who would normally swim lethargically over to the nearest angler begging to be unhooked now jumped and raced off into the depths, peeling off line and testing knots.

It’s what good fishing is all about.

So there I was working the far bank in the upper flats just below the dam when I felt the first raindrop poke me in the back. I turned to see a dark bank of clouds, roiling upstream towards me.

I worked my way back to the bank, yanked off my vest and dug out my nylon raincoat, just in time, because within minutes I was standing in a full bore, downpour with big, fat drops rocketing into the water around me.

My flimsy raincoat was already soaked through as I tiptoed my way back across a wide expanse of slippery water and then headed through the woods to the far off parking lot.

I arrived to find my fishing buddy huddled in his truck. He rolled the window down and explained sheepishly how he’d forgotten his raincoat that day.

We decided to drive down to the bar, have some lunch and ride out the storm there.

Over enchiladas, ham and beans, tortillas and cold Coors, we watched as the bar filled with oil field workers, truck drivers and other fishermen seeking refuge from the rain.

They talked of how heavy and persistent this rain was - and would it last?

I suggested if it got too bad we could always take a ride into town to burn some time.

My partner was a family man and small business owner who had only the one day off to fish the river.

“I didn’t come up here to cruise around,” he said.” I’m here to fish and this rain isn’t going to stop me. I’m going to get me a rain coat.”

I offered him one of my backup ponchos, a cheap plastic one I kept under the car seat for emergencies, but he waved me off and we proceeded down to the fly shop.

“What can we do for you boys today?” the burly shopkeeper asked.

“Well, this guy needs a raincoat,” I said.

The clerk tossed a small packet containing a yellow poncho on the counter.

“That’ll be three dollars,” he said.

But it was too late, my partner was already eyeing a rack of expensive, guide rated, high-tech, rainwear.

“Well, if you want a real rain coat, that’ll be the last one you’ll ever own,” the clerk said with a smile.

I urged my partner to put up the $400 raincoat and grab the poncho.

“C’mon, it’ll be through raining by the time we get back down to the river,” I whined.

“I don’t know,” the clerk replied with a wink. “Last time I seen it rain like this, it lasted for three days.”

My partner put the $400 raincoat on the counter and pulled out his credit card.

The clerk grinned while I winced.

We were back on the water later that afternoon, enjoying the sunshine and having the upper flats to ourselves, when I noticed my partner still wearing his new raincoat.

It was a fine piece of work, triple layered Gore-Tex with rubberized, watertight zippers, all sorts of pockets and special tabs and other goodies.

I thought it might be a little warm for such a jacket since the sky had cleared and the afternoon warmed, so I thought I’d razz him a little.

“Hey,” I yelled over the water to him. “I told you it would stop raining as soon as we walked out of that fly shop with that fancy raincoat.”

“Nah, it's the other way around,” he yelled back. “If I hadn’t bought this raincoat, then it would have never quit raining.

You know he was probably right. That's how it is with the rain.