Roswell, New Mexico

Day 496

     Van C. Smith, a businessman from Omaha, Nebraska, and his partner, Aaron Wilburn, constructed two adobe buildings in 1869 that began what is now Roswell, New Mexico. The two buildings became the settlement’s general store, post office, and sleeping quarters for paying guests. He called the town Roswell after his father’s first name.

     Most people associate Roswell with the Alien landing in 1947. Actually, the Aliens did not land, they crashed. Furthermore, they crashed on a sheep farm near Corona, New Mexico, about 70 miles from Roswell.  

     William “Mac” Brazel worked as foreman of the Foster Sheep Ranch during the summer of 1947. On July 2nd during a sever thunderstorm he heard a loud noise, different from the thunder. The next day, working the ranch property checking for damage from the storm, he discovered a huge area covered with debris of strange looking material. The material was flimsy, silver color on one side and brown on the other that could not be torn, burned, or punctured. It had the thickness of the foil from a cigarette pack. 

     That Sunday, July 6, 1947, he took 2 boxes filled with pieces of the strange looking debris to Sheriff George Wilcox in Roswell. Neither the Sheriff nor his deputies could identify the material. The Sheriff then contacted Major Jesse A. Marcel, intelligence officer of the Roswell Army Air Field. 

     On Monday, July 7th, the Army responds to the ranch, and evidently finds a crashed saucer with two dead bodies, and a third still alive. The remains of the “ship” and “bodies” were discovered about 40 miles north of Roswell, separate from the debris field. That same day, Senator Carl Hatch of New Mexico sought an urgent, private meeting with President Truman. 

     By now, the townspeople of Roswell heard about these strange things. Col. Blanchard, the officer in charge of the Air Field, issued a press release on July 8, 1947 indicating the debris seems to have come from a Flying Saucer that crashed on the ranch. This is carried by the Associated Press nationwide.

     Major Marcel is ordered to take the debris to General Ramey in Fort Worth, Texas. Ramey tells Marcel to leave the room and the debris. When Marcel is told to return, the debris he brought is gone, and in it’s place are parts of a weather balloon. Marcel is ordered to pose for pictures with the pieces of the balloon.      

     On July 9, 1947, the AP reports that the recovery of a flying disk was just the recovery of a weather balloon, and the story dies. 

     Meanwhile, during the period of July 9-12, Brazel is held by the military so they could “inspire” him to modify his story to that of a crashed weather balloon. The townspeople of Roswell were told the same story and informed that “loose lips sink ships”. Being close to the end of World War II that is sufficient for them not to discuss the matter further. 

     However, some people resisted, and they were physically threatened by the Government. At the base hospital, autopsies were performed on the “aliens”. Miriam Bush was the personal secretary to Lt. Colonel Harold Warne of the field hospital were the crashed victims arrived and she walked in and saw what was happening.

     

     She indicated she saw one of them move. She first thought they were children, but realized they had child like bodies, grayish in color. Their head were too large for their bodies and they had large oval eyes. She described all of this to her family.  Like all the other base personnel, she was warned not to speak about anything she saw. When she refused to cooperate, she was murdered with the explanation that she committed suicide. 

     

Technical Stuff: Albuquerque, NM to Roswell, NM: 210.7 miles

4 hours 8 minutes 

10.1 MPG

Diesel: $2.46

 

Balloon Fiesta Last Day, NM

Day 495

     We got up before sunrise and went the half mile to the Balloon Fiesta Launch Field, and this is what we saw:

     The balloonists were all waiting to see if the winds would die down. The yellow flag was flying, indicating that all launches were on hold because of high wind (above 10 MPH).

     It wasn’t looking good. The balloonists began dumping their propane. 

     By 9:00 A.M. the red flag was out. 

     Oh Well, on to our next adventure.

 

Balloon Launch, New Mexico

Day 494

     The couple in the RV two down from us own the balloon Santa Fe Sunrise, and they invited us out to watch them launch.

     First the balloon is laid out

     It is attached to the basket

     Then it is inflated with “cold” air

     When it reaches 85% full, the burners are turned on

     until there is enough heat to make the balloon “stand up”

     Crew members hold the basket down while the balloon is fully inflated

     There is a “Zebra” assigned to each balloon

     She consults with the balloon pilot, whom has been previously issued a launch ticket (authorization to launch on this day from this spot). The launch field is laid out in a grid of A-Z and 1-9. The Santa Fe Sunrise was assigned spot Q-7.

