Breakfast, lakes, dikes, caves, mountains and faults

n5lp · #1 03-02-2013, 06:12 PM

Artesia, NM has a very fine monthly free breakfast for anyone who flies or drives in (first Saturday of the month). The attendance is steadily growing and the truth is it is sometimes a little tricky finding a place for your plate. You may end up eating next to the credit card machine on the counter. It is all worth it for the chat, the airplane looking and the very good fresh cooked food.

Airport manager Lance's wife, Robin, is certainly one of the stalwarts, but not the only one. One of the local mechanics is very faithful as the outdoor bacon and sausage cook, and sometimes the weather is cold.

Today there were 4 RVs and about 20 other airplanes that flew in.

What a classic design. Still very competitive with the latest models. This one is registered in Portales, NM and isn't all that old.

I eavesdropped on this conversation and enjoyed that as much as anything I did all day. There is intensive Navy aviator training going on in the area. That is the guy in the uniform. The one on the left is retired from Navy aviation. There seemed to be a lot of mutual respect as they discussed their respective experiences.

After breakfast, right seater George West and I headed up to the area east and northeast of Roswell for a little gazing. First we looked at the fantastic sinkhole lakes of Bottomless Lakes State Park then went up a little further to photograph a couple of dikes. The one above is Railroad Mountain dike; called that because it looks like an elevated railroad bed. We also photographed El Camino Del Diablo dike, a little to the south. They both go as far as the eye can see and both are used as roads in certain areas. Google says that Railroad Mountain is mostly pyroxene and olivine. If it ever rained around here stuff would grow and we wouldn't be able to see this kind of thing.

Next we flew about 50 miles west to this cave which is known for extraordinary gypsum speleothems. I needed to add it to my cave entrance photo database. The cave is currently closed due to concerns over the bat fungus infection called White Nose Syndrome.

Our course back to Carlsbad took us near the Capitan Mountains, which are one of those rare western ranges that are oriented east/west, such as the Uinta range.

We also crossed over this very distinct and long fault. This one crosses the highway between Roswell and Ruidoso, New Mexico and it is easy to stop there and examine the writhing rock.

That was the morning. We got back a little before lunch time.

I kind of like this 10 picture limit thing. It is sort of like Haiku. It forces you to be selective.

Mark Burns · #2 03-02-2013, 06:18 PM

Larry,
Looks like a fun day!

Thanks for sharing.

Mark

rockwoodrv9 · #3 03-02-2013, 07:54 PM

Lary,
Thanks for posting the pictures. It looks like you had a great day.

Vlad · #4 03-02-2013, 08:05 PM

Larry you live in unique place. Thanks for report I want to visit Carlsbad again. How is Rev. Mike doing?

n5lp · #5 03-03-2013, 05:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Vlad

Larry you live in unique place. Thanks for report I want to visit Carlsbad again. How is Rev. Mike doing?...

I haven't seen Rev. Mike out at the airport in a while Vlad. We do tend to be on different schedules as he works on Sundays while I fly. The last time I saw him I do recall him saying something like "expensive hobby." There is something to that.

RONSIM · #6 03-03-2013, 09:52 AM

Lived in Albuquerque 10 years, based at Double Eagle, pleasure flying the southwest ---- moved back to FL in '07. Really, really, really miss NM. (Wife says living nearer kids/grandkids is the priority! ---- Happy wife, Happy life!)

Louise Hose · #7 03-03-2013, 11:25 AM

Glad you had a good day of flying and I appreciate the photos. I love the Land of Enchantment, where trees are covering up everything that's interesting.

BobTurner · #8 03-03-2013, 07:07 PM

I cannot find the cave. Can you describe where to look?

n5lp · #9 03-03-2013, 07:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BobTurner

I cannot find the cave. Can you describe where to look?

Hello Bob, that is kind of a sensitive topic among cavers and I used to be one of those people. I do think it gets way out of proportion at times. One of the local government entities will not even give out the names of newly discovered caves, with no other information whatever. When you get a permit to visit a cave, you do get directions to it.

I will compromise and give you more information than I had to find the cave. The name of the cave is Torgac and it is in Lincoln County, NM NW of Roswell on Bureau of Land Management land. It doesn't show up well on aerial photos but there is ample other public information available to find it.

Very desolate area.