   The Zebra checks authorization to launch and all safety aspects of the balloon. She consults with other Zebra’s in the area, as balloons are launched by rows. She clears the area in front of the balloon (those rows had already been launched), and she gives the signal to launch.

     The crew release the basket   

     and the balloon goes up

     up

     and away.           

     Considering that 550 balloons are going up today in the space of 2 hours, it is amazing there are no crashes.

     Because the “Albuquerque Box” was working on this beautiful day, once all 550 balloons were launched, those that took off earlier returned to the field.

     Here the “baby carriage” came in and landed.

     It drooped as they began letting the hot air out

     Until it collapsed,

and was put away for tomorrow’s flight. 

     Post Script: I upgraded my subscription to WordPress today. You will no longer see advertisements. I try to respond to most comments left by you on these posts, but please remember to check the box that says: ” Notify me of new comments via email.” Otherwise you will not have the pleasure of my witty remarks. 

 

WATCH OUT FOR THAT BALLOON

Day 493

     We decided to sleep in late after attending the Special Shapes Balloon Glow last night.

     As usual the balloons took off for the day’s activities at 7:00 AM. From our bed we looked out our window to watch the hundreds of balloons fly over head. For some reason they were flying very low, which gave us a spectacular view. 

     One balloon, Tiger Paw Express, looked like it was heading right for our Sphinx. It was. 

     It landed in front of us. 

     I asked the pilot if that was intended, and he said it looked like a nice wide spot, so he landed. Actually, balloons were landing all around us.

     Twenty minutes later, the balloon Primary Reflections, came toward us

It also landed next to the Sphinx. 

     Bystanders came over to help collapse the balloon

     The balloon crew dismantled the basket

     and folded up the balloon in a neat package

     They sure were accommodating to give us such a show, what more can you ask for?

Special Shapes Balloon Glow

Day 492

     The Balloon Glow, as stated in day 484, is when the balloons inflate, but stay on the ground and ignite their burners to light up the balloon.

Tonight was devoted to special shaped balloons

From the gory

to the happy

they produced some very impressive sights.

Balloon Fiesta Special Shapes

Day 491Special Shapes Rodeo is for all the shaped, non-traditional balloonsWhile most think of hot air balloons as the traditional “around the world in 80 days” shape, quite a few of them are notWe talked to the pilot and designer of this baby carriage balloonwho told us that the cost of the fabric of the balloon was about $40,000 with another $20,000 for basket, burners and other stuff.According to a local TV station, this motorcycle balloon is the largest hot air balloon in the worldIf it is, then the Wells Fargo Wagon is a close secondWe all had a good timeTime to go, as the cow jumps over the moon

 

Balloon Competition, New Mexico

Day 490

The balloon competition continued   

Their were two main events, drop a weighted streamer on a target

or drop a ring over a spindle

     

     Rules are you must take off at least a mile from this target area and you cannot touch the ground.

       

     Usually the winning balloon is one designed for competition. It is more slender than the average round shaped balloon, has one person in the basket, and is designed lighter.

     The top prize was a pick-up truck

     Goodby, Zebras

Albuquerque, New Mexico

Day 489

     Albuquerque was founded in 1706 as a Spanish colonial outpost and military garrison. The town was named in honor of Francisco, Duke of Alburquerque, who was viceroy of New Spain from 1653 to 1660. The town of Alburquerque was built in the traditional Spanish village pattern: a central plaza surrounded by government buildings, homes, and a church, as I described in Day 471, Santa Fe. However, what was the Governor’s Palace in Santa Fe was Casa De Armijo on the site of Don Ambrosio Armijo’s Hacienda, built in 1706 and one of the first homes in Albuquerque. It is now a collection of souvenir tourist trap shops. 

     The church is San Felipe de Neri Church.

     San Felipe de Neri replaced an older church, dating to the founding of Albuquerque in 1706, which collapsed in the winter of 1792–3. Built in 1793, it is one of the oldest surviving buildings in the city.

     In the central plaza I found these 2 peasants:

     A short distance from the plaza was a Navajo Indian having a book signing, he was a Code Talker in World War II, at the Battle of Guadalcanal.

     We also stopped at the Culture Center of Pueblo Indians. Along with their history, some of their dances were demonstrated. 

     All and all, a very pleasant day in Albuquerque.

West Mesa Escarpment, New Mexico

Day 488

     The West Mesa Escarpment was formed thousands of years ago (200,000 they say) when molten lava came up in this area from the fracturing of the earth’s crust. As the lava cooled, it sealed up the fracture, resulting in 6 volcanos being formed. After they erupted and cooled, they left the West Mesa Escarpment (west of Albuquerque, New Mexico) which is 17 miles long. We hiked 4 miles of it today.  

     An escarpment is a long, precipitous, clifflike ridge of land, or rock, commonly formed by faulting or fracturing of the earth’s crust. (However if you remember from day 403, the Niagara Escarpment was an 80-foot wall carved by the Niagara River.)

     The land between the escarpments, Rio Grand Valley, is mostly desert. 

     Some of the rocks had graffiti on them from 400 – 700 years ago. Scientists now call these Petroglyphs. 

     I actually think they are from aliens.  

     Or the Pueblo Indians of the area recorded their sightings of aliens, noting their endowment:

     The view from the top of the Escarpment was cool. 

 

Balloon Fiesta 5

Day 487

Today, we hung around the RV park.

Beginning at dawn, the balloons began flying over us

as the balloons did their mass ascension. 

We had an excellent view from inside the Sphinx

We could even watch in our pajamas

It looked as if the balloons would hit the Sphinx

At one point, we counted 90 balloons that we could see at once

 and estimated that between 250 to 300 balloons flew over us.

Balloon Fiesta 4

Day 486

     There are over 2,200 RV’s at Fiesta. Today, the balloons are doing competition. We can see them from our RV.

     Some of them actually landed in the RV area.

Now, that is cool.               

     In this RV area although we have water and electric, we do have to have our waste (mostly Barbara’s) pumped out each week. 

Balloon Fiesta 3

Day 485

     A gas balloon is a balloon that flies in the air because it is filled with a gas less dense than air or lighter than air (such as helium or hydrogen).

     Unlike the hot air balloons, which go up and come down in a couple of hours, the gas balloons participate in a cross-country distance race. The race lasts a couple of days, and the balloon that travels the longest distance wins. 

     The balloons here are filled with hydrogen. To begin, the gas delivery tube is attached from the tanks to the balloon. Crew members sit on the opening until enough gas is in the balloon to make it stand upright,

then they jump off to let the balloon rise and continue the filling.

     When the balloon is filled the tube is disconnected and the balloon is launched. 

     The balloon operates by the light gas raising the balloon. As the balloon rises the gas cools. To obtain more height the balloon carries “ballast”, which are bags filled with sand. Less ballast = less weight and the balloon rises. As this process repeats itself, the ballast is used up, and the balloon must land. 

 

Balloon Fiesta 2

Day 484

In the evening the balloons inflate, but do not lift off

they stay anchored

each, side by side in a row

and then light up

in what is called balloon glow

Balloon Fiesta 1

Day 483   

      The Balloon Fiesta began in 1972 as the highlight of the 50th birthday celebration of a local radio station. Today it is the largest balloon gathering in the world, with over 500 balloons here today.     

     Part of the reason for the success of the Fiesta is the Albuquerque box. The “box” is a set of predictable wind patterns that can be exploited to navigate the balloons. At low elevations the winds tend to be northerly, but at higher elevations they tend to be southerly. Balloonists use these winds to navigate in a vertical box. They ascend slightly from the launch park, move south, ascend further (over the RV park where we are staying), move north, descend, and repeat the box or land back in the launch park or nearby.     

     The hot air balloon is the first successful human-carrying flight technology that let man break his tether to the earth.  The first manned hot air balloon flight was performed by Jean-François Pilâtre de Rozier and François Laurent d’Arlandes on November 21, 1783, in Paris, France.

     Today we rose at 4:30 in the morning to watch the first balloons ascend.

     The air was crisp and not a cloud in the sky. Called the Dawn Patrol, about 10 balloons go up to track the winds and landing sites. 

     At sunrise, the flag was raised (no one took a knee) and over 500 balloons took to the skies.

     How do they get this many balloons up safely? These guys: 

     They are called “zebras” because of their stripped shirts. They determine the orderly launch of each balloon. 

Albuquerque, New Mexico

Day 480

     We will be here at the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta for 14 days. The first thing that happened, we were interviewed by the local newspaper: 

Albuquerque Journal 10/3/2017

     Steven and Barbara Scheinin of Maryland were setting up their site and preparing to erect a tall pole with a brightly colored flag “so we’ll be able to find our RV in the crowd,” Steven Scheinin said.

     The couple retired about 18 months ago. He was a lawyer and college professor, and she was a certified public accountant. “Our son and his adult daughter now live in our home, and we now live in our RV,” he said. “We’re traveling around the country for the next five years.”

     And they’re doing it in style. Their 40-foot long Cedar Creek RV has three slide-outs and a full-size refrigerator, a full-size shower, a king-size bed, large closets and a big-screen television.

     This will be their first time at the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta, which begins Saturday morning with a mass ascension. “We tried to come last year, but we didn’t register in time and couldn’t get a space for our RV, so we made sure to do it right away for this year,” he said.

Technical Stuff:

Laguna Pueblo Indian Reservation, NM to Albuquerque, NM: 60.1 miles

1 hour 29 minutes

10.6 MPG

Diesel: $2.62

Laguna Pueblo Indian Reservation, New Mexico

Day 478

     We are staying on the Laguna Pueblo Indian Reservation in Casa Blanca, New Mexico, at their Dancing Eagle Casino. We chose this site as it is only 60 miles from Albuquerque where we will be attending the Balloon Fiesta in a couple of days. 

     The campground was only $10.00 night, but we did leave some money at the casino. 

     No pictures, as the red-man did not want me to capture their souls. 

Los Alamos, New Mexico

Day 475

          So, where would you go in the United States to find an isolated place, in an inhospitable area, in the middle of nowhere, where no one could find you? How about Los Alamos? Los Alamos, Spanish for “the cottonwoods”, is located on a mesa (an elevated area of land with a flat top and sides that are usually steep cliffs) of the Pajarito Plateau. The Pajarito Plateau, Elevation 7,320 feet, is a volcanic plateau, part of the Jemez Mountains in New Mexico. Just describing it sounds like a place no one would want to go. 

     We went there, however, to view where the atomic bomb was developed. 

     This area was initially settled around 1200 AD by what the Spanish called Pueblo Indians. The remains of their dwellings are still here.  

     In the 1940’s the only inhabitants were some homesteaders and the Los Alamos Ranch School. The school, established in 1917, offered a program modeled after the Boy Scouts of America, combining a college preparatory curriculum with a rigorous outdoor life.

     The school was closed when the government used its power of eminent domain to take over the Ranch School and all the remaining homesteads on December 1, 1942, and built this secret facility to develop “project Y”, also known as the Manhattan Project.

     The idea to develop an atomic bomb actually began as early as 1939. Early headquarters for this secret project was located on the 18th floor of 270 Broadway in Manhattan, New York, and hence the name. 

     I learn something new every day: I thought that the same atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. In fact they were two vastly different bombs. The Hiroshima bomb (Little Boy) was a uranium bomb, while the Nagasaki bomb (Fat Man) was a plutonium bomb.

     The firing method was completely different for each one, which I also learned about. 

     Some of the original buildings of the school are still standing, but have been modernized over the years. Most are owned by private individuals.  

     Don’t let  Kim Jong Un see this. 

     The Los Alamos National Laboratory, a remnant of the Manhattan Project, is still here with 10,353 employees, by my count. 

     Barbara accidentally leaned against a control panel and set off an Atomic Bomb.

Santa Fe, New Mexico

Day 471

     The Santa Fe Trail terminates at Santa Fe, New Mexico……And here we are.

     Don Juan de Oñate led the first Europeans to this area on July 11, 1598 and declared all the land for Spain, establishing Santa Fe de Nuevo México as a province of Spain.

     The city of Santa Fe, and designated as the Capital of the Spanish Territory, was founded by Spanish colonists in 1610, and is the oldest State Capital city in the United States. Santa Fe means “holy faith” in Spanish. The city’s full name as founded remains La Villa Real de la Santa Fe de San Francisco de Asís (“The Royal City of the Holy Faith of Saint Francis of Assisi”).

     Spain held this area until the Mexican Revolution on September 27, 1821. Mexico held the area until conquered by the United States on February 2, 1848 in the Mexican–American War.

     The trail ends in the Spanish traditional Plaza, in the center of the city. Also there is the San Miguel Church.

     This Church was built in 1610, making it the oldest church still standing in the United States. The Church has been rebuilt and restored several times over the last 400 years. The 780 pound San Jose Bell was installed in the bell tower in 1856, however a storm blew the bell tower down in 1872, and the bell now sits on display by the entrance. You are permitted to strike the bell with a rubber hammer.

     We also visited the De Vargas Street House. This house is the oldest house in Santa Fe, and therefore one of the oldest houses in America.  It is built on the foundation of an ancient Indian Pueblo dating from around 1300 AD.

     

     The house was in use in 1598 when Don Juan de Oñate led a party of Spanish settlers into the area in search of a suitable place to establish a permanent settlement. 

     

     In the back of the house is the headless body of Juan Espinoza, who was in 1690 a Spanish Conquistador. He fell in love with a local girl. She was in love with another. He went to the De Vargas Street house, which at that time was occupied by two brujas (the Spanish-language word for “witches”), who gave him a love potion in exchange for a hefty payment of gold. The potion did not work, and Espinoza, enraged, returned to the house for his money back, which was refused. He drew his sword and went after the witches, who were too fast for him. He tripped and the sword fell from his hand, one of the witches picked it up and promptly cut off his head.

     There are many churches in Santa Fe, eventually people became real religious after traveling 900 miles on the Santa Fe trail. Barbara wanted to see the Loretto Chapel, built in 1873, because it contained the Miraculous Stairway. It makes over two complete 360-degree turns, stands 20’ tall with no center support. It rests solely on its base and against the choir loft. The risers of the 33 steps are all of the same height. Made of an apparently extinct wood species, it was constructed with only square wooden pegs without glue or nails.

     We also viewed the Cathedral Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi. The cathedral was built by Archbishop Jean Baptiste Lamy between 1869 and 1886. I noticed it had my mother’s needlepoint:

     Palace of the Governors, also built in 1610 (that is 10 years before the Pilgrims arrived at Plymouth Rock). The English wouldn’t arrive this far west for another 160 years.

     Of course, this all begs the question:  Isn’t St. Augustine the oldest city in the United States?

Technical Stuff:
Raton Pass, New Mexico to Santa Fe, New Mexico: 188.3 miles
4 hours 30 minutes
9.4 MPG
Diesel: $2.41

 

 

 

Trinadad, Colorado

Day 470 

     Trinidad was first explored by Spanish and Mexican traders, who liked its proximity to the Santa Fe Trail. It was founded in 1862  by Felipe Baca (no relation to Elfego Baca, the man with 9 lives). The Santa Fe Trail’s Mountain Route passed through Trinidad, along the Purgatoire River, and over Raton Pass. Trinidad had its beginnings as a Santa Fe Trail campsite.

     In 1900 the streets were paved with brick with Trinidad’s name engraved on each.

     This is my ghost writer:

 

Raton Pass, New Mexico

Day 469

     Ratón Pass is a 7,834 ft. elevation mountain pass on the Colorado-New Mexico border. Ratón is Spanish for “mouse.” Our campground is directly above the pass, on top of this portion of The Sangre de Cristo Mountains (Spanish for “Blood of Christ”), at 7,888 feet. We were literary on top of the mountain. 

 

     The Pass is located at the southernmost subrange of the Rocky Mountains. We can feel the altitude in our breathing. 

     Raton Pass was part of the Santa Fe Trail, which we are following. I can’t imagine walking from Hasty, Colorado to here, much less on to Santa Fe. 

Technical Stuff:

Larkspur, Colorado to Raton Pass, New Mexico: 177.0 miles

3 hours 31 minutes

9.0 MPG

Diesel: $2.41

 

 

Colorado Springs, Colorado

Day 468

     Went to the 1903 El Paso County Courthouse located in Colorado Springs. It ceased to be a courthouse in 1973 when a new updated one was built. It now houses the Colorado Springs Pioneers Museum, which exhibits the history of  Colorado Springs. 

    This Otis Birdcage Elevator was built in 1913. When this building was a Courthouse it was operated by a staff person. Today Barbara took us downstairs.

     First, there are no springs in Colorado Springs. There were, in it’s heyday, numerous sanitariums treating consumption, now known as tuberculosis.

     William Jackson Palmer, born September 18, 1836, was an American civil engineer, soldier, industrialist, and philanthropist. During the Civil War, he was a Brigadier General and a Medal of Honor recipient.   

      Palmer came to the Colorado Territory as a surveyor with the Kansas Pacific Railway in search of possible railroad routes. On July 31, 1871, Palmer founded Colorado Springs as a resort town at the base of Pikes Peak

     People came to Colorado for the restorative benefits of its “clean air and sunshine.” Starting in the 1860s, when tuberculosis (TB) was a worldwide problem, physicians in the eastern United States recommended that their patients go to Colorado to regain their health. Tuberculosis was called consumption “because its symptoms consumed those who had it”.

     The climate and mountain setting made it a popular tourist destination and health resort. A dry climate supported resorts for people with weak lungs or tuberculosis, including the Colorado Springs sanatoria.

     A sanatorium is a medical facility for long-term illness, most typically associated with treatment of tuberculosis in the late-nineteenth and twentieth century before the discovery of antibiotics. In the 1880s and 1890s, it is estimated that one-third of the people living in Colorado Springs had tuberculosis.

     Wow Lisa, that sure is a big butterfly.